The National Institute of Environmental Research under the Ministry of Climate and Environment announced that it will distribute the ‘2023-2024 Greenhouse Gas Integrated Monitoring Report’ on December 15. This report is the first national report to officially disclose the status of greenhouse gas concentrations in urban areas in South Korea, including the ‘Urban Air Greenhouse Gas Measurement Network’ operated by the institute.
The report includes the measurement status of 14 participating institutions in the greenhouse gas observation research council, which is overseen by the National Institute of Environmental Research, and the analysis and evaluation results of carbon dioxide and methane concentrations at 16 sites from 2023 to 2024. It also highlights the higher greenhouse gas concentrations in urban areas compared to island background levels, differences in concentrations by site due to human activities, and seasonal and annual concentration trends.
For example, the annual average concentration of carbon dioxide at 11 sites from 2023 to 2024 increased by 1.1 ppm, which is smaller than the 3.1 ppm increase in the background concentration at Anmyeon-do during the same period. The annual average concentration of methane at 7 sites decreased by an average of 8.7 ppb, contrary to the 5.4 ppb increase in the background concentration at Anmyeon-do during the same period. Seasonal analysis showed that carbon dioxide concentrations decreased in summer due to increased photosynthesis and rainfall, and increased in winter.
The status and trends of greenhouse gas concentrations in urban areas included in this report will be used to establish a national and regional measurement, reporting, and verification system for carbon neutrality implementation evaluation. Additionally, urban greenhouse gas concentrations are expected to be used in the analysis of climate change patterns and policy effectiveness evaluation in the upcoming ‘Korean Climate Crisis Assessment Report’.