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Newsletter | July 2016, Issue 2
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ENVIRONMENT
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Act on Integrated Management of Environmental Pollution Facilities to Take Effect on January 1, 2017
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The Act on Integrated Management of Environmental Pollution Facilities (the “Integrated Management Act”) passed the National Assembly and was promulgated on December 22, 2015. Subsequently, the Integrated Management Act will enter into force on January 1, 2017.
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The Integrated Management Act makes significant changes to the existing environmental permit regime, including by integrating over ten permits that were previously disbursed under individual statutes, such as under the Air Environment Conservation Act (“AECA”), and the Water Quality and Ecosystem Conservation Act (“WQECA”).
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Details
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The Integrated Management Act applies to large workplaces (i.e., Class 1 and Class 2 workplaces dealing with water and air pollutants) in approximately 20 industries with large-scale emissions.
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However, initially, in 2017, the Integrated Management Act will apply to only three industries ((1) electricity, (2) steam, hot/cold water and air conditioning supply and (3) waste disposal).
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The scope of application will gradually be increased so that it will apply to all relevant industries starting in 2021.
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Existing workplaces that fall within the requirement under the Integrated Management Act will be granted a four-year grace period (i.e., until December 31, 2020) under which to obtain an integrated license.
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Under the Integrated Management Act, 10 licenses that are currently governed under the existing regime by the 6 statutes below will be integrated into a single license. This will remove the need to seek separate approvals for each relevant license.
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License/declaration regarding air pollutant emissions facility under AECA
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Declaration regarding dust-generating business under AECA
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Declaration regarding dust-emitting facility under AECA
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Declaration regarding installation of VOC-emitting facility under AECA
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License/declaration regarding installation of noise and vibration producing facility under Noise and Vibration Control Act
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License/declaration regarding installation of wastewater discharging facility under WQECA
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Declaration regarding installation of non-point pollution source under WQECA
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Declaration regarding malodor producing facility under Malodor Prevention Act
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Declaration regarding installation of facility subject to management for certain soil contamination under Soil Environment Conservation Act
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Declaration regarding installation of waste disposal facility under Wastes Control Act
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Other Important Features
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In addition, to encourage businesses to apply quality and cost effective environmental technology, the best available techniques economically achievable (“BAT”) will be selected for each industry. Emission standards will now be customized for each worksite taking into account BAT and relevant industry and worksite characteristics.
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The Integrated Management Act contains a number of features6 that will streamline the permit process and make it easier to comply with applicable regulations.
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Considerations
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At the same time, it may take a significant amount of time for businesses to obtain the single integrated license, and implementing BAT may impose a financial burden on companies.
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As mentioned, BAT, as well as the maximum emission standard, will be taken into account in setting the emission standard for each workplace. Thus, we believe further developments at the MOE will need to be closely monitored in this regard.
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Also, details of the Enforcement Decree, and the Enforcement Rules to the Integrated Management Act, neither of which have been promulgated, may have significant impact on businesses, as follows:
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The Integrated Management Act requires the government to disclose certain information, including a catch-all category of “information … that is prescribed by decree of the Ministry of Environment [i.e., the Enforcement Rules]”; and
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The scope and method of disclosure could have important business ramifications.
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Examples include integrated permit, customized emissions standards, etc.
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Back to Main Page
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If you have any questions regarding this article, please contact below:
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For more information, please visit our website:
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