Pyongyang, June 5 (KCNA) -- June 5 is World Environment Day.

The natural environment is the material source of human life and an essential element for people to live.

As the natural environment plays an important role in human life, the UN General Assembly in 1972 raised the environment protection as an important issue to be solved by the whole world and decided to achieve international cooperation in this field and commemorate June 5 every year as World Environment Day.

The DPRK is taking practical measures for environmental protection in keeping with the international efforts for environmental protection.

The respected Comrade Kim Jong Un in his report at the Eighth Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea set the land management and the protection of ecological environment as an important matter for defending the lives and health of the people and making the mountains and rivers of the country more beautiful and as a strategic work related to the future of the country.

The DPRK intensifies the supervision of sources of pollution, including air pollutants which exceed environmental standards, and strictly enforces environmental impact assessment prior to development and construction.

It is also conducting the work to reduce urban pollution by exhaust fumes from automobiles, establish an environmental monitoring system and manufacture and introduce air pollution measuring instruments.

At the same time, it is making all members of society take an active part in protecting the ecological environment while disseminating and explaining common sense on environmental protection through various media. -0-