The Korea Herald

Air pollution linked to low birth weight: study

Feb 6, 2013

For pregnant women, breathing in air pollution from vehicles, heating and coal power plants increases the risk of having a low birth weight baby, an international study said Wednesday.The research, the most extensive of its kind on the link between air pollution and fetal development, found that the higher the pollution, the greater the rate of children born with a low weight. It was published in the US journal Environmental Health Perspectives.Scientists analyzed data from more than three milli
Fine particles a stealthy killer

Jan 24, 2013

Recent smog prompts calls for tighter regulation, measures against pollutants from China
Mercury treaty adopted in Geneva by 140 countries

Jan 19, 2013

Delegations from some 140 countries have agreed to adopt a ground-breaking treaty limiting the use of health-hazardous mercury, the Swiss foreign ministry said Saturday.The world's first legally binding treaty on mercury, reached after a week of thorny talks, will aim to reduce global emission levels of the toxic heavy metal also known as quicksilver, which poses risks to human health and the environment."The new treaty aims to reduce the production and the use of mercury, especially in the prod
Ditch disposable coffee cups

Jan 10, 2013

Did you stop by a coffee shop and grab a latte on the way to work this morning? Over the past decade, what was before perceived as a typical American lifestyle has become a daily routine for many Koreans, churning out thousands of tiny takeaway coffee shops on corners of Seoul streets. But do you know that your cup of joy this morning had a negative impact on the environment? An average Korean drinks over 338 cups of coffee a year. There is no official data on how many of those coffees are bough
Dutch official: Save H20, pee in shower

Jan 10, 2013

A local government official in the Netherlands is recommending people save money and resources by peeing in the shower.Bert Wassink, a council member in the Drenthe municipality of Aa en Hunze, said residents can reduce water consumption by combining shower time with toilet time, DutchNews.nl reported Wednesday.Wassink made his comments as part of the council‘s 2013 sustainability initiative, which has saving water as one of its focal points.The official said peeing in the shower “saves lots of
S. Korea restarts troubled nuclear reactor

Jan 1, 2013

South Korea on Monday restarted one of three nuclear reactors shut down for safety reasons, easing fears of power shortages during the harsh winter.Half of the six reactors at Yeonggwang, one of the country's largest nuclear power complexes, were shut down in November, two of them to replace "non-core" parts that had been provided with forged quality and safety warranties.The Ministry of Knowledge Economy said operators restarted one reactor at Yeonggwang in the evening following approval by the
Mt. Mudeung named as new national park

Dec 27, 2012

Mudeung in Gwangju, South Jeolla Province, has been designated as a national park, the Environmental Ministry said Thursday. With the new addition, the first in almost 24 years, the number of national parks in Korea rises to 21. “The natural values of Mount Mudeong are deemed sufficient to win the status,” the ministry said in a statement. Its current status is a provincial park. As a national park, the area will now be administered by the state-run Korea National Park Service, with the entire e
Major environmental policy change unlikely under Park

Dec 27, 2012

Following is the seventh in a series of articles on President-elect Park Geun-hye’s key policies. ― Ed.President-elect Park Geun-hye is expected to maintain incumbent leader Lee Myung-bak’s key policies on environmental issues including carbon emissions reduction, green growth and nuclear power generation. But environmental groups are concerned about the possibility of a weakened momentum under the incoming leader whose pledges were criticized for lacking substantial goals and action plans.Park
Antarctic ice sheet warming faster than thought: study

Dec 27, 2012

PARIS (AFP) ― The West Antarctic Ice Sheet, whose melt may be responsible for 10 percent of the sea-level rise caused by climate change, is warming twice as quickly as previously thought, a study said Sunday.A re-analysis of temperature records from 1958 to 2010 revealed an increase of 2.4 degrees Celsius over the period ― three times the average global rise.The increase was nearly double what previous research had suggested, and meant this was one of the fastest-warming regions on Earth, accord
New species, old threats to Mekong wildlife

Dec 20, 2012

HANOI (AFP) ― From a devilish-looking bat to a frog that sings like a bird, scientists have identified 126 new species in the Greater Mekong area, the World Wildlife Fund for Nature said Tuesday in a new report detailing discoveries in 2011.But from forest loss to the construction of major hydropower projects on the Mekong River, existing threats to the region’s biodiversity mean many of the new species are already struggling to survive, the conservation group warned.“The good news is new discov
Chicago skyscrapers go green, slash energy costs

Dec 20, 2012

CHICAGO (AFP) ― Chicago’s skyline is going green, as property managers install energy efficient tools like motion-detectors on office lights, in a project officials hope will inspire changes across the United States.At the riverside Sheraton hotel, chief engineer Ryan Egan cannot get over what his new thermostats can do ― or the $136,000 a year in savings they are producing.First off, they’re tied into the booking management system, which means he can let the room temperature drift beyond standa
Korea to train environmental officials from developing countries

Dec 13, 2012

Korea will train government officials from under-developed and developing countries to help them embrace green ideas in policymaking, a senior Seoul official said. The state-run Korea Environmental Industry and Technology Institute is currently in talks with the United Nations Environmental Program for the launch of the program, Yoon Seung-joon, chief of the state-run KEITI, said. “A memorandum of understanding is likely to be inked (between the KEITI and the UNEP) in January, regarding that mat
‘Green exports take more than technology’

Dec 13, 2012

CEOs call for tailored strategy, intra-industry collaboration and domestic support
Environmental issues ignored during presidential campaign

Dec 6, 2012

Frustrated civic groups in ‘vote for green’ campaign try make environment bigger election issue
More than 30,000 plants find home at new ecological park

Dec 6, 2012

More than 4,300 species of plants, with a total of 30,000 specimens, have been planted at a giant ecological park to open next February, the Ministry of Environment said. Brought from all over the world, including desert and polar areas, the plants are assets of the National Institute of Ecology located in Seocheon, South Chungcheong Province, it added. Among the plants to find a new home at the NIE site are some 1,000 internationally endangered species, including Agave parviflora. Many of them