Thailand: Government's smoke and mirrors (Opinion)

Thailand: Government's smoke and mirrors (Opinion)

The statement by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha that coal-fired power in
Krabi has been put on hold means the government is just buying time.

Gen Prayut made the statement in response to a fresh protest in Bangkok this
week by anti-coal activists who shaved their heads as a sign of opposition
to the controversial project. Yet, he refused to scrap the project, just
saying that the government is still open to the demands of locals, who are
concerned about the impact of coal on their livelihoods, the environment and
tourism, and other groups.

This week's protest is the first major anti-coal move by the people's sector
after the formation of the tripartite committee, comprising the state, the
people's sector and Egat, to find solutions to the conflict over the
coal-fired power plant as ordered by the prime minister in August last year.
At that time, the government appointed Gen Sakon Sajjanit as committee
chairman and it was agreed that the government stop consideration of the
Environmental Impact Assessment and Environmental Health Impact Assessment
reports on the project; scrap the bidding for coal-fired power plants and
the sea port; and allow Krabi to try to produce 100% renewable energy for
three years with the support of the government.

But to the dismay of the people's sector, the tripartite committee, despite
many meetings and fact-finding field trips, made no progress. Meanwhile, the
people's sector went ahead with a research study that proves the potential
of Krabi to be a province that can depend 100% on renewables, with massive
supplies of biomass from oil palm plantations and solar power.
Unfortunately, the research which was launched in August this year received
no attention from Egat and state power planners.

Worse, it turned out that the state, in particular Egat, broke promises as
it went ahead with the bidding that was won by Power Construction
Corporation of China and Italian-Thai Development Plc. It showed that the
agencies are not sincere in seeking a solution to the issue. With the
bidding, there are reasons for concern that the government will have to
build the power plant or face a huge fine that we know full well will be a
"stupidity fee".

Needless to say, by breaking their promises, the state and Egat put their
reputation at risk and what they are doing will lead to conflicts and
confrontation in the area.

From Gen Prayut's latest statement, it is apparent that he and the
government are not aware of the research study, dubbed the "green power
development plan".

Instead, he keeps citing lack of power security in the southern region,
which means he still believes coal is a key option.

It is a fact that many countries have turned their backs on coal, a fossil
fuel that is blamed for global warming. Gen Prayut and the government should
feel lucky that Krabi, as well as many other provinces, has a large supply
of renewable sources enabling it to avoid coal and go environmentally
friendly when it comes to energy production.

Besides, Gen Prayut should realise that with renewables, Thailand can make a
contribution regarding climate change when the time comes for the country to
do so.

It's good that the prime minister has pledged to listen to the needs of
locals. In handling this contentious issue, listening is a must.

Buying time is no longer acceptable.

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Link to Original Article:
http://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/1143929/governments-smoke-and-mir
rors

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John Diecker
APT Consulting Group Co., Ltd.

www.aptthailand.com