Towards Osaka Blue Ocean Vision - G20 Implementation Framework for Actions on Marine Plastic Litter

the Republic of Korea

Actions and Progress on Marine Plastic Litter
Last Update : 2024/09/18

 

Policy Framework

National Action Plan

Name:
● 1st Framework Plan for Management of Marine Debris and Contaminated Marine Sediment (2021-2030)

Brief description:
This is a comprehensive action plan to address various types of marine debris. It aims to reduce marine plastic waste by 60% by 2030 and achieve zero waste by 2050. To this end, the Republic of Korea has outlined tasks related to strategies for preventing waste generation, improving collection and transportation systems, promoting processing and recycling, strengthening management foundations, and raising public awareness.

Legal Framework

Name:

  1. ● Management Act on Marine Debris and Contaminated Marine Sediment (2019)
  2. ● Act on Promotion of Transition to Circular Economy and Society (2016)

Brief description:

  1. ▶ (Management Act on Marine Debris and Contaminated Marine Sediment) This law stipulates the necessary measures to manage marine waste and contaminated sediments in an environmentally friendly and systematic manner. Its purpose is to conserve the marine environment and enhance the quality of life for the public.
  2. ▶ (Act on Promotion of Transition to Circular Economy and Society) This law contributes to creating a sustainable circular economy and society by efficiently using resources throughout the entire product lifecycle—including production, distribution, and consumption—minimizing waste generation, and promoting the recycling of generated waste.

Indicators and/or Targets

  1. ■ Plastic recycling
  2. ■ Plastic to alternatives, such as glass, paper or bioplastics:
    Indicators:
    Replacement of existing plastic fishing gear with biodegradable alternatives (gillnets and traps)
    Targets (if any): Annual budget execution for the supply of biodegradable fishing gear.
  3. ■ Beach Cleanup:
    Indicators:
    Research on the current status, economic impact, and duration of ghost fishing, among other related topics.
    Targets (if any): Measuring the amount and types of reduced plastic
  4. ■ Ghost Fishing Gear recovery:
    Indicators:
    Investigation and project to manage ghost fisheries in progress from 2023 by the Korea Fisheries Infrastructure Public Agency
    Targets (if any): Research on the current status, economic impact, and duration of ghost fishing, among other related topics.

Technical Standards, Guidelines and Methodologies

Topics:
■ production / manufacturing ■ leakage monitoring

Brief description:

  1. ▶ (Production / Manufacturing) Inspection regulations for biodegradable fishing gear. Criteria for biodegradable fishing gear resin, for biodegradation effectiveness, and for the strength of biodegradable nets.
  2. ▶ (Leakage monitoring) Assessment of microplastic distribution to determine their quantity and form in the ocean. Monitoring the quantity and types of marine microplastics on beaches, sea surfaces, and the seafloor.

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Measures

Measures across Value Chain
  • Actions for encouraging sustainable / circular product design
  • Policy actions for encouraging plastic alternatives, recycled materials at production stage.
  • Steps taken towards restricting microplastics in products.
  • Reduce single-use plastic (shopping bags, straws etc.) by regulations or voluntary measures
  • Introduce Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)
  • Improve waste management and recycling system
  • Promoting plastic waste re-use, recycling and recovery opportunities
  • Install capturing trap/filter on drainage/river
  • Conduct clean-up activities in rivers/ wetlands/ beaches/ coasts/ coral reefs/ sea floor, involving local communities involving local communities
    • Product Specific Measures: ALDFG
  • Taken/to be taken National Level Action and/or Community Level Action on Clean sea initiatives including ghost net retrieval, ocean-bound plastics etc.
  • Taken actions for preventing abandoned, lost and discarded fishing gear (ALDFG) being generated.
  • Created/creating collection/recycling mechanism for ALDFG
    • Partnership and Innovation
  • Boost multi-stakeholder involvement and awareness-raising
  • Encourage/ Incentivize action by private sector companies to reduce/ sustainably manage their plastic waste.
  • Encourage public awareness on MPL issues through formal education system and/or curriculum for
  • Promote innovative solutions through Research & Development
    • Monitoring, Data Management, Understanding Flow of Plastics/MPL
  • Conduct Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of plastic products. What are the challenges if LCA is not conducted?
  • Conduct Material Flow Analysis (MFA) on plastics. What are the challenges if MFA is not conducted?
  • Conduct monitoring / estimation / scientific research on leakage of plastics/microplastics to the natural environment and/or flow of ocean surface. What are the challenges if these actions are not conducted?
    • International Collaboration
  • Participate in international cooperation through international
  • Support target region by your international cooperation initiatives/projects: South, Central and Southeast Asia

