Korea's waste output falls for first time in a decade

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Korea's waste output falls for first time in a decade

A person walks by closed businesses in Seoul on Jan. 12. According to the Korean Statistical Information Service, the retail sales index from January to November 2024 fell 2.1 percent from the same period a year earlier. [NEWS1]

A person walks by closed businesses in Seoul on Jan. 12. According to the Korean Statistical Information Service, the retail sales index from January to November 2024 fell 2.1 percent from the same period a year earlier. [NEWS1]

 
Korea's per capita waste output decreased for the first time in a decade as the lingering effects of economic downturn continued to drive small enterprises out of business, dampening their garbage generation.
 
The country generated 1.17 kilograms (2.58 pounds) of daily municipal waste per resident in 2023, a decrease of approximately 2.8 percent from 2022, according to the Ministry of Environment’s report on national waste generation and disposal, which is released every December. Municipal waste includes garbage, recyclables and food waste generated by homes and businesses.
 

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While per capita municipal waste generated by households held steady, that produced by businesses decreased by 8.9 percent, or 560,000 tons, on year to 5.72 million tons.
 
Per capita municipal waste generation had been rising consistently since 2013, when it stood at 0.94 kilograms, reaching 1.2 kilograms in 2022. 
 
However, 2023 marked the first year in which the figure declined. Notably, food waste dropped significantly, by about 16 percent, from 440,000 tons in 2022 to 370,000 tons in 2023.
 
[KOREA ENVIRONMENT CORPORATION]

[KOREA ENVIRONMENT CORPORATION]

Experts suggested that the decline in waste generation was more likely driven by an economic downturn than by changes in waste management policies.
 
“Business-related municipal waste primarily comes from small businesses and office workplaces in large corporations,” said Hong Su-yeol, director of the Resource Recycling Socio-Economic Research Institute. “The significant drop in food waste, in particular, suggests that small businesses, including restaurants, have been struggling.”
 
“There were no notable government policies or campaigns specifically aimed at reducing waste during this period,” said Kim Tae-hee, policy director at the nongovernmental organization Korea Zero Waste Movement Network.
 
In 2023, the number of small business owners that had closed down their enterprises neared 1 million, reaching an all-time high.
 
According to a report the Korea Enterprises Federation published in January, 986,000 business owners closed shop in 2023, the highest figure since 2006. The restaurant industry recorded the highest closure rate at 16.2 percent.
 
“Despite the lifting of social distancing measures in 2022, soaring prices and reduced consumer spending due to factors such as the war in Ukraine led to a surge in small business closures the following year,” said Lee Jung-hee, an economics professor at Chung-Ang University.
 
“The decline in waste generation after a decade likely reflects these economic conditions.”

BY JEONG EUN-HYE, KIM MIN-YOUNG [[email protected]]
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