- 2023 Marine Waste Management Committee to be held on December 8th (Friday) to review and announce measures -

 The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (Minister Cho Seung Hwan) will be hosting its Marine Waste Management Committee meeting on December 8th (Friday), chaired by Minister Cho of Oceans and Fisheries and attended by Vice Ministers of relevant Ministries and heads of public agencies, to deliberate and announce the Measures for Reducing River Waste Entry into Oceans.

 The Measures for Reducing River Waste Entry into Oceans were established by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries in collaboration with other ministries and public agencies involved in the management of water resources, including the Ministry of Environment, Korea Forest Service, local governments, Korea Water Resources Corporation (K-Water), and Korea Rural Community Corporation, with the aim to minimize damages from increased waste outflow from rivers into oceans due to more frequent typhoons and torrential rain.

 The main actions of the measures include the following. First, to prevent the inflow of river garbage into oceans, increases in the number of garbage collection bins and blocking facilities, currently operated on a pilot basis at major dams and estuary banks, will be reviewed, while joint river cleanup projects among relevant agencies will be implemented in preparation for the flood season. In addition, a Disaster Waste Response Standard Manual (tentative name) will be drafted for the effective collection and treatment of massive floating and coastal waste caused by natural disasters, and support for local governments of the affected coastal areas will be expanded in terms of collection manpower and equipment as well as the collection and treatment of the waste. Through these actions, the Committee aims to establish a management framework to systematically block and collect river waste that flows into the oceans by 2026, and to reduce the amount of river garbage inflow by more than 30% of 2023 levels by 2027.

 Furthermore, the Committee plans to provide an update on the implementation status of the Innovative Measures to Reduce Marine Waste, which was announced back in April, as well as share information and exchange ideas on the progress of the Global Plastics Treaty of the UN’s Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee.