Korea’s Carbon Taget Obtained Its Legal Ground

-        Framework Act on Low Carbon Green Growth went into effect

Major contents of the enforcement decree include the followings:

l  The target for greenhouse gas reduction is 30 percent from the business-as-usual projection for 2020. (Article 25)

l  Businesses which are subject to governmental control concerning emission of greenhouse gases and consumption of energy is as the following:

-        Entity of which the total annual average quantity of greenhouse gases emitted, and energy consumed at all its places of business for the past three years meets the standards of no less than 125,000 tons and 500 terajoules in 2011 respectively; the scope of application is to be widened annually; and

-        Entity’s place of business of which the total annual average quantity of greenhouse gases emitted and energy consumed for the past three years meets the standards of no less than 25,000 tons and 100 terajoules in 2011 respectively; the scope of application is to be widened annually. (Article 29)

l  The Greenhouse Gas Information Center shall be set up under the Minister of Environment in order to establish and manage the national integrated information management system for greenhouse gases. The Minister of Environment shall verify the information and statistics on greenhouse gases, and externally maintain the status as a national integrated information manager on greenhouse gases. (Article 36)

In addition, the enforcement decree prescribes the procedure and competent agencies regarding greenhouse gas management system. Also, the government should establish standards for the efficiency of average energy consumption of automobiles and standards for allowable emission of greenhouse gases from automobiles respectively to promote energy saving.

The enforcement decree prescribes the composition of the Presidential Committee on Green Growth in the Article 10 and the establishment of a five-year plan for the national strategy for green growth in the Article 4.

The promulgation and enactment of the Framework Act on Low Carbon Green Growth is significant in that legal basis for accomplishing low carbon green growth is established. The English versions of the Framework Act and its Enforcement Decree on Low Carbon, Green Growth are available at the website of the Ministry of Government Legislation (www.moleg.go.kr).