Korea's major business organizations called on the government Sunday to ensure that a law on carbon trading be implemented without hurting the country's industrial competitiveness.

The call comes as the parliament passed the law in early May to begin trading of domestic credits on carbon dioxide emissions from 2015. The government is currently working on a decree to enforce the law.

The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry said a total of 17 business organizations delivered a recommendation to the government, calling for measures to cushion them from the implementation of the law.

"We actively sympathize with the need to cut greenhouse gases that spark climate change worldwide," the organizations said in the statement. "But measures should be taken in consideration of international trends and in a way that doesn't weaken the competitiveness of domestic industries."

The government should reflect opinions from various industries in drawing up the enforcement decree on carbon trading, they said.
The local business community is worried that a full-fledged carbon exchange market could lead to a drop in the country's international competitiveness and higher costs.

A carbon credit trading system calls on companies to reduce greenhouse emission levels or buy the rights to release gases such as carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

South Korea, Asia's fourth-largest economy, is one of the leading producers of greenhouse gases. The envisioned trading system is expected to cover about 60 percent of the nation's carbon dioxide emissions. (Yonhap)