Changes in Risk in Medium Business Plating and Paint Manufacturing Plants following the Revision of the Korean Chemical Accident Prevention System

Hyo Eun Lee, Min-Gyu Kim, Seok J. Yoon, Da-An Huh and Kyong-Whan Moon
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Hyo Eun Lee: Department of Health Science, Korea University, Anam-ro 145, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul 02841, Korea
Min-Gyu Kim: Department of Health and Safety Convergence Science, Korea University, Anam-ro 145, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul 02841, Korea
Seok J. Yoon: Institute of Health Science, Korea University, Anam-ro 145, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul 02841, Korea
Da-An Huh: Institute of Health Science, Korea University, Anam-ro 145, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul 02841, Korea
Kyong-Whan Moon: Department of Health and Environmental Science, Korea University, Anam-ro 145, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul 02841, Korea

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 22, 1-15

Abstract: Chemical accidents can occur anywhere. The need for chemical management in Korea was realized following the 2012 Gumi hydrofluoric acid accident in 2012. The Chemicals Control Act was enacted in 2015. This system evaluates the risks (high, medium, low) and consequent safety management at all plants that handle hazardous chemical substances. However, the system was criticized as excessive when most plants were designated high-risk without considering their size. Thus, laboratories and hospitals handling very small quantities were subject to regulation. Accordingly, in 2021 Korea revised the system to include off-site consequence analyses and a Korean-style risk analysis. Plants handling very small quantities, such as laboratories and hospitals, were exempt from regulation. In this study, changes in risk were examined for four medium-sized plating and paint manufacturing plants. Under the previous system, all four factories were judged as high-risk groups. In particular, the paint manufacturing plant A, which has an underground storage tank, received a medium risk like the plating plant C, although the possibility of a chemical accident was lower than that of other plants. However, in the changed system, all plants were changed to the low-risk group. In the Korean-style risk analysis, it is possible to see at a glance what is lacking in the plants, such as cooperation between local residents and local governments and the construction of safety facilities according to the type of accident scenario. The revised system is a reasonable regulation for medium business plants.

Keywords: Preparation of Off-Site Consequence Analyses; Chemicals Control Act; risk assessment; paint manufacturing plant; plating industry plant (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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