Debut of Particulate Matter (PM) in East Asia: Science-Policy Interface

Inkyoung Kim

Abstract
This study explores what drove the outstanding public concerns about particulate matter (PM) in China, Japan, and South Korea in the early 2010s despite constant improvement of air quality compared to earlier decades and how smog problems in China have awakened not only its own public but also those in its neighboring countries. To understand why then, this study investigates the role of scientific knowledge in the process of issue framing in East Asia and the interface between science and policy. It finds that the debut of PM in East Asia is a function of three components: increasing visibility of air pollution through smoggy days; the development of scientific consensus on causes and consequences of PM; and the enhanced communication between science and the public. It concludes that the science-policy interface is not a simple relationship between scientists and policymakers. Rather, science develops and transmits knowledge to create engaging relationships between the state and society. PM proves this triangular relationship between the state, society, and science.

Keywords
particulate matter, PM, science-policy interface, East Asia, China, Japan, South Korea