Members of ex pat community call for an action group to deal with Samui’s dirty secret



KOH SAMUI: -- Lurking behind the Koh Samui Provincial prison lies the shame of Koh Samui – over 200,000 tons of stinking, rotting garbage.

In March 2015 the Koh Samui City department announced that it had no available budget to take care of the garbage that is fast becoming a public health issue. During a TV interview the major Mr. Ramnet Jaikwang said that the city municipality budget could take care of trash on a daily basis but had nothing in reserve to deal with the reserve that has banked up over the last eight years. He went on to request the national government to allow supplementary budget to fix the problem. In April, Surat Thani Governor Mr.Chatpong Chatraphuti, along with the government sectors went to inspect the area after Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha commanded the governor to take care of the problem.

Six months on and the incinerator still out of action the mountains of rubbish are no closer to being dealt. The rubbish and waste are now seeping into ponds and rivers making them contaminated and toxic. The buildings at the garbage control unit are abandoned, the windows have been smashed, the staff are long gone and all that remains is a stinking, toxic derelict site despite Major Ramnate Jaikwang being issued an ultimatum from the Governor of Surat Thani some months ago and the army to bring in new contractors to deal with Samui’s garbage crisis, and fix the incinerator that was out of order at the beginning of his term in 2008.

With no end in sight and concerns for not only the health of the inmates in the nearby prison but for the general population of Samui a handful of ex-pats have decided to take matters into their own hands and are now calling for other concerned members of the Koh Samui community to join them in finding solutions to the mounting problem. Poorly managed landfills can cause a number of issues such as pollution of the local environment, contamination of groundwater and the decaying organic waste causing an excess of methane – a potent greenhouse gas that poses problems due to its flammability. The rats and flies around the Samui landfill site now pose a real danger of causing infectious diseases that could be catastrophic for the island and for tourism.

Anybody interested in forming an action group should email [email protected] the new group will be very interested to hear from anybody who can offer time, solutions, donations, technical expertise or liaise with local and national governments.

-- Samui Times 2015-09-28

Typical behind the holiday destination hype. Is the true state of things.!

That picture sums up those islands quite a bit more than their garbage issues.

....five years ago you could jog through the land fill back there no problem. It is very deep. There was a road leading right through it and you could continue up and out and find yourself eventually back on the ring road. Five years ago....It must be at least 100 -200 feet deep in the middle. The berms they built up and lined are ripped and eroded. It's overflowing to both sides of the pit now and is edging it's way towards peoples homes. Now that the smells are filling up home owners living rooms day and night when the wind blows unfavorably, it action time! Little too late....good luck with that....

Just ship it all to Koh Tao. Problem solved.

Just ship it all to Koh Tao. Problem solved.

Push it into the sea, create a new island and open it to developers.

they cannot burn this for fuel ? no need for a new plant

they cannot burn this for fuel ? no need for a new plant

yeah there's nothing tourists like more than relaxing on a beach breathing in the fumes of burning plastic.

I stay a few km from this and while i am lucky it doesnt smell where i live , the amount of flies around are disgusting !! As soon as you are outside there is at least 5-10 buzzing around you !!

No doubt as per usual someone has kept the cash for themselves!!

Just ship it all to Koh Tao. Problem solved.

Use it to constuct the new yacht jetties

they cannot burn this for fuel ? no need for a new plant

yeah there's nothing tourists like more than relaxing on a beach breathing in the fumes of burning plastic.

Money first, health second!

Is TimeTraveller now a "dyed in the wool" Thai thinking person looking for a Government job?

If the problem is not dealt with effectively, efficiently and PROMPTLY there will be NO tourists and no island economy and no human inhabitants.

they cannot burn this for fuel ? no need for a new plant

Who would you expect to burn this stuff for fuel and where would it be burned?

Are the great Mayors of Thailand talking to much and doing stuff all

They can add a little amount as surcharge ( I have seen few islands on Philippines doing it for environmental cause ) to visit the island for all ( foreigners and Thai tourists ) and can use that find to clear the garbage away.

Just ship it all to Koh Tao. Problem solved.

Push it into the sea, create a new island and open it to developers.

Hong Kong even built an airport on reclaimed land..... though I am sure Bangkok Airways would not be pleased if the same happens on Samui

A good incinerator would not cause any pollution, and leave little more than dust as a result (think of cremation type residue ash) that could be used for building materials. Extreme high temperature is key. In an ideal world the plastics could be separated and turned into diesel or other benzine type fuel with gentle heating (they are oil based after all). It would take some planning, but could probably pay for itself. This problem has an opportunity on the flipside, and some official could make great face for tackling it.

