On September 15, according to the Korean media, South Korea urged the Ministry of Environment to come up with countermeasures as drinking water plastic bottles may produce harmful substances after long-term exposure to high summer temperatures and direct light.

On September 14, Korea announced the results of an inspection on drinking water quality by 14 institutions, including the Ministry of Environment and the National Institute of Environmental Research, from September 30 to November 12 last year.

An inspection of 272 retail stores in Seoul showed that: A total of 101 stores (37.1%) had their plastic bottles of drinking water placed outdoors in direct sunlight. The products were tested at 50 ° C at 2 to 3 p.m. in summer for 15 days and 30 days, and antimony was detected at 0.0031-0.0043 mg/L in three products. It exceeded the Australian standard of 0.003 mg/L, and the detection of formaldehyde was 0.12~0.31 mg/L, which exceeded the Japanese standard of 0.08 mg/L.

In response, Korea urged the Ministry of Environment to establish safety standards for harmful substances in drinking water PET bottles and to devise measures to minimize exposure to harmful substances caused by direct light.