Old policy and new rhetoric: the origin of sustainable energy policy in Korea

Abstract

The Korean government has declared sustainable energy policy with the adoption of sustainable development and Green Growth. However, actual energy consumption reveals that, during the 2000s, the use of coal and natural gas has increased more than that of any other energy source, whereas Korean energy policy aims to reduce fossil fuels and produce more renewable energy. Regarding this situation, many social and environmental scientists have been critical, claiming that the ideas of sustainable development or Green Growth are just rhetoric and that there is an inconsistency in terms of what energy policy is and what it should be. While agreeing with the critics’ opinion, this thesis offers another explanation for the rhetorical change of energy policy from the continuity of Korean energy policy on energy security. By looking at the history of Korean energy policy, the thesis tries to answer following questions: in what context energy security and the diversification of energy sources have become such a dominant theme in Korea, and how the diversification strategy could turn into sustainable energy policy without major changes. The purpose of this thesis is not to contend against or support either the critics of energy policy or the current Korean energy policy, but to provide a different perspective on sustainable energy policy in Korea: the difficulties involved in incorporating new agendas within the existing energy policy.