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Australian Floods, Sydney-based designer Dan Hill happened to be in Brisbane this week when floodwaters overtook the city. http://www.grist.org/article/2011-01-13-how-sprawl-killed-brisbane-a-report-from-inside-the-flood There will be much finger-pointing after this, from insurance companies refusing to pay up due to the releases from dams not technically being floods (what on earth else are they then?); from those who point out that, as memory of the '74 floods faded, developers were allowed to build in flood plains earmarked for further dams; from those pointing out that the floods are a result of climate change (even if these ones aren't, future ones will be); from those pointing out that the entire fragile mode of suburban development of Australian cities is particularly unsuited to the resilience required of the near-future; that development should not have been allowed on the riversides and basins of floodplains, and so on. There will be a time for discussing how to achieve more resilient patterns of settlement in Australia. I'm not at all convinced that Australians have the appetite for genuinely addressing this, even despite the floods. Most people are apparently incapable of thinking about the future on the scale required for investment in things like urban resilience, even accepting we need to get better at communicating all this. I'm not sure people see the connection between devastating flooding and a culture where property developers call the shots, where cost drives aspiration in building and infrastructure, and where a car-based fabric of dispersed tarmac'ed low-density communities is virtually the Australian dream. But if it's not events like this, I'm not sure what else it would take to make this clear and force the issue. Bangkok?

Bangkok pursues low-carbon strategy * Published: 28/01/2010 at 12:00 AM * Newspaper section: Business One million people in Bangkok are expected to feel the catastrophic impacts of climate change by 2050, prompting concerned government agencies to introduce measures to cope, says the National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB). The temperature increase is forecast to be 1.9 degrees Celsius in 2020 compared with today, with a 3% increase in precipitation and a 29-centimetre (That's a 11.42 inches) rise in sea level. Add Bangkok sinking 4" a year) Flooded areas will expand by 25% or 200 square kilometres, state planning agency officials told a seminar on pursuing a low-carbon society, held yesterday by the National Science, Technology and Innovation Policy Office. Current patterns of energy consumption pose mitigation challenges, said Thanin Pa-Em, senior adviser in policy and planning at the NESDB. Thailand aspires to take the regional lead in moving toward a low-carbon economy. According to Mr Thanin, diversification of power production is required for Thailand to avoid reliance on coal and gas and reduce imports of petroleum products for power generation. Relieving the severe traffic congestion and reducing air pollution in Bangkok are also recommended. (Free bicycles for all) To achieve these targets, creating urban jobs with better and more affordable transport services for low-income households is critical. The action plan on global warming mitigation attempts to reduce Bangkok's emissions by 15% or 6.4 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent per year by 2012, he said. In addition, the 15-year plan for renewable energy development aims to increase the share of renewable energy to 20% by 2012 from 5.8% in 2008, cutting CO2 emissions by 42 million tonnes per annum. Thailand has voluntarily reduced greenhouse gas emissions through the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). So far, 30 CDM projects from Thailand have been registered with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) with estimated emissions reduction of about 2 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent, according to the Thailand Greenhouse Gas Management Organisation. At present, Thailand ranks tenth in the world in CDM projects registered with the UNFCCC, lower than Malaysia (fifth), the Philippines (sixth) and Indonesia (ninth). China is first with 715 CDM projects followed by India's 477. According to Emergent Ventures International (EVI), an Indian consultancy specialising in global warming, the renewable energy market in Asia-Pacific is very attractive because power supply shortages are likely and marginal cost may remain at the high level of 20 cents per kilowatt-hour. Technological progress will continue to bring down costs. For example, the cost of electricity from solar power has fallen 6-7% annually for the past 15 years while wind-powered electricity cost has fallen 80% over the past two decades, said Jatin Kapoor, who is in charge of EVI operations in Southeast Asia. Citing McKinsey research, Mr Kapoor said overall savings from reducing energy use will be $900 billion by 2020. Annual investments of US$170 billion from now to 2020 may halve global energy demand. About the author columnist Writer: Nareerat Wiriyapong Position: Business Reporter Good news for Thai solar industry 28/1/2010 Plans to build one of the world's largest ever photovoltaic (PV) solar farms near Bangkok (Thailand) has boosted the Thai government's efforts to accelerate the development of a national PV market. The plant, to be built at Lop Buri by a Japanese-Chinese-Thai consortium, will have a capacity of over 70 MW. Completion is forecast for 2011, subject to approval of an environmental impact assessment and normal construction permits. The PV growth in Thailand has also received a further push after first-phase approval has been given for a cumulative total of 1 GW of PV facilities. 2 years ago the goal was 50MW solar, must have been reading my journals, he he This first-phase approval means authorisation to receive the guaranteed feed-in tariff, and is separate from building and construction permits, but is critical to financial viability of many projects. As if to anticipate the flood of permit applications that will follow, the Thai government has indicated that five separate application processes for building permits needed for PV installations are to be merged under a single umbrella. All this news is being used as a backdrop to SolarBusiness Bangkok 2010, Thailand's first ever national conference on developing the PV market, to be held on 22 and 23 March in Bangkok. The 2009 national Renewable Energy Plan for Thailand gives solar energy the highest national potential among all renewable energy sources, and the March conference is a key milestone in the drive to accelerate action in business. Apart from providing a full overview of technology and cost trends to national players, the agenda includes discussions about government guarantees of feed-in tariffs, financing mechanisms, and performance and testing standards. The conference is supported by the Thai Ministry of Energy and leading private-sector players in Thailand and abroad. For additional information: http://www.solarbangkok2010.com/ :arrow:

The Forest and the Fire-Keeper Louisa Willcox Posted December 13, 2010 in Saving Wildlife and Wild Places http://switchboard.nrdc.org/blogs/lwillcox/the_forest_and_the_fire-keeper.html Whitebark pine, Part 3 (See Part 1 and Part 2) Recently, a friend introduced me to a book called The Global Forest by (yet another woman) Diane Beresford-Kroeger, a botanist and medical bio-chemist from Canada. In the book’s final essay, “The Forest and Fire-Keeper,†Kroeger spoke of “fire-keepers†as keepers of the old legends, according to the First Nations, the aboriginal people of North America. In their oral tradition, the “fire-keepers†gather the wisdom and are the “keepers of the legends.†They are charged, too, with the memory of prophecy. Beresford-Kroeger related an ancient story of a prophesy for Mother Nature, the complex, intricate web of life. In this prophesy, according to the legend of the fire-keepers, the timeline of major change will happen at the time of the “great dying†of the North American sugar maples (a phenomenon which is actually happening now). “This dying,†she says, “is the beginning of the timeline of the destruction of nature.