By Eugene Kim
SEOUL, Jan. 29 (Xinhua) -- As South Korean president Lee Myung- bak continues to express his deep-hearted zeal for green growth in a number of side meetings with global business and political leaders at the 2010 World Economic Forum (WEF), South Korea's proactive approach to take a lead in creating a low carbon society is garnering mounting attention from the international community.
With projections to generate additional economic output worth 206 trillion won (162.7 billion U.S. dollars) and around 1.8 million new jobs overall, South Korea is vehemently encouraging its people as well as other countries to follow steps in its effort to push for eco-friendly growth.
GOVERNMENT INITIATIVES
Lee first proclaimed his plan to push forward with eco-friendly policies in his speech on Aug. 15, 2008, the 60th anniversary of the founding of South Korea.
"I want to put forward 'Low Carbon, Green Growth' as the core of the Republic's (South Korea) new vision," said Lee in the speech, adding that the new national development paradigm is aimed at simultaneously reducing greenhouse gas emission and environmental pollution while sustaining economic growth in green technology and clean energy.
Thereafter, on the heels of the global financial crisis, South Korea announced the "Green New Deal" in January 2009 as part of the national stimulus package, which has been set up to invest 50 trillion won (38.5 billion U.S. dollars) from 2009 to 2012 in nine key environmental projects, thereby creating 956,000 new jobs in the green sector.
The government then proceeded to launch the Presidential Committee on Green Growth (PCGG) in February 2009 under the mandate to discuss all subjects pertaining to green growth as well as coordinating government works in this area.
The PCGG initiated a number of important agenda items, including the National Strategy for Green Growth, and set the midterm greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction target as well, according to the government.
The National Strategy for Green Growth is the highest level government plan in the field, which calls for the implementation of a five-year plan where the government spends 107 trillion won (84.5 billion U.S. dollars), or 2 percent of total gross domestic product (GDP) every year, on green growth by 2013 -- twice the amount recommended by the Green Economy Initiative advocated by the U.N. Environment Program, industry reports said.
The PCGG has taken bold steps with regards to GHG reduction targets by voluntarily deciding to cut its GHG emissions by 30 percent from the Business As Usual (BAU) scenario by 2020; the highest level of mitigation recommended by the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change for developing countries aimed at stabilizing the global temperature rise to less than 2 degrees Celsius.
PROMOTING "GREENER" LIFE STYLES
Promoting greener, or eco-friendly, life styles has become a key ingredient to the South Korean government's green growth policies, as Lee emphasized, "Real changes will only come through the public's changed behavior."
As part of a strategy to pursue low carbon, environmentally friendlier living, the government has already started a nationwide enlightenment campaign called "Green Start Movement," which encourages the reduction of GHG emissions in the non-industrial sector through voluntary participation and practice, and also launched a campaign called "Green Energy Family Movement" in which businesses, non-governmental organizations, local governments, public institutions, and the public participate voluntarily to significantly curb carbon gas emissions.
There have also been point systems by the government such as the new "Carbon Point System" in which the amount of electricity, gas, and water people save in GHG are calculated and reward points are given, which can later be cashed in.
Also, a "Carbon Cash-Back System" has been introduced where points are offered to consumers who purchase certified low-carbon products that emit less carbon while being produced or in use.
"Koreans may be asked to make a steeper reduction than the government-proposed 10 percent reduction of GHG emissions in daily lifestyles to achieve the reduction target by 2020," said Do Gunwoo, a research fellow focusing on environmental economies, public finance, and climate change at the Samsung Economic Research Institute (SERI), referring to the country's goal to cut its GHG emissions by 4 percent from its 2005 level by 2020.
IMPENDING OBSTACLES
Despite South Korea's determination to boost green growth policies, the country is also facing daunting tasks that may hinder its upbeat movements.
According to 2009 data from Korea Institute of Energy Technology Evaluation and Planning (IETEP), the technology level of Korea's new and renewable energy (NRE) industry is relatively low compared to those of industry leaders.
For example, their silicon and thin-film solar cell technology is 61 percent and 88 percent respectively of industry leaders' capabilities and accounts for a mere 0.7 percent of the global solar energy market, while its offshore and onshore wind farm technology is 68 percent and 79 percent of industry leaders' and owns a paltry 1.1 percent of the global market.
Furthermore, South Korea's technology level in fossil fuels and Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) hover around 50 percent of industry leaders' with zero market share in the global market, IETEP statistics show.
This apparent lag in South Korea's domestic NRE technology may prove to be an impediment to local business' development, as it offers no incentives for foreign institutions to pursue joint work with domestic institutions, causing a lack of information exchange in newly discovered NRE technologies from other parts of the world, SERI said.
SERI also noted that due to the high-risk, high-return nature of green industries, there are too few funding programs at this point managed by either public or private financial institutions, depriving local companies from receiving enough investment to improve research.
Nonetheless, South Korea has high hopes that its sprawling green growth sector will induce other nations to take bolder steps in achieving eco-friendlier standards, thereby realizing the country's dream of a greener world.
As Secretary General of the Presidential Committee on Green Growth, Woo Ki-jong, said, "South Korea hopes its voluntary GHG reduction rate will create a more conducive atmosphere for other developing countries' engagement as well as further commitments from developed countries."
