[Photo] China accounts for 32% of S. Korea’s air pollution, joint study finds

A joint study conducted by researchers from South Korea, China, and Japan has concluded that 32% of South Korea’s ultrafine dust came from China in 2017. China accounted for 25% of Japan’s ultrafine dust pollution for the same year. The study measured levels of various air pollutants in all three countries over a long-term period from 2000 to 2017. The National Institute of Environmental Research announced the study’s results on Nov. 20. Conversely, South Korea accounted for only 2% of China’s fine particulate matter. The concentration of South Korea’s ultrafine dust in 2017, however, has decreased by 12% compared to 2015 levels, while China’s has decreased by 22% for the same period. (Kim Bong-gyu, staff photographer)