hankyoreh

Seoul.

The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs (MLTM) released its "Study of 2007 Greenhouse Gas Emissions for the Transportation Sector by Region and Means of Transportation." The report shows South Korea's transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions exceeded 100 million tons in 2007. Highway traffic emissions were the highest among means of transportation. Seoul and the capital region accounted for around half of all emissions.

The report also reveals that greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation sector have for the first time exceeded 100 million, registering at some 100,980,000 carbon dioxide equivalent tons (a measure converting various greenhouse gases into the standard of CO₂emissions, hereafter "tons"). This is an increase of 2.4 times the 42.92 million tons emitted in 1990. Greenhouse gas emissions increased by 7.5 percent per year on average between 1990 and 2000, and since then have shown an annual rate of increase of between 2 and 3 percent.

Emissions by means of transportation were highest for highway traffic, at 78.48 million tons (77.7 percent), followed in order by: sea transport (12.86 million tons, 12.7 percent), air transport (8.97 million tons, 8.9 percent) and rail transport (6.7 million tons, 0.7 percent).

The capital region accounted for some 44.7 percent of emissions nationwide, with Gyeonggi Province emitting 19.98 million tons (19.8 percent), Incheon 12.61 million tons (12.5 percent) and Seoul 12.49 million tons (12.4 percent). Busan follows in emission levels of 8.44 million tons (8.4 percent), South Gyeongsang Province at 6.27 million tons (6.2 percent), and Ulsan at 6.16 million (6.1 percent). In 2005, South Korea's annual per capita greenhouse gas emissions of 9.30 tons were similar to those of Japan's 9.50 tons and Germany's 9.86 tons. However, the annual rate of change of 0.28 percent is higher than those of Great Britain's -0.20percent and Germany's -0.56 percent.

"Since South Korea is expected to be included among the target nations for obligatory greenhouse gas reductions beginning in 2013, we need to prepare for greenhouse gas reductions at the national level, including encouraging greater public transportation use and the building of a green transportation network," said a source at the MLTM.

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