Are South Korea’s Carbon Neutralization Efforts Really Unrealizable?

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has announced that the combined land and ocean surface temperature reached its highest, 16.73 degrees Celsius, in July 2021. As global warming draws towards an inevitable tragedy, many countries are pushing to reduce their negative impact on the environment. South Korea is one of them; on 1 Sept. 2021, the nation became the 14th country to legislate the carbon neutrality act.

Carbon neutrality means the production of net-zero carbon dioxide emissions. Put simply, achieving carbon neutrality requires actions to eliminate carbon emissions altogether. The topic of carbon neutrality was highlighted in October 2018 by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The panel announced that all nations must achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. Since then, countries have submitted Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), legislative proposals stating efforts each country would put in to reach carbon neutrality.

South Korea’s carbon neutrality act is a step forward from its last 2015 NDC, which was criticized for being an insufficient goal considering Korea’s potential. The act affirms Korea’s vision to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. Moreover, it pledges that Korea will slash national greenhouse gas emissions in 2030 by 35 percent or more from 2018 levels. This percentage equates to at least 472.9 million metric tons of greenhouse gas. Under the new act, the Korean government will have to set specific reduction goals for each year and each industrial sector. Additionally, Korea aims to upgrade the country’s special presidential panel on carbon to an independent committee with a legal basis.

Currently, South Korea has confirmed 12 trillion won ($10.3 billion) as a budget to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the 2022 state budget plan. The government also plans to implement subsidies for the usage of hydrogen or battery-run electric vehicles and to expand financial support to reduce coal-fired power plants and internal combustion engine vehicles.

These new pushes for carbon neutrality are not without controversy. Businesses, especially those from the manufacturing sector, argue that the plans will hurt the competitiveness of the country’s key industries. Indeed, the total carbon debt of Korean companies in the first half of 2021 was estimated to be around 420 billion won. Civic groups criticize the current target as still too low to cope with the climate crisis. These groups are further contending that the set targets are unrealizable because Korea’s Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage technology (CCUS) is still in the developing phase. Even in politics, the opposition party is blaming the government for its unilateral conduct.

Despite this debate, South Korea’s new carbon neutrality act and its push towards carbon neutralization should be applauded. With the Korean economy transitioning its official UN classification from a developing to a developed one in July 2021, the government has taken steps to act accordingly to its elevated status. Furthermore, the goal of cutting 35 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in 2030 seems achievable after examining Japan’s case. The country has a bilateral cooperation project called the Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM), which helped Japan engage with developing countries to supply low-carbon green technology since 2013. This project has helped Japan reduce 939,150 tons of carbon emissions until 2020. By this model, there is hope for Korea to attain or even increase its 35 percent target.

Yet, most things are easier said than done. It is an unavoidable fact that Korea’s core industries are in the manufacturing sector and that current Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) in Korea are being sold at three times the price they had in June 2021. It seems South Korea’s current carbon neutralization plans face obstacles in their realization. To make them more attainable, the Korean government should evaluate the country’s 2030 NDC goals and propose more realistic ones in November 2021.