Control on biomass emissions sought

PONGPHON SARNSAMAK

THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- People living close to biomass power plants have called on environmental watchdog agencies to strictly control the hazardous and toxic air pollutants released from the plants, claiming they affect their health and their farms.

"We have no fresh air to breathe," Roi Et province resident Phurithon Namlak said.

He was speaking at a seminar entitled "Health impact from biomass energy policy" organised by the National Health Commission and Environmental Litigation and Advocacy for the Wants (EnLaw).

Biomass encompasses fuels derived from timber, agriculture and food processing wastes or from crops grown for electricity generation. Biomass fuel can also include sewage sludge and animal manure.

In Thailand, there are 80 biomass power plants. Roi Et province alone has three such plants.

The National Health Commis-sion Office recently conducted a study to investigate the health impact of biomass power plants on people living in five nearby villages - Ban Nong Muang, Ban Nong Na Sang, Nong Bua Thong, Ban Nong Ta Kla and Ban Thai Udom.

The study found 569 people suffering from respiration problems, rashes, anxiety and insomnia.

Primary schools have been closed for a month due to a massive amount of small particles of black dust blowing from biomass power plants located near their villages. Students have had to wear masks to protect themselves from the dust, and natural reservoirs are tainted by black dust particles. Villagers can no longer use water from the reservoirs for drinking.

"If you leave white paper on a table, in two minutes it will become black with dust," he said. "This is what happened in my village. We don't want to stay here - but we have to because this is our whole life."

Roi Et is not the only area affected by the power plants. Mango farmers in Chachoengsao province are faced with similar air pollution from plants near their villages.

"Some mango farmers have already closed their farms, which were becoming affected by the dust. Some have changed their careers," Chachoengsao resident Kobmanee Lerdpichitkul said.

Mango farmers in Chachoengsao province's Prieo district were earning about Bt600 million a year from exporting mango products, with some individuals making Bt800,000 annually in profit.

But since three biomass power plants were established in the districts since 1996, their mango trees have not been able to grow very well and are not producing fruit.

In Yala province, local people are worried about the environmental impact of new biomass power plants soon to be established near their villages.

They believe the new plants will block water routes and be located near the "monkey cheek" rainy season water-storage areas.

"If the agencies give approval for a private company to build a new biomass power plant in the monkey-cheek areas, our village will be totally inundated by flood water," Yala province resident Veera Bhupuak told a seminar.

Sodsai Sawangsok, an environmental activist in Ubon Ratchathani province, said villagers had called on the Energy Regulatory Commis-sion and other agencies to withdraw the approval licence for a private company to build biomass power plants in the centre of their villages.

She said local people were afraid of a serious health impact from the operation of the plants.

"We have been asking them [the Energy Regulatory Commission] to withdraw approval for many years, but they just told us to file a lawsuit with the Administrative Court if we wanted them to withdraw the licence," she said.

-- The Nation 2012-04-04

But wait, biomass is the answer to evil oil. Only good things can come from alternative energy.

Typically (although...TIT so maybe not) emissions from those plants are scrubbed and would be much cleaner than the neighbour burning their piled up garbage consisting of a years worth of plastic bags. They simply need to regulate the emissions and make the plants uphold to standards. Just like the way they enforce the 'do not burn' rule in the rural north. Oh wait...

Bah, just give them a nuclear power plant.