South Korea's prime minister says that Korea is working hand-in-hand with China to combat fine dust pollution.
Also during a meeting today, he proposed a set of countermeasures to cut the nation's fine dust concentration by 35 percent in the next five years.
Our Park Hee-jun has the details.
Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon says South Korea is closely cooperating with China -- a major source of fine dust particles and yellow dust,... to tackle fine dust pollution.
And he says the results of joint research by Korea, China and Japan will be released within the month.
"The joint response with the Chinese government is ongoing. We are reaffirming their determination through high-level talks and are carrying out joint studies and reduction projects. Results from joint research by Korea, China and Japan on the movement of fine dust will be revealed in the middle of this month."
The special committee for fine dust reduction held its third meeting on Friday.
The meeting centered on a five-year plan to cut the average annual fine dust concentration to 16 micrograms per cubic meter from the current 26 micrograms by 2024.
It's the first official plan since the Special Act on Particulate Matter Reduction and Management took effect in February.
17 billion U.S. dollars over five years will be allocated to the plan, which includes strengthening international cooperation and ensuring public health.
The committee also hopes to effectively respond during the worst season for fine dust between December and March.
Measures include suspending coal power generation,... and regulating the use of grade 5 emission vehicles in the capital area -- mostly high emission diesel cars.
It also plans to establish a private and public joint inspection team of around a thousand people,... and use drones and other high-tech equipment to monitor the situation.
Prime Minister Lee emphasized the importance of action.
He called on all ministries to work together to tackle the issue,... while also asking the public to actively participate in these efforts,... remembering they are not just victims, but contributors to the fine dust problem at the same time.
Park Hee-jun, Arirang News.