Although next year's budget for the carbon neutrality points program has been increased by about 2.1 billion won, concerns persist that the budget will be exhausted early next year as well. The government is reviewing plans to expand the number of recipients and the per-person amount, but the current budget level makes it difficult to meet rising demand.
According to the Ministry of Environment on the 29th, the carbon neutrality points program, implemented since 2022, is an incentive scheme that provides cash, points, or mobile pay based on performance when people engage in carbon-reduction activities such as purchasing eco-friendly products, using electronic receipts, using tumblers, and reducing electricity, water, and city gas use. The Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute (KEITI) tallies performance monthly and pays out, and the program is characterized by providing direct rewards to citizens who participate in carbon reduction.
For example, issuing one electronic receipt earns 100 won, returning a single-use cup earns 200 won per cup, and using a tumbler or a reusable cup earns 300 won per use. For categories such as using reusable containers, purchasing eco-friendly products, and returning old mobile phones, people can receive up to 1,000–2,000 won. If all 10 categories are practiced, people can receive up to 70,000 won per year.
Since the program's launch, participation has grown faster than the budget, even as the program steadily gained popularity. According to the Ministry of Environment, the budget rose from 3.7 billion won in 2022 to 10.1 billion won in 2023, and to 16 billion won each in last year and this year. However, the number of participants grew about eightfold, from 260,000 in 2022 to 2.04 million as of July this year.
The 2023–2024 budget was not exhausted until November, but this year the budget ran out in July. People who participated in the carbon neutrality points program in July received only 78% of the scheduled points. From August to December, point payments have been suspended. In response, some citizens say that "rather than causing disappointment by exhausting the budget early, the payment amounts should be adjusted to improve sustainability."
Moreover, starting in July this year, the incentive categories added ▲ using shared bicycles and ▲ practicing zero leftovers, increasing the number of categories from 10 to 12.
In addition, the Ministry of Environment is reportedly reviewing measures to expand the number of recipients and the per-person payment in line with a proposal from the Presidential Committee on Policy Planning. The committee's plan reportedly would provide up to 100,000 won per year to 5 million people, but next year's budget is about 18.1 billion won, far short of what is needed.
A Ministry of Environment official said, "We plan to expand incentives for carbon-reduction performance driven by public participation, but no detailed expansion plan has been finalized."
Experts note that to ensure the program's sustainability, realistic budgeting that matches the scale of participation and improvements to the payment structure are needed.
Hong Su-yeol, head of the Resource Recycle Society & Economy Research Institute, said, "It is good that public participation is increasing, but there will be difficulties in sharply increasing and securing the budget," adding, "If taxes or fines are imposed on single-use product users and benefits are given to those who use reusable containers, a circular structure could be achieved."