South Korea is upping its game in regards to its anti-fine dust response.
With more nasty air cloaking parts of the country today,... a preliminary high fine dust alert was issued for Seoul and its surrounding regions at 6AM,.. about an hour ago.
It's the first time the alert has been issued since the Special Act on fine dust reduction was approved late last week.
Lee Seung-jae reports.
With the public becoming ever more disgruntled with the state of the air, the South Korean government is tackling the fine dust issue head on.
With smoggy skies becoming an increasingly concerning public health issue, the Special Act on Fine Dust Reduction and Management came into force last Friday in the strongest bid yet to reduce and manage air pollution.
The measures include banning old diesel cars from roads nationwide when fine dust levels exceed 50 micrograms for two consecutive days.
However, under the new regulations, the alternate no-driving day, previously implemented for just civil servants, will now apply to every vehicle owner in the country.
The Environment Ministry announced that the preliminary measures came into effect at 6AM on Wednesday and will be in force until 9PM.
Because it's just a preliminary alert for now,... the ministry says only civil servants in administrative and public institutions in the target areas are obliged to comply with the alternate no-driving restrictions.
Such measures will be implemented on all car owners,... when alerts are in full motion, which could happen as early as Thursday, if the fine dust levels remain above the 50 microgram threshold.
In addition, over 450 construction sites across South Korea will be ordered to down tools on Wednesday,... while the use of old construction machinery will be limited as well.
Lee Seung-jae, Arirang News.