The state-controlled agency for environment-related technology is vitalizing its support for Southeast Asian countries, which are seeking to improve water supply in residential areas.

The Korea Environmental Industry and Technology Institute said Sunday that it has provided a village in Vung Tau City, Vietnam, with 300 water-purifying devices, which can filter out arsenic.

It marked the first implementation of KEITI’s water purifying project in Southeast Asia, while the institute had signed pacts with four nations ― Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia and the Philippines ― on offering eco-related technologies.

A KEITI spokesman said it was urgent for Vung Tau City to refine its underground water, contaminated by arsenic, a carcinogenic element, due to poor sanitary conditions around the region.

“Considering the shortage of electricity in the district, the device has been designed to purify the water with a 100 percent function of arsenic-absorbent technology-integrated filters, without using electricity,” he said.

The institute is also scheduled to hold a dedication ceremony for rain purifier facilities in the Philippines in February.

In addition, similar facilities including human waste management devices will be set up in Cambodia and Indonesia by late March.

By Kim Yon-se (kys@heraldcorp.com)