When was the last time that you got soaked in the rain without worrying about acid rain or toxic pollutants in the air? The Seoul Metropolitan Government will be holding a festival that allows the chance to play in the rain from Thursday to Saturday at Seoul Plaza. The event uses recycled and chlorinated rainwater. There will be a swimming pool with slides, as well as programs and activities including a water gun fight. A special booth will provide participants a chance to experience national di

Social Affairs July 25, 2017

The Ministry of Environment said Tuesday that it designated nitrous oxide, also known as “laughing gas” which is used to fill “happy balloons,” as a type of hallucinogen, banning its use for recreational purposes. (Instagram capture)Nitrous oxide has been used as a party drug by some young partygoers, or at clubs, as it gives a feeling of euphoria and relaxation.Under a new rule approved at a Cabinet meeting Tuesday, the sale, inhalation or abuse of nitrous oxide as a party drug is punishable by

Social Affairs July 25, 2017

Airborne fine dust particles decreased by 15.4 percent in June after the government halted the operation of aged coal-burning power plants in South Chungcheong Province, the Environment Ministry said Tuesday. Kim Beob-jeong, chief of the air quality policy division at the Environment Ministry speaks during a press briefing in Sejong on Tuesday. (Yonhap)As part of the Moon Jae-in administration’s efforts to tackle the nation’s worsening air pollution, the government has shut down eight plants age

Social Affairs July 25, 2017

The South Korean government is pushing to revise the missile guidelines developed with the United States to double the maximum weight of warheads on Seoul's ballistic missiles from the current 500 kilograms to counter growing threats from the North, sources said Monday.The Seoul government proposed the revision in line with the Seoul-Washington summit last month, and is known to be planning to begin talks regarding the issue during the annual Security Consultative Meeting and the Korea-US Integr

Defense July 24, 2017

Health and Welfare Minister Park Neung-hoo said Monday he will strengthen the country's social safety net and establish a foothold for a welfare state for the next five decades. During his inauguration ceremony held at the government complex in Sejong, south of Seoul, Park said the country should be able to embrace the vulnerable people and become an inclusive society that can bring about growth from all walks of life."To make an inclusive welfare state, there should be harmony between a sound m

Social Affairs July 24, 2017

The Seoul Metropolitan Government will file a lawsuit against the central government for the cost of cleaning up contaminated underground water near the US military base in Yongsan, central Seoul. (Yonhap)The city government is seeking compensation of 540 million won ($480,000) for the cost of purifying oil-contaminated groundwater around Camp Kim and near Noksapyeong Station. According to the city government’s internal inspection last year, the average benzene concentration near Yongsan Garriso

Social Affairs July 24, 2017

As many as 1,168 houses, factories and other buildings were waterlogged and over 70 residents were evacuated in Incheon and Gyeonggi Province due to heavy rain over the weekend, the nation’s disaster control center said Monday. Residents clean up the house in Incheon, Monday. (Yonhap)In Incheon, where at least 100 millimeters of rain fell in an hour on Sunday morning, at least 2,000 public officials, fire fighters and volunteer workers were dispatched to help recovery operations, the city govern

Social Affairs July 24, 2017

Suspected cases of tuberculosis outbreaks at mass facilities more than tripled in South Korea over the past three years, a report showed Thursday. According to a report from the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the government conducted 3,502 epidemiological investigations in 2016 for possible TB outbreaks at schools, hospitals and other mass facilities where at least one person was confirmed to have contracted the infectious disease. The number of surveys more than tripled from

Social Affairs July 20, 2017

The country's top diplomat on Wednesday asked her Brazilian counterpart to carry out an additional search operation for crew members who are missing from an ill-fated South Korean cargo ship, the foreign ministry said. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha made the request during a phone conversation with her Brazilian counterpart Aloysio Nunes, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  This file photo, provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on June 21, 2017, shows South Korea`s Foreign Mini

Social Affairs July 19, 2017

About half of Korea’s fine dust particles originate from within the country, while one-third is from China, a study jointly conducted by a South Korean institute and NASA showed Wednesday.  (Yonhap)According to the preliminary Korea US-Air Quality (KORUS AQ) study, conducted by NASA and Korea’s National Institute of Environmental Research, about 52 percent of Korea’s fine dust particles and other airborne pollutants have domestic origins. China was the origin of some 34 percent of the particles,

Social Affairs July 19, 2017