Make the pictures go viral on facebook and youtube !!!

Put them onto every page of every tour agancy that wants to make money out of tourists !!!

... unless this is going public on an enormous scale, nothing will happen !!!

Let's hope the fear of loss of revenue will scare the money suckers on this island enough to do somehting about it !

[And hopefully in a matter that SOLVES the problem and not just covers it up !!!]

Thailand. Hub of ................

Finding an eco friendly waste to energy system would be the answer.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landfill_gas_utilization

It's been done before and is being done now.

If I lived there and had time on my hands, I would look for - for profit companies that specialize in this and contact them and make a business of it. Even if you could just get the satisfaction of getting rid of this eco-travesty, you would have a win win. And no more whinge whinge!

Maybe no need for more power cables from the mainland either!

I thought this was going to be about the other "dirty secret" that actually is not a secret...

As for an incinerator as I understand it, they had one built at great expense (and the usual suspects made a packet on), that never worked properly, and now the can not even get it to work.

The answer here is to invite private companies to tender to build and operate an incinerator at their own expense which has to meet strict environmental restrictions and emissions, contract to include price agreement on wast disposal and for electricity generated.

The next tourist attraction perhaps ?

This was previously discussed here

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820094-the-shocking-truth-behind-samuis-garbage-disposal-crisis/

A good incinerator would not cause any pollution, and leave little more than dust as a result (think of cremation type residue ash) that could be used for building materials. Extreme high temperature is key. In an ideal world the plastics could be separated and turned into diesel or other benzine type fuel with gentle heating (they are oil based after all). It would take some planning, but could probably pay for itself. This problem has an opportunity on the flipside, and some official could make great face for tackling it.

Finding an eco friendly waste to energy system would be the answer.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landfill_gas_utilization

It's been done before and is being done now.

If I lived there and had time on my hands, I would look for - for profit companies that specialize in this and contact them and make a business of it. Even if you could just get the satisfaction of getting rid of this eco-travesty, you would have a win win. And no more whinge whinge!

Maybe no need for more power cables from the mainland either!

Hey guys in which fairyland are you living?

Forget landfill gas at Samui, this is a wild dump.

Burning mixed rubbish is a bit more complex as you and our PM are assuming.

I was in Samui when the incinerator was still in operation I was there short after shut down and a couple of month later.

When we left the island the last time my Partner was short before crying because they saw the situation which we have today already and we could do nothing.

There was a reason that the incinerator was shut down and there is a reason that proper waste management is not in place. Neither in Samui nor elsewhere in Thailand.

Most of us probably know why.

12 years ago we demonstrated waste management and organic recycling technology at a commercial scale and it was refused.

The project took place exactly opposite of the incinerator so I know the area exactly.

Now the s....t hits the fan and it is good that at least some expats are doing something.

I like to support as much as I can.

I have still the connection to the municipality.

And for all waste to energy fans note the following:

This technology is working well where proper technology, proper waste management and especially proper regulation/law enforcement is in place.

Some numbers from our countries:

Incinerator for burning municipal solid waste e.g. AVA City of Augsburg Germany year 2014:

Input: 238,283 ton MSW

Output:

Ash: 61,000 ton

Power: 61,167,000 KW/h without own consumption which is around 25-30%

That means per one ton of garbage, under the conditions of Germans waste management law the incinerator sold 180 kw/h power to the grid, a money plus of appr. 14.5 EUR per ton of MSW input.

That is not very much but this is a real number.

Unfortunately the waste here in Thailand is dramatic different concerning the composition and the heat value. I do not believe that a/ the incinerator in Thailand for untreated wast can even cover the own power demand.

And now the downside:

1. In Germany we have very strict regulations concerning exhaust gases. Over 46 different substances must be monitored and have limitations. Despite that, the Federal environment agency stated that “there is the possibility of other unknown hazardous substances because the waste is not homogeneous.”

   How much substances do you think will be monitored in a Thai MSW incinerator?

2. In order to avoid dioxin and furan temperatures must be at a certain range and exhaust gases are undergoing some sort of a afterburner in order to crack dioxin and furan which reduces the efficiency of the process.

   Do you believe such kind of technique will be applied in Thai MSW incinerators?

3. Filter ash:

   Approx. 70% of weight reduction is achieved in a MSW incinerator. From the 30 -35% Residues are 10% Filter ash. And that's the point, filter ash has all the toxic substances which we know – PB, HG, CD, ZN, Dioxyn, Furan, etc. And this substances are fully soluble therefore this kind of residue is called highly hazardous waste. In Germany this waste is not allowed to dispose it on common land fills.