†Beresford-Kroeger goes on to say: “The rape of nature has then begun. Other trees will succumb to various infestations. The loss of forests will foreshadow a period of devastation. People will not realize what they have done, but they will continue in their path of demolition. From the peoples of today will rise another new generation of children. These children will be different from all those who came before. These children will have many gifts. They will be able to do extraordinary things. Primarily these children will have the gift of telepathy across the globe… They will understand and comprehend what their parents have done… Then the children of this generation will want to help the planet and nature in a collective way. They will hold hands across the planet in their minds. They will alter their parents’ ways. They will encourage one another. In this circle of life the children will save their parents through a dream and through a prophesy. In saving their parents they will save the planet.†Beresford-Kroeger says this legend was told orally, “before electricity at a time when the sugar maples were healthy and producing copious quantities of sap for maple sugar.†The author concludes: “The children exist. They have been taught a better mode of planetary management. The consumerism in their lives were holes of unbearable solitude. They are already reaching for something else, something elusive, something that is colorblind to race. It is called dignity, the dignity of life, all life.†Ah, just as I thought: the future of whitebark pine and what we chose to do about the current catastrophe prompts reflection on an ancient, wise concept: the dignity of life. A concept too often forgotten amidst the screaming on TV and radio talk shows, Fox News, iPods, and all the gadgets we distract ourselves with. How can we remember the importance of dignity, and put it into action moment by moment, day by day, in our interactions with each other and the land? How can we create a culture with the wisdom and compassion to save and nurture life? It all starts at a personal level, I think, with an individual commitment to a practice that keeps the idea of dignity -- for self and others -- at our core, so it becomes, over time, the well-spring of daily activities. Maybe we need to turn to and learn from the younger ones now – some, whom I have had the good fortune to meet, certainly have the wisdom that we sorely need. If we fail, what hope is there for us, the whitebark pine, and all the other species that comprise this interdependent web of life? Preserving the dignity of life may, when the story is fully told, turn out to be a core principle that all our lives depend on. O.K. children, step to the front and “do-si-doâ€! I'm thinking that the internet & 3 & 4G smart phones are connecting us together "Electronic Telepathy" maybe there will be a rise conscienceless for all life on this world.

"So why then did authorities recently give the final go-ahead to a Thailand-invested lignite mine and power station to be built only five-to-seven kilometers from the festival village of Hongsa? Sayaboury province, which cuddles like a spoon into Thailand, is Laos' center for domesticated elephants. It thus maintains the major gene pool needed for the survival of the species, which is fast dwindling." Banpu still has a joint venture with Ratchaburi in the $3.7-billion Hongsa lignite thermal coal power project in Laos. The 1,800-megawatt power plant, in which Banpu and Ratchaburi hold 40% each and the Laotian government 20%, is scheduled to be operational in 2015. Thailand Dirty Energy Mafia drive elephants to extinction. Interesting that Thailand is one of the most wasteful and in-efficient countries in the world. Laos power plant misses jumbo payout By Beaumont Smith http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/KI09Ae01.html SAYABOURY, Laos - The wildly successful Sayaboury Elephant Festival, held this year in the village of Hongsa, attracted more than 80,000 visitors, some elegantly attired, some dreadlocked ganja-inspired, despite the event's remote location in northwestern Laos. The 70 or so jumbos were by turns applauded, photographed and simply adored as they dipped like divas. Behind the scenes, women in traditional skirts took money from thirsty visitors, sticking wads of kip, the local currency, into capacious pockets. It was the sort of tourism that gains international plaudits, with money going directly into the hands of the villagers. The event, this year's was the third, is now one of Laos' biggest tourism-related money spinners. So why then did authorities recently give the final go-ahead to a Thailand-invested lignite mine and power station to be built only five-to-seven kilometers from the festival village of Hongsa? Sayaboury province, which cuddles like a spoon into Thailand, is Laos' center for domesticated elephants. It thus maintains the major gene pool needed for the survival of the species, which is fast dwindling. On the event's final day, saffron-clad Buddhist monks prayed and chanted, and senior Lao government officials watched, clapped and gave speeches in praise of their national symbol, readopted as a tourism signature and in particular the symbol of the forthcoming Southeast Asian Games to be hosted in the Laotian capital of Vientiane. But the happy dancing cartoon jumbos belie the decimation of their real cousins in "the land of a million elephants", which increasingly are at risk from Laos' electricity generation designs. "We are being told that the mine will bring jobs, and that may be true, but we want to know if we can live our lives in the village as our ancestors have done," said Mongkeo, a mahout at the festival. "We earned good money from the elephant festival and we are pleased that people want to come to see us. Now we don't know about the future. I know I have no skills in mining. I would probably just have to dig holes." The lignite mine plans, known as the Hongsa Thermal Power Plant Project, took on a surreal quality at last year's elephant festival, when a float in the grand parade was decked in acid orange and green bunting. On top and surrounded by nylon rosettes was an artist's impression of the power plant and mine, a science fiction monstrosity set in the plains of the picturesque Hongsa Valley. Sebastien Duffillot, program manager of ElefantAsia, a non-governmental organization (NGO) that provides technical assistance to Laos' Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock and currently assisting in planning next year's festival, is puzzled by the government decision. "There has been a lot invested in ecotourism, and Laos has a very good chance of being one of the global success stories," he said. "I think some people think that they can have electricity generation and elephants. There seems to be little comprehension of the consequences ... from building this power plant." Duffillot notes that money has been distributed to help Vieng Khao village (host of the planned 2010 festival) develop community-based ecotourism, including funds to decorate guest houses, provide English classes, find new trekking routes and design more tourist-friendly mounting stations. He notes that the mine site would be 12 square kilometers and that Vieng Khao is only five to seven kilometers from the site's epicenter. To mine lignite these days is as unhealthy as admitting to smoking five packs of cigarettes per day. Lignite is a dirty fossil fuel, so heavy in sulfur, carbon and water that often the only effective way of getting energy from its source is to process the lignite at the mine's mouth. Otherwise, the cost of transporting the coal often makes it uneconomic compared with other energy sources. A 2007 New Zealand report called lignite the "wettest, most inefficient and polluting coal there is" and noted in its assessment of a plan there to convert lignite to liquid fuels that one lignite facility would produce twice as much carbon dioxide per year as the total amount generated by coal-fired electricity in all of New Zealand. Environmentalists are now calling on governments to consider bringing international sanctions against countries that knowingly initiate high-carbon projects, such as the plans Laos has for Hongsa. Tellingly, the original project was rejected as uneconomic because it would have generated a mere 684 megawatts of power. The Thais and Laos have since been dickering over the price of the electricity and the plant's generating capacity. Questionable economics Banpu PCL, the Thai energy company leading the venture, promised 1,878 megawatts if they found an investment