▲ This photo taken Sept. 16, 2026, shows POSCO's steel plant in Pohang, 272 kilometers southeast of Seoul. (Yonhap)

SEOUL, Sept. 20 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's greenhouse gas emissions fell 0.9 percent in 2025 from a year earlier, helped by lower output from the industrial and transport sectors, the environment ministry said Sunday.

National greenhouse gas emissions were provisionally estimated at 685.7 million tons last year, down from 691.8 million tons a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment.

Emissions from the industrial, transport, agriculture, livestock, fisheries and waste sectors fell, while those from electricity, buildings and refrigerants increased, the ministry said.

Annual greenhouse gas emissions fell below 700 million tons in 2024 for the first time since 2010, largely due to a higher share of nuclear and renewable energy in power generation.

National greenhouse gas emissions data take about two years to finalize, so provisional figures are released first. The difference between provisional and final figures is typically 0.3 percent to 0.4 percent.

The government aims to cut greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50 percent by 2035 from 2018 levels.

South Korea's greenhouse gas emissions stood at 742.3 million tons in 2018. To meet the target, emissions would need to fall to 371.2 million tons or less by 2035.

"The government needs to accelerate its decarbonization efforts and transition to zero-emission and renewable energy sources to meet the target," the ministry said.

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