미세먼지 환경소송
Air quality in Korea has continued to worsen in recent years with the country choking under high levels of fine dust on an increasingly regular basis.
Fed up with a problem that affects us all,... scores of Koreans have filed a lawsuit against the Korean and Chinese governments to get them to clean up their act.
Park Ji-won has the latest.
Head of the Korea Green Foundation, Choi Yul, who has been at the forefront of Korea's environmental movement for nearly four decades, is one of 91 people who filed the lawsuit against the Korean and Chinese governments for damages caused by fine dust.
"We inhale about ten-thousand liters of air everyday, and when the air includes a lot of pollutants, our health suffers greatly. We decided to sue the governments, so that they can take full charge of reducing the emission of pollutants."
Choi, along with 90 other people from all walks of life,... argued that the right to breathe clean air is one of our most basic human rights.
They claimed the Chinese government has failed in its international obligations to reduce the level of air pollution,... and that the Korean government failed to take adequate measures to reduce air pollution or to grasp the exact causes of the unprecedented pollution levels.
They demanded damages of about 240-thousand U.S. dollars in total,... yet they say the case is not so much about the financial reward, but rather to urge both governments to take strong actions to reduce air pollution.
"Through the trials, we hope to analyze ample data and scientific research to figure out the cause of the pollution, while raising people's environmental awareness as well."
The lawyer representing the case also highlights its role in serving the public interests.
"This case is very public in nature as it will focus on assessing the scientific effects of the fine dust, finding out the source of the pollution, and providing appropriate information to the public. We hope the case stimulates both governments to exercise a reasonable amount of effort to solve the problem."
The trials could go on for years,... and if the plaintiffs win the case,.. the damages will all be donated to further resolve the air pollution problem.
Park Ji-won, Arirang News.
Visit ‘Arirang News’ Official Pages
Facebook(NEWS): [ Ссылка ]
Homepage: [ Ссылка ]
Facebook: [ Ссылка ]
Twitter: [ Ссылка ]
Instagram: [ Ссылка ]