    • Measures across Value Chain
    Actions for encouraging sustainable / circular product design (example: improved durability, reparability, recyclability, reduction of material use per product…etc.) Yes

    Specific Measures:

    1. ▶ (Evaluation System for Recyclability) Evaluate the factors that impede the recyclability of products, containers, etc., being produced, processed, and sold, and encourage manufacturers to make improvements in the product manufacturing phase to promote recycling. In addition, a standard for weight is added to evaluate recyclability from March 2024.
    2. ▶ (Quality Certification Committee on Certified Buoy)To enhance the eco-friendliness and resource circulation of buoys used in fisheries (fishing boats and aquaculture), the ' Quality Certification Committee on Certified Buoy' is operated to review the eco-friendliness, recyclability, durability, and usability of new buoys.

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    Policy actions for encouraging plastic alternatives, recycled materials at production stage. Yes

    Specific Measures:
    ■ Use of biodegradable plastics (biodegradable fishing gear)
    Brief description:
    Subsidies are provided to fishermen who replace existing fishing gear with biodegradable alternatives.
    Steps taken towards restricting microplastics in products. Yes

    Specific Measures:
    Targeted Products
    ■ Cosmetics and Personal Care Products
    ■ Others (Please specify: Fabric softener, bleach, and laundry detergent)

    Brief description (Please provide explanation for each targeted product selected):
    The manufacture, sale, import, and use of cosmetics and non-medical cleansing and exfoliation products containing solid plastics smaller than 5 mm are prohibited. Additionally, laundry products containing microplastics are banned.

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    Reduce single-use plastic (shopping bags, straws etc.) by regulations or voluntary measures (such as ban, levy, others) Yes

    ■ Regulatory Measures (ex: production ban, Ban on use..etc)

    1. ▶ (Regulation of Single-Use Items) Ban on the use of single-use cups, plastic straws, and free provision of single-use bags and shopping bags in facilities such as group feeding centers, food service businesses, and large-scale stores. Moreover, the use of plastic umbrella covers, provided by the department and other stores on rainy days are prohibited while the use of plastic cheering equipment is also banned in sports facilities.
    2. ▶ (Brief Description) Starting from November 2022, the compliance requirements for each industry will be strengthened and the range of single-use items subject to regulation will be expanded. In addition to those, policy measures to encourage a voluntary participation in reducing single-use plastics have been scaled-up since November 2023.

    ■ Economic Measures (levy, tax, subsidies…etc.)

    1. ▶ (Deposit System for Disposable Cups) Disposable cups used in beverage-selling brand stores (Sejong and Jeju areas) with more than 100 operating branches nationwide.
    2. ▶ (Brief Description) Disposable cups used in beverage-selling brand stores (Sejong and Jeju areas) include a resource circulation deposit (300won) when sold. Customers can get their deposit refunded by returning the disposable cup. This measure has applied in 691 stores as of July 2024.

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    Introduce Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Yes

    Specific Measures:

    Targeted Products
    1. ▶ 4 types of packing materials (carton pack, metal can, glass bottle, plastic packages)
    2. ▶ 24 types of products (5 types of file products, batteries, tires, lubricant, fishing gear, etc.)
    Nature of Responsibility ■ Financial responsibility
    ■ Operational responsibility
    ■ Collective producer responsibility
    Modality Mandatory EPR
    ■ Advance disposal fee
    (price: $0.026/kg~ $0.75/kg)
    ■ Downstream subsidy
    (price: $0.01/kg~$0.138/kg)
    * Only applicable to packaging of PET,
    single/composite container and film from synthetic resin         		Voluntary EPR
    -
    Eco-modulation
    (if applicable)
    		 ■ Fees modulated based on recyclability of products
    Performance indicators
    		 ■ recycling rate* Current: 78%
    : The total average of all EPR products
    ■ Others: No collection rate. Instead, Korea EPR has recycling obligation rate over product and import volume per EPR products.
    Brief Description

    For satisfying the recycling obligatory rate, most of the producers, importers, and brand owners pay their contributions to EPR, which consists of 14 entities that represent producers, collectors and recyclers.
    Improve waste management and recycling system Yes

    Specific Measures:

    1. ▶ (IT-based management system) Establishing an IT-based system to accurately and quickly build basic statistics that are the foundation of waste-related policies. In particular, the Allbaro System (e-manifest system) manages the entire process, from discharge to handover to treatment, online, and efforts are underway to prevent blind spots in illegal dumping through establishment of an automatic transmission system for on-site information from October 2022. Moreover, the government is currently planning an information management system to monitor domestic waste by type.
    Promoting plastic waste re-use, recycling and recovery opportunities Yes

    Specific Measures:
    Innovative measures to reduce marine debris have been established and implemented since 2023. To improve private recycling of marine waste, the government is supporting the development of related technologies. In 2024, a facility is operated to collect recyclable waste ropes generated from ships.

