Gyeonggi Province Moves to Eliminate Thermal Paper Queue Tickets from Public Institutions

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Park No-hoon] Gyeonggi Province is pursuing restrictions on the use of thermal paper, including receipts and queue tickets, which contain bisphenol A (BPA), a substance harmful to human health.

According to Gyeonggi Province on the 20th, prior to the government's implementation of regulatory measures on BPA-containing thermal paper scheduled for the first half of next year, the province will promote the replacement of BPA-containing thermal paper in Gyeonggi Province, its subordinate public institutions, and municipal and county governments.

Accordingly, on the 20th, Gyeonggi Province sent an official notice to approximately 800 civil complaint offices, community centers, and public institutions across the province regarding the replacement of thermal paper currently in use, instructing them to replace products that either contain or have unconfirmed BPA content with BPA-free products.

The relevant institutions plan to implement the changes immediately as products become available.

To reduce thermal paper use in the private sector, the province plans to recommend restraint on the use of BPA-containing thermal paper to five major commercial banks and three major retailers.

Thermal paper is paper with special coating technology that displays text or images when heat is applied, and is widely used in everyday life for receipts, queue tickets, movie theater tickets, labels, and other applications.

The problem is that some of these products use bisphenol A, a harmful chemical.

Bisphenol A is known as an endocrine disruptor and a reproductive toxin, and due to its lipophilic properties, there is a concern that BPA may be absorbed into the skin when it comes into contact with skin to which hand cream or cosmetics have been applied.

Japan, Taiwan, the EU, and some U.S. states have imposed bans or restrictions on its use, but South Korea still has no regulatory standards for this.

The government is currently conducting research on BPA through the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and is reported to be planning to establish regulatory standards in the first half of next year.

Eom Jin-seop, Director of the Environment Department of Gyeonggi Province, said, “There is significance in proactively identifying and addressing health risk factors in the living environment that could harm residents' health,” and added, “We will actively communicate and share with residents and faithfully perform our role as guardians of residents' health.”