partner. Thai and Chinese businessmen, along with loans from the Chinese Import-Export and Development Bank, later enabled the Lao government to enter into an agreement, which includes the granting of a 25-year lease on the mine site. TMC news reported that in 2007, Banpu was sued for tort and other civil claims from the owner of the Hongsa Lignite project, Thai Lao Lignite (TLL) and businessman Siva Nganthavee, for billions of baht in damages (US$1 = 34 baht). Banpu entered into a joint venture with TLL as the concession owner, pushed the joint venture partner out of the deal, according to the complaint. TLL and Hongsa Lignite Co are claiming against the Lao government for US$3 billion. The government, through its Lao Holding State Enterprise, stands to make a mere US$2.5 million per year from taxes and shares in the deal. It was able to participate after agreeing to a loan of $100 million from China's EXIM Bank. It is not clear if Laos' estimated annual profit from the venture includes the cost of debt servicing. The Thai investors, including the Ratchaburi Electricity Generating Holding Company and the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT), will be the main beneficiaries of the power generated. Yet they have admitted in their technical reports and to the Thai English-language newspaper The Nation that the quality of the lignite is low, producing only 2,400 to 2,500 kilocalories, which will be converted to 10 megajoules. According to international lignite industry codes, an economic energy ratio for such projects is 10-20 megajoules, so the Hongsa mine just barely scrapes past the benchmark measure. Geologist Surasit Areesiri of World Drilling Services, who did the geophysical analysis for the mine, did not respond to questions about energy outputs and economics. Steve Raines, a coal mining engineer in Woollongong, New South Wales, who attended the first elephant festival in Sayaboury, agreed that the mine will create huge problems unless it is carefully built and monitored. "I don't see much reason to build lignite mines of that energy output unless there is nothing else. Hasn't Laos thought of renewables?" he said. "To run a safe and environmentally clean lignite mine these days costs a fortune. Lignite is one of those old-fashioned fuels that we choose to avoid now unless it's pulling 20-plus megajoules. It's a big price to pay so your neighbors can run air conditioners. The modern approach would be to leave it in the ground and go with renewables." The operation of "brown coal" plants, particularly in combination with strip mining, is often politically contentious due to environmental and safety concerns. Its something that Laos' National Assembly is said to be concerned about in areas where eco-tourism is taking off. Using an average of 13 million tonnes of lignite per year, the 12 square kilometer site will necessitate the relocation of 15 villages, the Vientiane Times quoted government sources as saying. Given the mine's location, it is likely that some of those villages are home to the mahouts who put on the increasingly popular with tourists elephant festival. Residents of the mahout villages around Hongsa are still uncertain which of them will be required to move. Relocation due to construction is one thing, as it usually comes with some form of economic package and assistance. But involuntary relocation due to possible fallout of fly ash, acid rain and at times heavy aerial contamination by carbon disulphide, which will likely result in chemically induced devastation of plants used for elephant fodder, is quite another. Sayaboury province has already been unsustainably logged, and both work and food sources for elephants are dwindling. Acid rain and sulfur dioxide emissions from the mine and plant will provide additional burdens to the people and elephant herds of the area, environmentalists say. "The difficulty is that there is no information. We don't know which villages will be moved," said Madame Keo, a mahout's wife in the area. "Lao people don't usually criticize government projects, but we are angry in private." According to an Australian volunteer biologist with the Wildlife Conservation Service (WCS) who curated an exhibition of Laos' disappearing species, "The government seems to be conflicted between industrial development and the donors wanting to develop an eco-development model. From my conversations with other biologists here, it appears that the Lao government thinks that modernization and development is all about covering the place with concrete, getting rid of the trees and the wildlife. "They praise the wildlife at ecotourism conferences and other international meetings, and then give the go-ahead to destroy the very thing that makes Laos special: its fantastic environment. The ones who make decisions don't realize being modern is to care about the natural environment and to be eco-conscious." Laos power plant misses jumbo payout By Beaumont Smith The WCS now runs an elephant conservation program in Laos' southern provinces, where large-scale logging, dams and mining projects threaten some of the globe's last remaining wild tropical places. They are carefully monitoring human-elephant conflicts, as dams inundate mineral licks, food sources and well-worn tracks for elephants. Muted protests A consortium of donor and government agencies, including the Lao Journalists Association and conservation groups, are planning to use the upcoming Southeast Asian Games, where the mascots will be two cutely named cartoon elephants, Champi and Champa, as an opportunity to highlight the country's disappearing wildlife. But the focus will be on prevention of poaching and changing tastes for wild foods. The push for land conversion for economic development, such as required for the lignite mine, is beyond criticism. The government does not countenance opposition to national policies, and villagers have reported in the past armed troops supporting government officials to negotiate certain contentious land concessions. Another lignite mine and power generation plant operated by EGAT in Mae Moh, near Lampang in northern Thailand, attracted sustained local and international criticism that prompted investigations by Thailand's Ministry of Natural Resource and Environment. Air monitoring found excessive levels of sulfur dioxide, which had caused significant health problems in the surrounding community. It has been estimated that the Mae Moh power plant has annually contributed about 4 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emission into the atmosphere, representing one of the biggest regional contributors to climate change. As a result, a complex and expensive set of engineering and technical controls, including meteorological warnings, now govern the running of the controversial plant. Those controls included the installation of electrostatic precipitators and forced oxidation flues to remove excessive sulfur from the plant's emissions. Despite the government-initiated controls, a Greenpeace study in 2002 showed how the Mae Moh Power Plant produces 4.4 million tonnes of fly ash along with 39 tonnes of the neurotoxin mercury annually. The samples of fly ash tested contained three times more arsenic and 14 times more mercury than is found in normal soil. Fly ash can be used in construction and sequestered inside cement, but a lignite mine on the scale proposed for Hongsa would produce more than is possible to capture, experts say. The major difference between Mae Moh and the proposed lignite project for Hongsa is that the public was allowed to express its displeasure in more democratic Thailand. In Laos, public demonstrations are frowned on and people's fears of government reprisals run deep. This bodes ill for Hongsa, where people and animals are dependent on locally grown fodder, food crops and ground water. Environmentalists say that it is likely that the adjacent river Kene, a source of fish for nearby villages, will suffer contamination from pollutants spewed out by the plant. Fish are known to take up mercury. Inorganic mercury, present in a lignite mine's fly ash, can be converted by bugs found in soil and fresh water into the very poisonous methyl-mercury, a potent neurotoxin affecting both humans and elephants. "Elephants may look huge and invulnerable, but they are very sensitive to diet, stress or change," said Richard Lair, one of the world's leading experts on Asian elephants, from his