The year 2014 hasn't been entirely memorable — in a good way, at least — when considering the progress of environmental campaigns.
Incidents that made headlines were the fire at a landfill site at Samut Prakan's tambon Phraeksa, while Sasin Chalermlarp's "sit-in" protest against the Mae Wong Dam was partially successful (the project hasn't been entirely shelved). Otherwise most environmental issues have been sidelined, if not hushed by the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), whose firm grip due to martial law and censorship dealt a blow to many conservationists.
Under the seemingly quiet surface, problems persist. Villagers in Loei province protested against gold mining despite the military's mediation. Villagers in southern provinces — known as a bastion for the anti-Yingluck camp and at least tolerant of military rule — defied martial law by marching to protest against development projects on the Andaman Sea (they were briefly brought to a police station). Conservationists still criticised energy, land management and forest management policies. Any public forum is supervised, if not already annulled, by the NCPO.
But we know that people cannot be silenced forever. Many activists believe that the junta is losing its strength because it has failed to incorporate local people into the reform process. Meanwhile, they believe that many projects that would have been kept in the closet in more a democratic society for fear of backlash will be dusted off by the junta regime next year. Expect to see "blast-from-the-past" projects such as the return of coal-fired power plants, dam projects and mining projects in ecologically sensitive areas.
As 2014 nears its conclusion, we look at the top five environmental news stories of the year.
It took six days, scores of fire trucks and hundreds of fire fighters to out the fire at tosix waste dump site in Tambon Phraeksa, in Muang district of Samut Prakan province under control. The fire re-erupted again in April and May. Despite being closed, garban now remains at the site and villagers are in peril as fire prefers dry winter weather. Fire at Phraeksa landfill site
On March 16, a great ball of fire erupted at the 100 rai landfill site at tambon Phraeksa, in the Muang district of Samut Prakan. The fire was not harmless as the fumes — which contained sulphur dioxide and carbon monoxide — caused irritation and respiratory problems for residents. Hundreds of villagers were ordered to leave their homes the following day. Meanwhile, villagers within a 1.5km radius were evacuated and the area was declared a disaster zone. It took six days and hundreds of firefighters and volunteers to get the fire under control. Due to inflammable methane gas at the site, fire broke out again on April 4-8 and then on May 12.
An investigation found that the landfill site was an illegal operation as toxic waste from factories was discovered; the operator broke the law as there was only a licence to take household waste. Furthermore, the licence had been terminated even before the fire occurred. Now, the site is closed and the operator has erected high concrete walls around the land. Huge piles of rubbish remain. The incident paved the way for policy change. The Ministry of Industry revved up plans to have almost every province, or groups of provinces, have incinerators that convert heat from incinerated waste into electricity.
Planting new forest
Activists and the public believed that the NCPO was serious about ecological affairs when it appointed Gen Dapong Rattanasuwan as minister for natural resources and environment. Known as a sidekick of Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha during the crackdown on red shirts in 2010, Gen Dapong came to the post with a highly ambitious goal — stopping public forest land encroachment and increasing forest areas by 10%.
The project sounds noble and during the later half of 2014 the public has been fed with reports of "taking back the forest" — various clampdowns and removals of "encroachers" in national parks and protected forest.
Initially, the crackdown focused on hotel operators or businesses in touristy beaches, such as in Phuket. Yet operations subsequently shifted to local villagers who live in protected forest areas and national parks.
That opened up a delicate issue as some of these people are traditional villagers who settled in the forest before they were declared national parks. One example is villagers living in Ban Noen Din Daeng in Buriram province who were recently asked by national park officials to move out. The area that the village is located in was incorporated into Dong Yai National Park in 1992.
Local villagers and activists criticised the project for driving poor people out of the forest, and for the fact that the initiative would not involve any influential figures. Local villagers and conservationists started a campaign in September to march from Chiang Mai to Bangkok to protest against the policy, but they were subsequently banned from doing so by the military.
