Korea to test ultrafine dust emergency response with two-day drill

South Korea's environment ministry said Monday it will stage a two-day simulation of a nationwide ultrafine dust emergency this week, testing how 11 government ministries and 16 local governments coordinate when air quality deteriorates sharply.

The 2026 ultrafine dust disaster response drill, set for Nov. 10-11, will assume that concentrations across the country have surged and that an advisory-level crisis alert has been issued. Local governments will then be expected to enforce emergency reduction measures from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. the following day. Kim Jin-sik, director general of the ministry's air environment bureau, will chair a joint inspection meeting at 8 a.m. on Nov. 11 at the Han River Flood Control Office.

Field exercises will cover shorter operating hours at public industrial sites, restrictions on old construction equipment at government-contracted building sites, checks on the system that bars older, higher-emission vehicles from the roads, inspections for illegal emissions and the deployment of road-cleaning trucks. A smaller set of measures — capping coal-fired power generation, a two-day rotation system for official vehicles and emergency text alerts to the public — will be tested in writing only. No fines will be imposed on drivers of the restricted vehicles during the exercise.

Ultrafine dust was classified as a social disaster under the Framework Act on the Management of Disasters and Safety in 2019, and the ministry has held joint drills with other agencies every year since. This week's exercise comes as the ministry prepares to run its eighth seasonal fine dust management program from Dec. 1 through March 31 next year.

"When high concentrations of ultrafine dust occur, prompt and coordinated responses from the relevant agencies are more important than anything else, because it poses a threat to public health," Kim said. "We will prepare thoroughly so that the eighth seasonal management program, in effect from Dec. 1 to March 31, can be carried out without disruption."

The ministry said it will address shortcomings identified during the drill.