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    Install capturing trap/filter on drainage/river Yes

    Specific Measures:
    Article 11 of the Management of Marine Debris and Contaminated Marine Sediment Act requires national and local agencies to implement measures to block marine inflow and prevent waste from entering the ocean via rivers and streams. To address land-based waste, waste collection facilities have been installed in rivers, streams, and estuaries that flow into the sea.
    Conduct clean-up activities in rivers/ wetlands/ beaches/ coasts/ coral reefs/ sea floor, involving local communities involving local communities Yes

    Specific Measures:

    1. ▶ Local governments and citizens regularly collaborate to collect waste from rivers, wetlands, and coasts. Sedimentary waste in the sea is also collected on a regular basis through cooperation between local and central governments. Notably, since 2020, 'Adopt-A-Beach' programs have been established, with the private sector leading efforts to clean beaches and coastal areas. As of 2024, 230 organizations are participating in these programs.
    2. ▶ (Marine Environment Keepers) A regular collection system is in place, deploying personnel and equipment to focus on coastal areas where marine debris is frequently generated. Each year, before the rainy season (June), intensive waste collection activities are conducted in rivers and coastal areas to reduce the inflow of waste into the ocean

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    Product Specific Measures: ALDFG
    Taken/to be taken National Level Action and/or Community Level Action on Clean sea initiatives including ghost net retrieval, ocean-bound plastics etc. Yes

    Specific Measures:
    National and local governments are collecting discarded fishing gear in accordance with the Management of Marine Garbage and Contaminated Marine Sediment Act and its framework plan. Notably, the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives, a fishermen's organization, is conducting a collection project in collaboration with the government. This initiative uses fishing boats to gather discarded gear from offshore waters during the fishing season.

    Taken actions for preventing abandoned, lost and discarded fishing gear (ALDFG) being generated. Yes

    Specific Measures:
    To prevent fishing waste from entering the ocean, a deposit system for fishing gear and buoys was introduced in 2022 and will be implemented starting January 2024. Under this system, fishermen pay a deposit when purchasing fishing gear and receive a refund when they return used gear. Initially applied to fish traps (excluding eel traps) from January 2024, the system is scheduled to extend to gillnets and fishing buoys in 2026.

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    Created/creating collection/recycling mechanism for ALDFG Yes

    Specific Measures:
    National and local governments are responsible for collecting abandoned fishing gear generated during fishing activities. Both central and local authorities regularly conduct collection projects for this purpose. The locations of discarded fishing gear are identified through surveys of fishermen and scientific research, leading to the designation of collection areas that are addressed on a regular annual basis. The collection process involves dedicated government-owned vessels (35 vessels), local government vessels, and private collection vessels (approximately 40 vessels).
    Partnership and Innovation
    Boost multi-stakeholder involvement and awareness-raising Yes

    Specific Measures:
    Since 2016, the Korea International Ocean Film Festival, hosted by Busan City, has been held to promote films and documentaries about marine debris and the marine environment. Each year, a contest is organized to promote zero ocean plastic and encourage recycling. Additionally, a beach clean-up campaign will be carried out, focusing on major beaches.
    Encourage/ Incentivize action by private sector companies to reduce/ sustainably manage their plastic waste. Yes

    Specific Measures:
    Since 2023, the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries has been holding ESG meetings to address issues such as marine debris and climate change in collaboration with private companies. These meetings offer new cooperation opportunities in marine waste management, including 'Adopt-A-Beach' programs, marine waste recycling, and the creation of funds for reducing plastic waste. The Ministry also supports the promotion of best practices and other initiatives.
    Encourage public awareness on MPL issues through formal education system and/or curriculum for Yes

    Specific Measures:
    The government conducts regular marine waste education in line with the 2nd Comprehensive Plan for Marine Environment Education (2021~2025) and the Framework Plan for the Management of Marine Garbage and Contaminated Marine Sediment. The National Marine Environment Education Center, established under the Environmental Education Act, develops teaching materials on marine debris, operates mobile classrooms for marine environment education, and manages the National Marine Environment Online Education Center
    (https://edu.merti.or.kr/user/Main.do ).