home in Lampang. "They can get diarrhea and die just from social stress. This [mine and power plant] may just kill a lot of the remaining herds." Dwindling herds Elephants are already highly endangered in Laos. For every live birth there are around 10 deaths, with many perishing due to lack of care or disease. There are estimated to be only 10 to 14 elephants under 10 years old in the country. If replacement is not soon achieved by breeding programs - one of ElefantAsia's goals - the species will soon be extinct in Laos. At the present ratio of births to deaths, this will happen in perhaps less than 30 years. Meanwhile, even adult numbers are diminishing in the so-called "land of a million elephants", as touted in government tourism literature. There are only 480 domesticated elephants left in Laos, about half the number of 10 years ago. Many have been overused in logging operations and have failed to breed. Now that the forests are shrinking, there is little for them to do or eat. The mahout tradition in Sayaboury province is ancient in its spiritual significance and Buddhist rituals. Images of the Buddha riding an elephant can be found in many of Sayaboury's temples. Hongsa, in particular, is famous throughout Southeast Asia for its elephant trapping and taming skills. Traditional veterinary medicines, such as the use of forest herbs found to be effective in treating most minor ailments such as lacerations and boils, have recently been enhanced by modern technology from visiting international doctors. It is not, then, merely the extinction of a species that is at stake, but also a complex and still living culture that is making contributions to modern science. Rather than reaching an inventive and possibly profitable solution to its national symbol's future, Laos seems set on following its neighbors into human-elephant confrontations, where jumbos usually lose. Bounthana, a resident of the elephant-centered tourist village near Vientiane known as Ban Na, was until recently on the front lines of the conflict. He recounted in an interview how "our villagers were hungry after a herd of 30 elephants trampled our gardens. Our people were so angry they wanted to kill them. We could sell the tusks and toe nails." Klaus Schwettman, a national ecotourism consultant, came to the rescue with a United Nations-funded project designed to enable people to not only coexist with elephants, but also make the jumbos into an asset. Schwettman was alarmed at the increasing pressure on herds by land conversion to plantation crops and a rise in poaching. His fears were realized when five elephants were killed in one month in the middle of this year, in the Lao Ministry of Defense-administered Phou Khao Kuai protected area in Vientiane province. Brutally butchered for parts, the elephant's faces had been hacked off. Another was killed in Phou Phanang, an area in Vientiane province also under control of the Ministry of Defense. Each loss is a disaster for both the elephants and villagers of Ban Na, who have recently been making a good living from elephant tourism. In Sayaboury, two domesticated elephants allowed to roam in the wild were recently shot and injured. The bull escaped serious injury, but the pregnant cow, which had as local tradition dictates been sent to the wilds to mate and had done so successfully, lost her calf, and most likely her life. At the same time, despite rapidly dwindling herds and projects that threaten elephants' livelihoods, the authorities are giving away their remaining jumbos for diplomatic purposes. The government's recent decision to give as a gift two four-year-old elephants to North Korea as a gift angered the NGO community. "These animals are in actual fact priceless - many times more valuable than the fanciest car," said Duffillot, noting that the sale of endangered species like elephants is illegal internationally. "So why not rent them for say three years at $1 million a year as other countries are doing? That is what China charges for its pandas. Elephants in Lao are as rare as pandas." The irony is that if the Hongsa lignite mine project were scrapped and Sayaboury province was made into an internationally recognized center for elephant breeding, priced at $1 million per elephant per year, the government would potentially earn more profits than from its controversial energy project, say eco-tourism advocates. The mining lease for Banphu's lignite project is for 25 years, which means that at present low levels of elephant replacement compounded with the likely environmental damage from the project, the elephants and the project might both expire at the same time. Beaumont Smith is a Vientiane-based journalist.

In the USA, the Natural Resources Defense Council and several power companies described the footprint of fossil-fueled power plants: In 2008, power plants were responsible for 66 percent of SO2 [sulfur dioxide] emissions, 19 percent of NOx [smog-forming nitrogen oxides] emissions, and 72 percent of toxic mercury emissions in the U.S. – not to mention that the electric industry also pumps out nearly 40 percent of the nation’s heat-trapping carbon dioxide emissions. Thailand's Mae Moh coal plant, Lampang. Saturday, February 2, 2008 The Grievous Mae Moh Coal Power Plant http://developmentdebacles.blogspot.com/2008/02/grievous-mae-moh-coal-power-plant.html Background The Mae Moh Coal Power Plant has 13 generating units with a total capacity of 2,625 megawatt (MW). It is located in the mountains of Lampang province in northern Thailand. According to the Asian Development Bank (ADB), it has been involved in Mae Moh mine for financing several units. It approved a series of loans amounting to more than US$352 million for the past twenty years. The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) constructed the plants in four phases from 1978 to 1996. It owns and operates the Mae Moh Power Plant which is fueled by an open pit lignite mine which produces 40,000 tons per day. With an area of 135 square kilometers, it is considered the largest coal-fired power plant in Southeast Asia. The project aims to answer the growing electricity demand in Metropolitan Bangkok and rural areas. According to the ADB and EGAT, the project is highly successful since the project objectives involving least-cost nature, system loss reduction, and system stability and reliability have been met. However in reality, taking into consideration the social and environment impacts, the project is far from being successful. Environmental and Social Impacts According to Greenpeace, the Mae Moh power plant approximately contributes more than four million tons of carbon dioxide emission in the atmosphere, annually. In addition, around 1.6 million tons of sulfur gas is released from the power plant into the air everyday. Such have caused severe health problems for the people near the site and have led to the deterioration of the environment. More than 200 people have died due to respiratory diseases and lung cancer ever since Mae Moh power plant was operated. (Jessica Rosien, 2004) Greenpeace further said that from the time of the implementation of the Mae Moh coal power plant, more than 30,000 people have been displaced and thousands acquired severe respiratory problems. This was due to the inhalation and exposure to sulfur dioxide emitted from the mine. The fly ash has also affected the crops of the villagers. According to one villager, her planted vegetables and fruits died because of the toxic that the coal power plant emitted. Another villager recounted that her pineapple plantation wilt over the years. Farmlands have been negatively affected by acid rain which is attributed to the sulfuric dioxide released by the coal power plant. In October 1992, when EGAT operated the 11 units at Mae Moh, people residing within the seven-kilometer radius of the plant fell ill with breathing difficulties, nausea, dizziness and inflammation of eyes and nasal cavities. After two months of operation, 50 percent of the rice fields were damaged by acid rain and around 42,000 people were found to have breathing ailment. In April and May 1996, six people in Mae Moh died of blood poisoning. Greenpeace further said that in 1999, more than 600 people suffered from respiratory problems caused by sulfur dioxide emissions. (Saksit Meesubkwang, 2006) In October 2003, the State Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning Office found high levels of arsenic, chromium and manganese in almost all water sources within the vicinity of the plant. In May 2004, the Thai Provincial court awarded US$142,500 to the villagers for crop damages caused by the coal power plant. Greenpeace believes that this compensation is the government’s way of recognizing the plant’s disastrous effect to the lives of the people. Safeguard Policy Violations Environment Policy In its technical assistance completion report, the ADB admitted that “the Mae Moh power station, including the Mae Moh mine, has caused environmental and social problems, in particular, local air pollution causing public health problems.