Clean Air Conservation Act | Company Y Officers and Employees Fined for Violating Environmental Law

A, who oversaw the environmental and safety affairs of Company Y's smelter, was found to have installed and operated crushing facilities and storage facilities, which are air pollutant emission facilities, from 2001 to 2019, and to have continued operations without reporting them to the competent authority.

Accordingly, on April 9, 2025, the court sentenced A to a fine of 5 million won and Company Y to a fine of 3 million won, respectively.

Counsel for A and Company Y argued that the facilities in question did not constitute air pollutant emission facilities under the statute, but the court did not accept this argument.

Article 8 of the Enforcement Decree of the Clean Air Conservation Act defines facilities that emit air pollutants as ‘emission facilities’ and specifies that certain categories of facilities are subject to reporting.

The court determined that the crushing facilities and storage facilities in question, given their structure and manner of use, could generate harmful substances such as dust, and that workers could actually be exposed to these substances, and therefore constituted ‘air pollutant emission facilities.’

Accordingly, the court held that the failure to report to the competent authority in advance constituted a clear violation of the reporting obligation, and that this also ran counter to the legislative purpose of the statute, namely the protection of air quality and of workers' health.

The court further stated that, although A had previously been punished for similar violations, it imposed fines after taking into account that the impact on the environment was relatively limited and that the relevant facilities were subsequently installed lawfully.

B, the head of Company Y's environmental management team, who was indicted on charges of violating the Water Environment Conservation Act, was sentenced to a fine of 500,000 won.

A workplace that discharges wastewater above a certain volume must install a cumulative flow meter capable of automatically measuring the discharge volume, and a failure to install a cumulative flow meter is punishable under the Water Environment Conservation Act by a fine not exceeding 1 million won.

Nevertheless, from December 2019 to April 2020, B used rainwater to cool slag without installing a flow meter, thereby resulting in a violation of the law.

A violation of the Clean Air Conservation Act results in administrative dispositions and criminal punishment.

Where any of the following violations occurs in the course of operating facilities that emit air pollutants, the competent administrative agency may impose the following administrative dispositions.

∙Where facilities are operated by a prohibited method, such as fraudulent means or false representations
The operator may receive revocation of the permit to install the emission facilities, closure of the emission facilities, or an order to suspend operations for up to six months.

Of these, where a false permit, modified permit, or report, or a failure to comply with an order to suspend operations is detected, revocation or closure of the permit to install or modify the emission facilities is ordered.

∙Where facilities from which pollutants leak due to corrosion, wear, or the like are left unaddressed
An administrative fine not exceeding 2 million won is imposed.

∙Where the machinery or equipment of prevention facilities is out of order or damaged and is left unaddressed without justifiable grounds
An administrative fine not exceeding 2 million won is imposed.

∙Where facility operation records are falsely prepared or measurement results are not submitted
An administrative fine not exceeding 3 million won is imposed.