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    Promote innovative solutions through Research & Development (e.g., subsidy program, investment fund etc.) Yes
    Monitoring, Data Management, Understanding Flow of Plastics/MPL
    Conduct Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of plastic products. What are the challenges if LCA is not conducted? No
    Conduct Material Flow Analysis (MFA) on plastics. What are the challenges if MFA is not conducted? No
    Conduct monitoring / estimation / scientific research on leakage of plastics/microplastics to the natural environment and/or flow of ocean surface.
    What are the challenges if these actions are not conducted?     		Yes

    Specific Measures:
    ■ Regularly conduct monitoring/estimation/scientific research

    Scope: ■ Microplastics （<5㎜） ■ Ocean

    Brief Description:

    1. ▶ (Beach Macroplastics Monitoring) Monitoring points along the east, west, and south coasts have been selected for regular observation of marine waste. The number of monitoring points has increased from 20 in the 4th monitoring phase (2008~2014) to 40 in the 5th phase (2014~2020) and to 60 in the current phase (2021~2023). Monitoring of macroplastics is conducted every two months.
    2. ▶ (Marine Microplastics Monitoring) Since 2020, surveys have been conducted to monitor marine microplastics at beaches (40 locations), seafloor sediments (50 locations), surface seawater (50 locations), and marine indicator organisms (oysters and mussels at 50 locations).

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    International Collaboration
    Participate in international cooperation through international organizations, multi-national groups, etc. Yes

    Specific Measures:

    1. PEMSEA and the Korean government are carrying out a project to reduce marine plastics in East Asian Seas (from 2023 to 2028 / appx.USD8.6million)
    2. The Korean government-PEMSEA-OSEAN (Out Sea of East Asia Network) launched an initiative to achieve zero marine waste.
    3. IMO and the Korean government are carrying out marine waste reduction projects for countries under the New Southern Policy, such as Vietnam (from 2023 to 2027 / appx.USD5.4million)
    4. IUCN and the Korean government are carrying out a project to reduce the ecological impact of marine plastic pollution targeting Pacific island countries (from 2024 to 2028 / appx.USD3.6 million)
    Support target region by your international cooperation initiatives/projects: South, Central and Southeast Asia Yes

    Target Regions:
    ■ South Asia

    Specific Measures:
    To improve the marine environment in the Philippines and East Timor, the Korean government and PEMSEA are jointly implemented a marine plastic reduction project (from 2023 to 2028 / appx. USD8.6million).

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    Challenges

    ■ Proper waste management system (including lack of local capacity)

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    Best Practices

    ■ National level

    Description:

    1. ▶ Fishing Gear and Buoy Deposit System
      The fishing gear and buoy deposit system is the world's first voluntary recovery initiative. Under this system, a deposit is included in the price of fishing gear sold to fishermen, and the deposit is refunded when the used gear is returned to a designated location. This system, based on the revised Fisheries Act (effective January 1, 2022), has been in place since January 2024. It is initially implemented for fishing traps (excluding eel traps) in 2024 and will be expanded to include gillnet fishing gear and fishing buoys in 2026. In coordination with local governments, 181 return locations have been designated and are currently operating across the country for the return of discarded fishing gear.

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    Futher Information

    (Website)

    1. ▶ Ministry of Environment website (http://www.me.go.kr)
    2. ▶ Ministry of Ocean and Fisheries website (http://www.mof.go.kr)

    (Reports & Materials)

    1. ▶ Framework act on resources circulation
    2. ▶ The 1st National Resource Circulation plan (2018-2027)
    3. ▶ The 3rd national action plan on rivers and estuaries (2021-2025)
    4. ▶ Marine Litter and contaminated sediment management act
    5. ▶ The 1st National action plan on marine litter and marine contaminated sediment (2021-2030)

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    Contact Details

    Name: Youngsun Choi
    Position: Deputy Director
    Division: International Cooperation Division
    Organization: Ministry of Environment
    Email: [email protected]

    Name: Jiwon Hwang
    Position: Deputy Director
    Division: Marine Climate and Environment Strategy Team
    Organization: Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries
    Email: [email protected]

    Recent Meeting