   Do you think Thai authorities have the proper disposal facility for this kind of waste?

   Think about this first before you want to have this technology in Thailand.

Samui, as an entity, generates more than enough revenue to deal with the garbage. Problem is... most of the revenue goes to Surat. ERGO: Ship the garbage to Surat to.

A good incinerator would not cause any pollution, and leave little more than dust as a result (think of cremation type residue ash) that could be used for building materials. Extreme high temperature is key. In an ideal world the plastics could be separated and turned into diesel or other benzine type fuel with gentle heating (they are oil based after all). It would take some planning, but could probably pay for itself. This problem has an opportunity on the flipside, and some official could make great face for tackling it.

Finding an eco friendly waste to energy system would be the answer.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landfill_gas_utilization

It's been done before and is being done now.

If I lived there and had time on my hands, I would look for - for profit companies that specialize in this and contact them and make a business of it. Even if you could just get the satisfaction of getting rid of this eco-travesty, you would have a win win. And no more whinge whinge!

Maybe no need for more power cables from the mainland either!

Hey guys in which fairyland are you living?

Forget landfill gas at Samui, this is a wild dump.

Burning mixed rubbish is a bit more complex as you and our PM are assuming.

I was in Samui when the incinerator was still in operation I was there short after shut down and a couple of month later.

When we left the island the last time my Partner was short before crying because they saw the situation which we have today already and we could do nothing.

There was a reason that the incinerator was shut down and there is a reason that proper waste management is not in place. Neither in Samui nor elsewhere in Thailand.

Most of us probably know why.

12 years ago we demonstrated waste management and organic recycling technology at a commercial scale and it was refused.

The project took place exactly opposite of the incinerator so I know the area exactly.

Now the s....t hits the fan and it is good that at least some expats are doing something.

I like to support as much as I can.

I have still the connection to the municipality.

And for all waste to energy fans note the following:

This technology is working well where proper technology, proper waste management and especially proper regulation/law enforcement is in place.

Some numbers from our countries:

Incinerator for burning municipal solid waste e.g. AVA City of Augsburg Germany year 2014:

Input: 238,283 ton MSW

Output:

Ash: 61,000 ton

Power: 61,167,000 KW/h without own consumption which is around 25-30%

That means per one ton of garbage, under the conditions of Germans waste management law the incinerator sold 180 kw/h power to the grid, a money plus of appr. 14.5 EUR per ton of MSW input.

That is not very much but this is a real number.

Unfortunately the waste here in Thailand is dramatic different concerning the composition and the heat value. I do not believe that a/ the incinerator in Thailand for untreated wast can even cover the own power demand.

And now the downside:

1. In Germany we have very strict regulations concerning exhaust gases. Over 46 different substances must be monitored and have limitations. Despite that, the Federal environment agency stated that “there is the possibility of other unknown hazardous substances because the waste is not homogeneous.”

   How much substances do you think will be monitored in a Thai MSW incinerator?

2. In order to avoid dioxin and furan temperatures must be at a certain range and exhaust gases are undergoing some sort of a afterburner in order to crack dioxin and furan which reduces the efficiency of the process.

   Do you believe such kind of technique will be applied in Thai MSW incinerators?

3. Filter ash:

   Approx. 70% of weight reduction is achieved in a MSW incinerator. From the 30 -35% Residues are 10% Filter ash. And that's the point, filter ash has all the toxic substances which we know – PB, HG, CD, ZN, Dioxyn, Furan, etc. And this substances are fully soluble therefore this kind of residue is called highly hazardous waste. In Germany this waste is not allowed to dispose it on common land fills.

   Do you think Thai authorities have the proper disposal facility for this kind of waste?

   Think about this first before you want to have this technology in Thailand.

Is the Samui landfill able to even receive the ash output from the incinerator or must it be compacted and sealed for shipment elsewhere. Surely if that is the case motivation is at hand to get this plant back online, it would be quite lucrative in the hands of the right public servant.

jcisco,

Do not assume that the Samui Landfill is something what we understand as a "sanitary landfill".
And it is sure not a Landfill for hazardous waste.
For the bottom ash this would be not a big issue although it would be not suitable.
But for the filter ash it would. I did not have any knowledge how they treat the filter ash in the past.
That means the answer to your question would be "no"
Just think about this:
The costs of incineration of mixed garbage - if it is done properly (including. proper technology, exhaust gas cleaning, ash disposal)
Costs around 150EUR per ton input.
My information is that e.g. in Phuket the costs are around 800THB per ton.
Now we can speculate why there is that big difference.

Just dump it in the ocean. Problem solved.