On March 3rd, the Ministry of Environment announced that it has published an environmental health textbook for 3rd and 4th-grade elementary students, which includes methods to protect health from environmental hazards in daily life, and will distribute it to elementary schools.

An "approved textbook" refers to a textbook used with the approval of the Minister of Education when there are no nationally designated or inspected textbooks available or when they are difficult to use. This is the first time the government has published a textbook in the field of environmental health.

The "Environment and Health" textbook began development in February of last year, underwent review by the Chungcheongnam-do Office of Education's Textbook Approval Committee starting in December, and was finally approved as a textbook for 3rd and 4th-grade elementary students on February 20th.

The textbook was produced with the participation of five current elementary school teachers as authors, along with publishing experts and environmental education specialized institutions such as the Korea Environment and Preservation Institute.

The textbook consists of five units: △Our Lives and Health, △Protecting Health at Home, △Protecting Health at School and Learning Places Outside of School, △Protecting Health in Indoor Play Facilities, and △Protecting Health When Using Transportation.

The purpose is to inform students about the impact of everyday objects and environments on health and how to protect health from harmful substances.

The Ministry of Environment plans to distribute 15,000 copies of the textbook to schools free of charge so that they can be used from the new semester.

Schools or classes wishing to receive free textbooks can apply from March 4th to 21st through the environmental health education online learning center Chemistory website (eco-playground.kr/chemistory).

The Ministry of Environment and the Korea Environment and Preservation Institute plan to select schools for free distribution according to a set procedure (prioritizing island and mountain areas, etc.). Selected schools' teachers will be provided with teacher's guides, presentation materials (PPT) for classes, and training on how to use the textbook.