†(ADB, TA-CR, 2002) In 2002, Greenpeace Research Laboratories conducted a study on the Mae Moh coal power plant. Results of the study showed that Mae Moh power plant releases around 4.3 million tons (MT) of fly ash along with 39 tons of neurotoxin mercury annually. Fine powders of fly ash sample were collected which contained elements that are highly toxic to the environment, animals, humans and plants. Greenpeace said that sample from Mae Moh coal power plant contained very high concentrations of arsenic, mercury, lead and chromium. Arsenic is known to be carcinogenic to humans. It could easily enter groundwater and waterways. Mercury is a well-known neurotoxin. Lead is highly toxic and could damage the environment. It has a long residence time compared with most pollutants. Chromium is also a known carcinogen. To mitigate the negative impacts of the plant, pollution control devices, such as flue gas desulfurization (FGD) and ionizing wet scrubbers, were installed by the government. However, Greenpeace Research Laboratories stated that the sample ashes still contained very fine particulates, called respirable particles. These elements include arsenic, cadmium, chromium, cobalt, lead, mercury and zinc. Pollution control devices fail to contain these respirable particles. In the case of Mae Moh, mercury was not completely removed and still reflected high concentration in the sample collected. Greenpeace stated that end-of-pipe technologies cannot destroy toxic elements that were released to the atmosphere in gaseous form. Treatment of these hazardous elements will only result in the production of additional contaminated waste streams. Involuntary Resettlement Policy Due to the implementation of the project, more than 30,000 people have been displaced. According to reports, Thailand’s cabinet previously offered to build houses for those who were affected. However, there has been no progress about this plan until now. This clearly shows that the ADB and EGAT have no concrete plan and program to address the issue of resettlement of affected villagers. Compensation for the income loss due to farmland degradation was not even included in the implementation of the project. The villagers have to go through the process of filing law suits against the government just to receive just compensation. Lessons to Learn The case of the Mae Moh Coal Power Plant is another proof that burning fossil fuel to generate electricity is detrimental to the environment and human health. This has been proven by the many people who acquired respiratory diseases and numerous individuals who died due to toxic elements that were produced by the plant. In the long run, the use of coal power plants does not promote sustainable development. In spite of pollution control devices, hazardous particles are still present at high levels in the environment. This only means that the only way to end the social and environmental disasters that a coal power plant brings is through a complete stop of its operation. This leaves the ADB and the government to resort to sustainable, renewable and environment-friendly sources of energy such as solar and wind-generation power. According to Greenpeace, there is a need for the ADB and the host governments of coal power plants to conduct an environmental audit. Based on the Mae Moh experience, there is a need to institutionalize resettlement programs. Just compensation and medical treatment should be provided to the victims of the coal power plant releases. The ADB should begin accepting responsibility for the social and environmental disaster that the coal power plant has caused the people of Mae Moh. The story of Mae Moh points out that the demand for electricity is not enough reason to take the environment and human life for granted. References: Asian Development Bank. “Project Performance Audit Report on the Third Power Transmission (Sector) Project (Loan 1170-THA) and Fourth Power Transmission (Sector) Project (Loan 1245-THA) in Thailand.†Manila: ADB, September 2002. Asian Development Bank. “Technical Assistance Completion Report.†Manila: ADB, March 2002. Brigden, K., Santillo, D., and Stringer, R. “Hazardous Emissions from Thai Coal-Fired Power Plants.†UK: Greenpeace Research Laboratories, 2002. Greenpeace Southeast Asia. “All Emission, No Solution: Energy Hypocrisy and the Asian Development Bank in Southeast Asia.†Greenpeace Briefing. May 2005. Greenpeace Southeast Asia. “An ADB Skeleton in the Closet: Mae Moh.†2005 Greenpeace Southeast Asia. “Mae Moh: Coal Kills.†Bangkok: Greenpeace Southeast Asia, May 2006. EGAT Future Coal Plant Plans Greenpeace calls for coal plant rethink * Published: 24/06/2009 at 12:00 AM * Newspaper section: Business http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/telecom/19039/greenpeace-calls-for-coal-plant-rethink Greenpeace and its allies are calling on Thai energy policymakers to rethink building coal-fired power plants in a bid to cut carbon emissions, said Witoon Permpongsacharoen, director of Mekong Energy and Ecology Network. They want the government to review the demand projection, the proportion of renewable energy used and the use of imported coal to fuel the power plant. Coal-fired power plants also have social costs because they emit pollution and greenhouse gases, affecting the health of local people. Greenpeace estimates the cost of power production from coal to be 2.75 baht per kilowatt/hour (unit), 0.78 baht for natural gas and 2.67 baht for oil. The figures include the costs of pollution control, greenhouse gas emission, health impacts and accidents in coal mines. Power demand has sunk since 2007 and capacity utilisation of power plants stands at only 66% or 22,044 megawatts of a total capacity of 31,000 MW. The country will add another 12,000 MW from small and very small power producers in the next few years, he said. The coal-fired power plants in Thailand will be built by National Power Supply Co and Gheco-One Co, with a total capacity of 1,000 MW. They are expected to emit 9 million tonnes of carbon dioxide per year. Four other coal-fired plants producing 2,800 MW will be built by the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) for operation between 2015 and 2017. Mr Witoon also expressed concern over the environmental standards of the coal-fired Hongsa Lignite project in Laos. As the plant is near the Thai border, Egat, as the only buyer of the plant's output, should be concerned about its production quality, he said. "There are no environmental standards or health protection laws in Laos, and if the plant emits pollution, it will affect Thai villagers nearby," he said. Environmentalists also don't believe advanced technology is a solution. Wanun Permpibul, a representative from the Thai Working Group for Climate Justice, said it was impossible for a carbon capture and storage system (CCS) to be commercially viable. He added the technology would never materialise as its cost is too high for the business sector. Carbon capture costs in research projects in Norway and Algeria were reported at US$15-75 per tonne, with another $8 for transport. Carbon storage is $5-8 per tonne for onshore location and $5-30 per tonne for offshore. Instead of putting effort and capital into developing CCS, global energy leaders should focus on supporting energy-saving equipment and new technologies for renewable energy, he said. About the author Writer: YUTHANA PRAIWAN

