Gyeonggi Province has become the first municipality in Korea to provide the public with real-time information on the concentrations of heavy metal elements such as lead (Pb) and calcium (Ca) in fine particles via the Air Gyeonggi-do website (http://air.gg.go.kr).

By providing accurate information on the concentrations of heavy metal elements contained in the episodesoccurrences of yellow and fine particles that have hit S. Korea severly overin the recent years, Gyeonggi Province hopes seeks to reduce resident anxiety and help residents actively respond to fine particles.

Data released through the website are is gathered through measurements performedd at the Gyeonggi-do Atmospheric Component Monitoring Station located in Anjung-eup, Pyeongtaek. This is how both the hourly and 24-hour average concentrations of lead and calcium contained in fine particles are released on the website.

Lead is a pollutant emitted mainly by industrial sites. Causing muscle paralysis and mental disorders in the human body, lead is considered as a harmful substance according to domestic and overseas air quality standards. Calcium is a metal mainly primarily foundcontained in soil that can be used to track the impact of yellow dust from China, but is harmless to the human body.

As this real-time information service will help the public easily get access accurate information on about heavy metal elements contained in fine particles, it is expected that residents will be able to more proactively respond to fine particles.

Yoon Mi-hye, director of the Gyeonggi-do Institute of Health and Environment, said, “Gyeonggi Province has decided to share with the public the concentrations of metal elements contained in fine particles in the hope of opening up a two-way communication with residents through transparent disclosure of information. Gyeonggi Province will be able to ease the public’s vagueindefinite anxiety anxieties in relation to fine particules through information sharing and resident-led communication and offer administrative services tailored to residents.”

Gyeonggi Province had installed Gyeonggi-do Atmospheric Componenet Monitoring Sites in Pyeongtaek and Pocheon last year to accurately identify the effects of air pollutants from thermal power plants concentrated in on the west coast on of the region.

Two more atmospheric component monitoring sites were installed in the eastern and western parts of Gyeonggi Pprovince this year and studies are currently being conducted to identify the causes of fine particles. In addition to these efforts, Gyeonggi Province plans to release the results of fine particles component analyses to protect the health of residents.