STRANDED COMPANIES CALL FOR PERMISSION TO PROCEED WITH STALLED MAP TA PHUT PROJECTS

       NGO plans to take more actions to ensure that the government complies with environmental laws
       Manufacturers with operations in Map Ta Phut pleaded last week to be allowed to proceed with 76 suspended industrial projects, vowing to abide by any additional environmental regulations drawn up by the government.
       At a roundtable hosted by The Nation last Friday, Chainoi Puankosoom, president and CEO of PTT Aromatics and Refining, said the industrial sector is not opposed to Article 67 of the Constitution - which requires projects to undergo a health-impact assessment (HIA) and receive public consent and approval from the yet-to-be established independent environment body - and is willing to conduct environmental impact assessments (EIAs) and HIAs. However, he added, the government has yet to draw up laws pertaining to HIAs.
       "As such, the ongoing projects should be allowed to proceed, as we are ready to honour all rules and regulations to come, including conducting public hearings. If we're not doing enough, we will invest more to fix the problems.
       "We can't live without the community's support, but stopping these projects won't reduce pollution. It's time to find ways to support peaceful coexistence," he said.
       He said that while the suit filed by the Anti-Global Warming Association and 43 Rayong villagers that led to the injunction was taken against eight government agencies, the injunction punished private companies that have strictly followed established rules and a pollution-reduction plan launched in 2007. Under the plan, existing plants must reduce toxic emissions by 20 per cent and new plants are only approved when they demonstrate that their emissions level is at 80 per cent of those of existing plants.
       Chainoi noted that the suspension of the 76 projects threatened new investment in the country, as similar actions could take place nationwide. Along with foreign direct investment, financial institutions would suffer, he said, as half of the more than Bt400 billion invested in the 76 projects is borrowed.
       At present, some exporters based in Map Ta Phut are facing difficulties stemming from buyers' concerns over environmental issues, he said.
       Chainoi urged the creation of a neutral academic centre tasked with the collection and dissemination of balanced information from the government and non-profit organisations, which he said would serve the independent environmental body's operations. Then, if damages are apparent, new rules could be established and if they are too strict, investors can move elsewhere.
       "The government must take care of this issue. It can issue rules that would make all communities welcome industrial plants," he said.
       Cholanat Yanaranop, president of Siam Cement Group (SCG)'s chemicals business, said that the injunction is causing concern for foreign partners like Dow Chemical, which are no longer sure about whether to proceed with their joint investments. He noted that due to the financial crisis, Dow Chemical cancelled investments in many places but maintained its investment in Thailand thanks to the trust it had developed in SCG, and what he described as the firms' shared philosophy of operating under a legal framework, demonstrating care for the environment and local communities. "We don't know how to explain this [to Dow], as we have followed the law, but the project was halted," Cholanat said, adding that partners are more important than interest rates. "I will fly to the US to meet Dow Chemical executives and explain the actual situation at Map Ta Phut."
       The group's suspended projects worth Bt170 billion were scheduled to begin operations in the next three to 12 months, involving more than 100,000 workers. Cholanat admitted that the government had been slow to take action on some environmental concerns, but said that could have been a result of the frequent government changes last year.
       He insisted that SCG is doing more than it is required to do. Every month, he said, members of local communities are invited to visit the firm's plants, which he said had met with EIA and HIA standards set jointly with Burapha University in the absence of government HIA guidelines. Cholanat urged the government to take action as soon as possible. Thailand's petrochemical industry enjoys high competitiveness, operating in a cluster with upstream to downstream industries. If the legal battle was prolonged, he warned, it could prove to be a turning point for Thai industry. He stressed that lessons learned by the Japanese showed that heavy industry and local communities could live together if public participation and transparent operations were assured.
       Verapong Chaiperm, deputy governor of the Industrial Estate Authority of Thailand, which oversees Map Ta Phut Industrial estate and four more nearby, said that regulations should become clearer soon. The local community will submit its conditions to the National Environment Board on October 18, as a result of the Rayong Administrative Court's order in March. Then, the guidelines on HIAs as well as for the independent environment body will be in place.
       "It's a systemic problem, with a lack of collaboration between politicians and civil servants and a lack of trust in the communities. The resumed operation of the Eastern Seaboard Committee, after an eight-year absence, should promote problem solving and unity," he said.
       Srisuwan Chanya, president of the Anti-Global Warming Association, noted that the court case is not meant to tackle environmental problems only at Map Ta Phut but elsewhere in the country as well. He said the case was mainly aimed at politicians and civil servants who fail to comply with the law and ignore public concerns. The association and Rayong villagers filed the lawsuit, he said, after being ignored for a long time. The last straw, he said, was when the Industry Ministry was slow to release its list of industrial activities that had serious environmental effects, which, as of September 2008, covered 19 activities, according to a series of public hearings in 2008.
       "The aim of the lawsuit is to force government agencies to issue regulations or laws pursuant to the Constitution. [The government] could have issued a regulation under the PM's Office or had the National Environment Office issue the announcement. They took too long," Srisuwan said.
       He said that next week he would take legal action against the government's appeal against the injunction. He said the government had failed to seek a dialogue with the group, and the appeal further demonstrated the government's lack of concern about villagers' problems.
       In the next three weeks, Srisuwan said, he also plans to file a petition against the Industry Ministry, which on September 14 unveiled a list of only eight industrial projects deemed to be "most dangerous".
       The group also plans to challenge the rules that allow the natural resources and environment minister to punish the independent environment body, as that violated its independence, he said.
       "The Map Ta Phut case is just the tip of the iceberg. So far, over 500 projects have won EIAs and we will check out which are causing environmental problems," he said.
       At the roundtable, participants agreed that government action and a commitment from the private sector to abide by all environmental and health requirements were needed to end the dispute.
       Arthid Nanthawithaya, Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) senior executive vice president for corporate banking, said at the roundtable that the issue would only be resolved if all parties - the government, private companies and local communities - open a dialogue in good faith.
       "The injunction affects the [industrial sector's] long supply chain, and there should be dialogue to prevent damage to ongoing projects. While the government takes care of its part and the private sector operates with good governance, this should be solved for the sake of the nation," he said.