Thailand's borders with Laos and Cambodia are reflected by the brown on the Thai side in this true-colour satellite image, which shows the effects of heavy deforestation in the country. Between 1945 and 1975 forest cover in Thailand dropped from 61% to 34% of the country’s land area. Over the next 11 years Thailand lost close to 28% of all of their remaining forests. This means that they were losing 3.1% of their forest cover each year over that period. Politics of Dynamic Deforestation in Thailand Prepared by Thai NGOs Working Group Thailand case study begins with the profile of geo-ecological cultures in Thailand. Then the case study focused on 3 communities in Thailand and their forestry problems. The three case studies indicated that politic dynamics of deforestation stemmed from various elements, starting from a policy-making level and an idea of decentralisation, surrounded by Thai economic and politic factors. Ban Klang village is located in a fertile forest area with several creek sources where in the past were dense with teaks. The Ban Klang forests can be divided into 3 types: evergreen forest, sundry forest and deciduous forest. Ban Klang community has lost the forest from several causes which are forestry concessions and illegal forestry concessions by Businessmen and Mafia. The forestry concessions and the illegal forestry concessions has resulted in several natural crises in Ban Klang. Creeks have been short of water, rice cultivation has been unsuccessful due to drought and creeks and streams have become shallow by earth coming down from the declining forest. At present, the state of declining of the forest is worsening. The forest area of river sources have been destroyed which has affected the existence of living things and the richness of the watersheds. Therefore, the villagers have considered the causes of the problems and tried to rehabilitate, maintain and protect the water source forests that have been destroyed. They have got together and established "Ban Klang Community Forest Committee" with the objective to make community cooperate with community and community with government, promote the knowledge and the understanding of forestry preservation, find methods and cooperation to rehabilitate the invaded and declining forests for the Maemai and the Maetum creeks can be sources of life essential supply for the people living around the watersheds. The adaptation to protect the forests and the community’s activities have resulted in increased fertility in the forests around the village. The villagers have realised that the community survival is based on common elements from the forests. The way of life of the villagers highly depends on the nature, therefore, the villagers see the importance of the forest rehabilitation and protection. The author explains although the villagers have the new forest management system and can implement it efficiently, the government does not accept and recognise the community’s organization. Therefore, the regulations can be imposed only on the community’s members but not on outsiders that break them. The Nong Yo community forest has a forest area of 1,557 rai. The forest is a mixture between the hardwood and the evergreen forests. The Nong Yo forest is surrounded by 8 communities either original or new settlers. The communities’ main career is agriculture and labouring to Bangkok and other big cities. Around 1967, the Tammai company is Surin province was granted forestry concessions in the forest area to produce sleepers and firewood. The forest became sparse and people could expand their cultivation areas to grow upland plants. In 1979 Forest Industry Organisation (FIO) hired by Tammai company started to restore back the forest and rehabilitate the damaged forest area by planting wattle, eucalyptus an Melia azedlarach. The author mentions that the Eucalyptus Garden-Like Reforestation Project over the communities’ cultivation area has caused trouble, such as economic, social and poverty problems, because the communities have lost a vast cultivation area, the decreasing level of underground water, the forest area are arid, the soil is not fertile, natural trees have been cut for use and various breeds of animals have been extinct. Because of the impacts on the 8 villages, a protest was made to the involved organizations to cancel the garden-like forest status. The Nong Yo forest rehabilitation plan was offered as a forest management that would be run by the communities around the forest. Satoon is a province located on the Andaman sea side. It is in southern Thailand and has 2 geographical types which are mountainous areas covered with forests (land forest) and The shore on the Andaman sea side. Most forest areas in Satoon are in the north of the province. There are 18 preserved forests in Satoon which cover 729,980.55 rai or 47.12% of the province. The author provides data of the rate of deforestation in Satoon province. It is stated that Satoon lost a forest area of 170,625 rai within 5 years or on average 34,125 rai/year or 93,49 rai/day. The causes are illegal forestry concessions for trade; community expansion to make a living and to have inherited land from their ancestors; and area expansion for good breeds of rubber tree plantation. Due to the mention causes, the case study provides a list of arrests and legal claims proceeded by officers of the conserved national park of Ban Sea and officers at the provincial police station of Satoon province. The case study distinguish the communities’ conditions into 3 cathegories which are communities that have strong organisations, communities that have medium-strength organisations and communities that have no firm organisations cannot get together to solve the problems. The first communities give the first priority to the right to make a iving in the forest area, the second cooperate with outsider while he third ones are fixed targets for not everlastingly utilising the forests. In the presentation of the case studies the author noted that the causes of deforestation in Thailand are forestry concessions, expansion of cash crops, failure of problem-solving in land occupation and the issue of land license, illegal logging, reforestation by private business, infrastructure, purchase of land for profit anticipation, and people loosing power and rights to control their resources and knowledge. The author also singled out the underlying causes of deforestation in Thailand, which are liberal capitalism, economic growth policy, state centralised natural resource management, the weakening of civil society and the gap of worldview in each sector. A number of solution were proposed to counter deforestation including supporting alternative agriculture, suppoting watershed management and network, and good managing of forest by stopping removing people out of forest, supporting community forest and allowing local community and civil society to participate natural resource management at all level. See this NGO trying to help. Population And Community Development Association [PDA] http://www.pda.or.th/eng/background.asp?Menu=31

Pull The Plug. And Your Battery Will Thank You. http://thisweekinbatteries.blogspot.com/2010/02/pull-plug-your-battery-will-thank-you.html One question that I have been asked frequently is “do laptop batteries fade faster if they are continuously plugged in?†A reader asked this question in the blog and I thought it would be good to get into battery failure using this specific question. Batteries failure depends on the chemistry and can be broadly classified as mechanical failure and chemical failure. When I say mechanical, think cracking, breaking, and shedding of the electrode. Chemical means reactions, like corrosion, that alter the state of the battery for the worse. In lithium batteries both kinds of failure can happen. For example, people have shown that the electrode particles can break, especially when you fast charge the battery. But the question that was posed regarding failure when you plug-in the battery is specifically chemical in nature. First some basics. For chemical stability, the battery should be operated within the stability window of the electrolyte. For water-based batteries, the stability window is 1.2V. Go above this window and you split water and make hydrogen gas and oxygen gas. This is about the time you should be wondering how lead acid batteries even work considering that their voltage is ~2 V, but that is outside of the scope of this post. But getting back to our laptop, the stability window is ~3.2V. Meaning that when you operate the battery above this the electrolyte is oxidized on the positive electrode and reduced on the negative electrode. Remember that we only want to oxidize and reduce the “active†materials and don’t want to do anything else. All these reactions other than the ones we want are