The Ministry of Environment announced on the 8th that it has conducted a pre-inspection of the readiness of water treatment plants across the country in preparation for summer blooms of green algae.
Since May, the Ministry of Environment has inspected the readiness of 102 water treatment plants operating a algal bloom warning system in conjunction with regional environmental offices, the Korea Water Resources Corporation (K-water), and local governments for a month.
The inspection results confirmed that these water treatment plants were generally well-prepared for algae blooms in terms of ▲ confirming the normal operation of algae response facilities at water sources and treatment plants ▲ securing appropriate stockpiles of powdered activated carbon ▲ establishing emergency response systems ▲ and continuing monitoring activities for algal toxins and odor substances in raw and treated water.
To enhance the response capabilities of water treatment plant operators, the Ministry of Environment will hold a "simulated training and academic forum on algae response" at the Korea Water Resources Corporation (K-water) training center in Daejeon on the 9th.
The simulated training will involve water treatment plant operators from local governments across the country, demonstrating and discussing how to respond to a situation where algae blooms occur in water sources and algal substances flow into the water treatment plants together with regional environmental offices, the Korea Water Resources Corporation (K-water), and relevant experts.
The academic forum will focus on sharing ▲ algae response guidelines for water treatment plants ▲ methods for responding to algae in the water treatment process ▲ and excellent past cases of algae response, aiming to enhance response capabilities in real situations.
Kim Hyo-jeong, director of the water resources policy department at the Ministry of Environment, noted, "This year's summer temperatures are higher than usual, and the dry monsoon and heat waves make managing algae at water treatment plants even more challenging," and added that "the operators of these plants will improve their response capabilities and will do their utmost to manage algae with a stronger sense of vigilance."