The Ministry of Environment (Minister Han Wha-jin) has compiled and released the '2022 Sewer Statistics (hereinafter referred to as Sewer Statistics)' that allows us to see the current status of sewage in Korea at a glance.

The 2022 Sewer Statistics provides information on the △status of sewer supply by local governments, △status of sewage treatment facilities and sewer pipelines, △sewerage fees, △reuse of treated sewage water, and other aspects of sewerage for the year 2022. It is provided annually to efficiently promote sewerage policies and help enhance public understanding of sewerage services.

According to the results of the Sewer Statistics survey, as of 2022, the population within sewer treatment areas was approximately 50.059 million people, showing a 0.3% increase compared to the previous year and accounting for 95.1%.

The sewerage coverage rate in rural areas* showed a continuous increase over the past 10 years, from 63.7% in 2013 to 76.6% in 2022. The gap in sewerage coverage rate between rural and urban areas decreased from 31.2% in 2013 to 20.2% in 2022.

* Rural areas: Refers to 668 counties within provinces.

There are a total of 4,397 public sewage treatment plants operating nationwide. The total sewage capacity that these treatment plants can handle per day is 26,898,000 tons (m³). The total length of sewer pipelines is 168,786 km

The total amount of sewage treated in the year 2022 was approximately 7,378.91 million tons. Out of this, 1,136.75 million tons, which is 15.4%, were reused. This amount is equivalent to filling over 303,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools and is equal to saving approximately 850 billion won* annually when converted to tap water. The reused sewage water was utilized for various purposes, including 41.5% for river maintenance, 17.3% for cleaning of sewage treatment facilities, and 11.4% for industrial use.

* Calculated based on the average fee (747.8won) for tap water per ton in 2022

The average fee for sewerage nationwide was 634.7 won per ton, showing a slight increase compared to the previous year (602.1 won). The average fee for special and metropolitan cities was 646.4 won, higher than the national average, while the average fee for provinces was 623.3 won, lower in comparison. Additionally, the average cost of sewerage treatment nationwide was 1,392.5 won per ton, and the sewerage fee realization rate was surveyed to be 45.6%.

Kim Jong-ryul, the Director of Water Environment Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Environment, stated, "Sewer Statistics serve as fundamental data for promoting effective and efficient public sewerage policies and efforts will be made to pursue water environment conservation and provide quality sewage services to the public based on the statistics."

The '2022 Sewer Statistics' can be accessed on the Ministry of Environment's website and the National Sewerage Information System (www.hasudoinfo.or.kr)