South Korea to share environmental analysis technology with Asia-Pacific nations

The National Institute of Environmental Research, under the Ministry of Climate, Environment and Energy, announced it will host the 15th East Asia Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) Analysis Training for officials and experts from the Asia-Pacific region in Seoul and the surrounding metropolitan area from Monday through Wednesday.

Since 2011, South Korea has carried out international cooperation projects supporting the implementation of the Stockholm Convention, sharing POPs management information among East Asian countries and transferring advanced analytical technologies to developing nations.

About 50 participants from six Asia-Pacific countries — Laos, Malaysia, Japan, Indonesia, Cambodia and Thailand — along with staff from specialized measurement and analysis agencies, will take part in three days of lectures, policy sessions, field training and site visits.

The program runs over three days. On the first day, domestic and international experts will deliver lectures on POPs management policy and monitoring results at the Courtyard by Marriott Seoul Botanic Park in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, while participants from each country will present their own policy and research findings.

On the second day, attendees will visit the National Institute of Environmental Research's Metropolitan Air Quality Research Station in Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul, for hands-on field training in ambient air sampling.

On the final day, comprehensive practical training — including laboratory exercises in polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) analysis — will be conducted at the institute's main campus in Incheon.

PBDEs are widely used as flame retardants in plastics and electronics and are strictly regulated under the Stockholm Convention.

"Through this training, we will disseminate the advanced environmental analysis technologies South Korea has accumulated to the Asia-Pacific region, significantly strengthening POPs monitoring and reduction capacity across East Asia," the institute said. "We will continue to build an effective foundation for international cooperation and contribute to global efforts to address trace hazardous substances."