Bua Noi gorilla has been put into an apartment size cage for displaying at Pata Zoo for almost three decades. Now, activists want her and other wild animals on the penthouse zoo of Pata Department Store on Pinklao Road to be relocated to the ground. The zoo operator publicly announced Bua Noi and other animals will be removed on the ground in future which remains to be seen. Bua Noi, the gorilla at Pata Zoo
People may disagree over climate change, coal-fired power plants or dam projects. But hearts are often united where animal welfare is concerned. The story of Bua Noi, a 28-year-old gorilla kept on display at the rooftop zoo of Pata Department Store in Pinklao, captured public attention and led to lively debates about animal rights. The issue came up in September when Sinjira Apaithan initiated an online petition to rally public support for helping Bua Noi. The petition demanded the zoo relocate the gorilla and other wild animals.
The zoo, which has been open for nearly 30 years, said to relocate the animal would cost around 30-50 million baht. The uproar led to a meeting between activists and representatives from Pata Zoo. The zookeeper made an assurance to move Bua Noi in the near future. However, currently the issue remains unresolved.
Supreme Administrative Court early this month ruled in favor of construction company that built wastewater treatment system in Tambon Klong Dan in Samut Prakan province. The court ordered Pollution Control Department to pay 9.6 billion baht fine to the firm. The project is known as "Mother of all corruption cases," as the design and plan had been changed for accommodating land acquisition that involved notorious politician Vatana Asvahame, and the building of lengthy pipe line. The design change increased the total cost of the project up to 2.3 billion bahts, from original sum of 13 billion bahts.
Klong Dan waste water treatment project and the 9.6 billion baht penalty fine
On Nov 21, the Supreme Administrative Court handed down a devastating ruling that forced the Pollution Control Department (PCD) to pay 9.6 billion baht to a private consortium known as the NVPSKG, which was contracted to build the Klong Dan waste water treatment facility at tambon Klong Dan, Bang Bo district of Samut Prakan.
Known as "the mother of all corruption cases", the project shed light on policy corruption in Thailand. Approved in 1997, the waste water treatment project had been initially designed as two separate plants to collect waste water from two industrial zones — one at Samut Chedi district and another at Phra Pradaeng.
But the scheme was shifted to one site at Bang Po, resulting in a need to acquire 1,700 rai of land and construction of a waste water pipe costing 10 billion baht. Costs ballooned from 13.6 billion baht to 23.7 billion baht. Villagers in the area protested against the plans and won their fight. PCD scrapped the project and accused NVPSKG of contract fraud. The firm retaliated by filing a petition with the arbitration committee, demanding compensation. In 2011, the committee ruled in the consortium's favour, ordering the department to pay the joint venture damages as well as 7.5% in interest calculated from Feb 28, 2003. The department refused to pay and took the case to the Supreme Administrative Court, but lost the case. Klong Dan's criminal case lawyer Suprawat Jaisamut suggested the department should consult with the Office of the Attorney-General to suspend payment, as the Supreme Court is expected to issue a ruling on a related case next year.
Phu Kradueng cable car
The Phu Kradueng Cable Car project has been floated, on and off, for three decades and has been opposed by some villagers and conservationists. Phu Kradueng National Park in Loei province is the most popular national park in the country in terms of visitors, and the gruelling trek up the mountain (four to seven hours) has been a rite of passage for Thai university students for several decades.
The authorities on Dec 8 hosted the final public hearing on the project. The plan will be submitted to the cabinet by the end of this year or early next year. If approved, the project, which will require cutting down trees, will provide an alternative route for older people and small children to reach the summit. The cable car will take just 15 minutes. Construction will cost around 600 million baht and is expected to give a boost to tourism.
The project is expected to incite resistance from conservationists, who fear it will open the door for construction of cable cars in other national parks. They fear the ease of the ascent will overload the park with unsustainable numbers of tourists. Villagers who make a living carrying bags for climbers are expected to lose their livelihoods if the cable car is built.
Apart of the end of sweat and joy of exhilaration derived from conquering the Phu Kradueng, one thing to face extinction is porters, the most indispensable aide for a trek up Phu Kradueng. Those porters will likely be found awaiting you at the foot of the much-visited mountain in Loei. This wiry man is one of over 300 porters - male and female, young and old - who make a living by lugging tourists' belongings up to the peak.