called “side reactions†and these are really bad for the battery. The nominal voltage of a laptop battery is 3.7 V which means that something bad wants to happen as we use the battery. Just because things want to happen does not mean that they actually do (for example, I want to buy a Tesla or a Volt, but...). So long story short, stuff (e.g., passive layers and poor kinetics of reactions) happens and things are not as bad as they seem and you can increase the voltage up to 4.2V without bad things really happening. All chargers for Li-ion cells today cut the battery off when it reaches 4.2V. What you have to realize is that at 4.2V, these side reactions are present in finite amounts and start to chemically kill the battery, but its not that dramatic. Operating to 4.1V makes things better and extends the life, 4.0 V is even better and so on. So why don’t battery manufacturers cut the voltage off at, say, 4 V to get better battery life? Because every time you cut this voltage down you decrease the capacity of the battery and its run time. The 4.2V cutoff is a compromise between good run time and decent (read “not patheticâ€) life. Were you supposed to understand all that? Not really, I just wanted you to know that I’ve really thought about these things. What you do need to know is that if you keep your laptop plugged in, you force your battery to remain at 4.2V continuously and these side reactions continue to happen and slowly kill the battery. On the other hand, if you charge the battery and then pull the plug (so to speak), the battery discharges some, the voltage drops, and these reactions become less of a problem and your battery life goes up. So the best things you can do is to charge the laptop (or cell phone, camera etc.) and once its charged, pull the plug. Your battery will thank you for it. As a matter of fact, if you own a Lenovo Thinkpad, you can actually change the state of charge to which you charge the battery using the “Battery Maintenance†utility. You can change this from charging to 100% state (where the voltage is 4.2V) to 90% so that your voltage is less. You lose some energy is doing that, but at least you can change it to 100% when you need battery power and put it back down to 90% when you can plug in. I wish my Mac has the same feature. This problem has implications for PHEVs and EVs. Lets say you have a 15 kWh PHEV pack. You come home after a 40 mile commute and you plug it in at 6:00 PM. Let’s say you have a 120V, 15A outlet, so that you can put out 1.8 kW of power. So the battery is going to charge in 8 hours. By 2 AM you have a fully charged battery. If you leave your house at 8:00 AM, your battery is going to be sitting at 4.2V for 6 hours in any 24 hour period. This is not going to be good for the battery. It gets worse if you decide to bump the amp/volts on your house to charge it faster. So we need to get these batteries charged faster, but we also want to make sure to have smart chargers that don’t do what I’ve described above. Something to think about. What does this mean for researchers? If someone can find an electrolyte that has a wide voltage window of stability, then this problem goes away. Or you can try to use materials that work within this window (For example A123 Systems battery does this on the positive side). But this means the battery has a lower voltage, which means it has lower energy and less run time. We don't want that, do we? Finally, we can try to isolate the electrode and the electrolyte and see if we can kinetically hinder these reactions. In the Battery Program at Berkeley we are actively working on this problem so that we can get more energy and better life. In the mean time, remember to pull the plug. Venkat Lawrence Berkeley National Lab As soon I read this article, I pulled the plug on the Macbook-5555 I pull the plug on my cellphone, camera, and iPod. But, tend to leave my Macbook plugged in most of the time, discharging once month. I'm gonna try running on the battery and charge when empty. Apple says the Macbook battery supposed to last 5 years, more than a 1,000 cycles :idea:

If your thinking about buying condo in Thailand read this. Actions speak louder than greenwash By Steve Pearmain Courtesy of SLP Environmental Co., Ltd Sep. 21, 2008 The road to hell is paved with good intentions but it?s time for businesses to stop jumping on the green bandwagon and take decisive action in the battle against climate change and environmental degradation. One has only to walk out of the front door these days to be assailed with messages from companies proclaiming their green credentials. Manufacturers, retailers and developers are falling over themselves in their rush to surf the green wave. Unfortunately for us all however, you usually only have to scratch the surface of their claims to find that nine times out of ten it is just ?greenwash? generated by a marketing department. As commendable as it is to encourage shoppers to replace plastic carrier bags with reusable cloth bags, this in itself will not ?save the planet? as is so often claimed on the billboards. Whilst we should all applaud businesses who seek to raise public awareness of environmental issues, it is also fairly evident that some unscrupulous companies are capitalising on the green theme merely as a PR exercise designed to swell their coffers. If businesses are serious about joining the battle against climate change and environmental degradation, then their efforts would be best spent exploring what tangible actions they can take to significantly reduce their environmental footprints, rather than coming up with new marketing gimmicks. Undertaking an environmental sustainability appraisal is a useful first step in this regard. This normally takes the form of a detailed audit of a companies operations and activities with respect to the key environmental sustainability indicators such as; energy, transportation, waste management, natural resource usage, emissions to environmental media and local ecology. Carbon quantification, commonly referred to as carbon footprinting, is a common component of the assessment process which involves the calculation of the carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2E) emissions associated with the specific activities and operations of a particular business. Determining a company?s carbon footprint is the critical first step in developing an effective carbon management strategy, as it sets the benchmark against which all future improvements and modification to practices and activities will be measured. Bespoke carbon footprint modelling is a complex exercise which grows even more challenging if the embodied energy associated with actual materials such as steel and plastic is included. For example, whilst a Business Manager may be justifiably proud that his new trucks run on compressed natural gas, he is unlikely to know the full story behind the carbon emissions associated with the lifecycle of the vehicles. The steel used in their construction has ultimately been mined, smelted and cast, the plastic started life as crude oil and the factory where it was all put together consumed energy. To put the importance of embodied energy into perspective it is worth noting that for every 1000kg of cement produced nearly 900kg of CO2E is emitted into the atmosphere. The Building Sector is responsible for the largest consumption of fossil fuels and natural resources in the world today, yet innovative, and often simple, modifications to construction and services design can lessen their impact on our environment through energy and resource efficiency. Simple passive solutions in tropical countries can include: sun shading, building orientation and placement, less reliance on materials with a high thermal mass and the use of natural ventilation and recycled building materials. More active solutions include the use of solar panels and wind turbines to generate renewable energy. As more and more purportedly ?green? buildings fill the SE Asian skyline, how can we as potential purchasers be sure that a particular developer?s claims are not just more greenwash? Surely it?s time for SE Asian countries to implement a formal third party rating and certification process such as the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System promoted by the U.S. Green Building Council. LEED certification provides independent, third-party verification by accredited professionals that a building project