Military sites proposed for waste-to-energy power plants
WATCHARAPONG THONGRUNG
THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- THE DEFENCE MINISTRY has proposed that power plants fuelled by hazardous waste be set up in military areas to prevent any possibility of environmental problems and opposition from the public, according to an Energy Ministry source.

Earlier the Industry Ministry proposed that such plants be established in industrial estates.

The Defence Ministry made its proposal to a working panel appointed by the Energy Policy Administration Committee to draw up criteria for the purchase of electricity from power plants fuelled by hazardous waste.

This panel, which is chaired by deputy Defence Ministry permanent secretary Twarath Sutabutr, comprises representatives of the ministries of Defence, Industry, and Natural Resources and Environment.

Pilot projects using this type of waste will produce a total of 50 megawatts of electricity, and the plant operators will be entitled to a feed-in tariff of Bt6.93 per unit.

According to the Alternative Energy Development Plan for 2015-36, state electricity authorities will purchase 501MW of electricity produced from community waste.

The Energy Regulatory Commission will propose that the National Energy Policy Council defer the schedule to purchase electricity from these community-waste plants.The operators of these plants will enjoy feed-in tariffs of Bt5.93-Bt7.35 per unit.

A source at the Association of Private Power Producers said the government had given too much priority to promoting solar farms, while the Alternative Energy Development Plan suggests the top priority should be power generation from waste and biomass. The beneficiaries of solar farms are investors and solar-panel suppliers, while the beneficiaries of biomass power are farmers, who produce the raw materials for such plants, it says.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/business/Military-sites-proposed-for-waste-to-energy-power--30259841.html


-- The Nation 2015-05-12

"that power plants fuelled by hazardous waste be set up in military areas to prevent any possibility of environmental problems and opposition from the public"

Does this mean the military OWNS the properties in military areas as opposed to the Thai government that is supposed to represent the Thai public?

Do hazardous emissions know they are not to leave the airspace of such military areas nor enter the water table?

Also, note that the referenced "beneficiaries of solar farms are investors and solar-panel suppliers" are the Chinese. And the government has already made commitments to buy their solar power at a premium rate.

Should read "be set up in military areas to prevent any possibility of environmental problems being reported."