So looking at the skies here in the country... it's not so surprising to learn that Korea's air pollution is worse than any other country in the OECD.
Choi Si-young tells us more.
Air pollution in South Korea -- in terms of ultra-fine dust concentration -- is not only more than TWICE the OECD average,... it's the WORST out of the entire group of advanced countries.
According to a new OECD report, South Korea recorded an average of 25-point-one-four micrograms of PM 2.5 particles per cubic meter in 2017.
The OECD average was twelve-point-five.
Mexico and Italy were higher than the average, while Germany, France and the United Kingdom came in below.
South Korea's air pollution is also bleak by local weather agency standards.
In 2016, South Korea's National Institute of Environmental Research singled out Seoul as the most polluted major urban area among the cities it surveyed.
The South Korean capital had the highest ultrafine dust levels at an average of 26 micrograms per cubic meter.
That's almost twice as high as other surveyed cities such as London, Paris, Los Angeles and Tokyo.
Those cities ranged between 12 and 14 micrograms per cubic meter.
Local weather experts point to China as the source of the heightened levels of ultrafine dust in South Korea.
According to the National Institute of Environmental Research, stagnant wind currents are making the situation even worse as the particles are not dispersed,... but linger over the peninsula.
With air pollution in South Korea looking grimmer than ever, pressure is rising on the government to take much more wide-ranging steps to safeguard public health.
Choi Si-young, Arirang News.