meets the highest green building and performance standards, is environmentally responsible and will provide a healthy place to live and work. LEED projects are in progress in 41 different countries, although to date only two projects have been certified in ASEAN countries; one in Thailand and one in Singapore. The magnitude of the challenge faced by humanity in the face of climate change and environmental degradation is truly daunting, and one that requires a serious and considered response by business. Businesses need to understand that hawking greenwash in the face of such a global threat is entirely irresponsible as it trivialises the extent of the problem by suggesting there?s a painless quick fix which in turn promotes complacency amongst the public. The irony is that practicing good environmental governance also makes sound economic sense. Companies that actively reduce their environmental impact are more sustainable, profitable, valuable, competitive and socially responsible. This is good for the economy and the environment, often referred to as the win-win scenario. Those that fail to address their environmental impacts, but instead focus their efforts on greenwash campaigns, will ultimately be less successful, as the exploitation of resources for short-term gain is detrimental to the economy and the environment. This is a short-sighted lose-lose strategy that risks taking us all down with it. http://www.environmental-expert.com/resultEachArticle.aspx?cid=29921&codi=37867&lr=1&word=%25e2%2580%259cActions%2bSpeak%2bLouder%2bthan%2bGreenwash%25e2%2580%259d And what is Thailand Government's answer to the need for Greener Buildings? Build 2 Nuclear Plants costing Billions, instead of addressing the problem, that 99% of all buildings in Bangkok could use a "Green" energy upgrade. In Chiang Mai the Tourism Council said that visitors down are 60%, one reason is the world economy, other is traffic and air pollution. Dam hard to cross the street without getting run-over. Finally, "Green building does not necessarily have to come with a high price tag. Innovative, and often simple, modifications to construction and services design can lessen their impact on our environment through energy and resource efficiency. Relatively simple passive solutions in tropical countries include; sun shading, building orientation/placement, solar reflective paints, greywater treatment and reuse, green roofs, use of lower thermal mass materials, rainwater harvesting, use of sustainably sourced and recycled materials, natural ventilation systems (such as solar chimneys) and recycled and non toxic building and finishing materials. More active solutions include the use of solar panels, biomass boilers, air con waste heat capture and utilization and wind turbines." :?:

KNU welcomes mediation offer By: ACHARA ASHAYAGACHAT AND ANUCHA CHAROENPO Published: 25/03/2009 at 12:00 AM Newspaper section: News The Karen National Union has welcomed Thailand's offer to mediate a reconciliation with the Burmese government. But KNU vice-president David Tharckabaw yesterday stressed that success would depend on how sincere the Burmese junta was in restoring democracy. "It has been our policy to find a viable process that leads to justice and peace and durable stability for the Karen people," he said in a telephone interview from the Thai-Burmese border. "Therefore, we are open to Thailand's mediation role." On Sunday, Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya told his Burmese counterpart Nyan Win that he was willing to hold talks with the Karen dissident group to persuade it to disarm and join the national reconciliation process in Burma. Nyan Win relayed the message to Burmese Prime Minister Thein Sein. The Burmese premier agreed to the Thai offer during talks with Mr Kasit in the Burmese capital of Naypyidaw on Monday. Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva yesterday said he was not aware of the plan unveiled by Mr Kasit and was waiting for a briefing from the minister. Mr Abhisit said the government supported attempts by the Burmese government on national reconciliation and the restoration of democracy. He said the position of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations was clear: It wanted to see all parties take part in Burmese elections set for next year. The KNU and Shan State Army are still waging an armed struggle for independence. They have rejected the junta's seven-step road map towards reconciliation which includes general elections. The 16 other ethnic nationalities, including the Mon and Karenni, have reached a temporary truce with Naypyidaw. Mr Kasit said he would approach Karen leaders himself. Mr Tharckabaw said there had been no official contact from Thai officials, but the mediator role was logical and possible. "The Burmese junta might think they can ask Thailand to convince or pressure us to surrender," he said. "But whatever steps Thailand [takes] will be watched by the international community." The success of the talks, he said, would not depend on Thai pressure but on how much the ruling State Peace and Development Council was willing to compromise in exchange. He said he could not predict if the talks could be concluded before the elections. "A few rounds of negotiations in Rangoon and border areas starting in 2005 have not led anywhere since the junta conditions are rigid and unrealistic," he said. "If they want to restart [the talks], this time the international situation has changed and the regime has to change accordingly." Mr Tharckabaw said there had been no democratic development in Burma. "Even proposals by ethnic groups who were designated to [sit in] the National Convention are rejected," he said. "Now various ethnic people do not trust the regime. The Mon or the Karenni have not written [a truce] agreement, either." I wonder what are reasons that Thailand offering to help the KNU negotiate with the State Peace and Development Council. Here's one reason: EGAT's 10 Billion US dollar Dam project on the Salween river. Salween Dams: A Dangerous Plan for Burma (pdf) Publishs by: EarthRights International (ERI) is a nonprofit, nongovernmental organization (NGO) that combines the power of law and the power of people in defense of human rights and the environment, our earth rights. Earth rights are those rights that demonstrate the connection between human well-being and a sound environment, and include the right to a healthy environment, the right to speak out and act to protect the environment, and the right to participate in development decisions. The repressive military dictatorship in Burma, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), the Thai government, and the Energy Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) are pushing ahead quickly and secretively with plans for a series of giant dams on the Nu/Salween/Thanlwin River. In addition, over one dozen dams are planned upstream in China. All of these dams, whether in Burma or upstream, pose serious environmental and social threats to downstream communities in Burma. The environmental consequences of the proposed dam projects will be vast and irreversible. The Salween River, known as the Nu River in China and the Thanlwin River in Burma, remains the longest river in all of mainland Southeast Asia that flows freely, uninterrupted by massive dams. The river basin area has been designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its rich biodiversity, rare wildlife and internationally recognized wetlands. Close to one hundred species of fish migrate between the Nu/Salween River and its tributaries, and forests lining the river are some of the most fertile in the world for growing teak trees. This extraordinary region is being threatened. If the Wei Gyi Dam is built, it will not only stop the river. The Karen and Karenni will lose their homeland, farmland... and culture. The dam will only support the regime, not the indigenous peoples of Burma. Link to PDF: http://www.earthrights.org/files/Burma%20Project/salween_dams_brochurea4.pdf The bottom line is, Thailand would not need the electric power from the Salween river Dams if there was a realistic Energy Development Plan that embraces energy efficiency & renewable energy. Earth Rights International Southeast Asia Office P.O. Box 123, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50202 Tel: 66-1-531-1256 E-mail: [email protected] www.EarthRights.org

Caribbean Reefs Face Severe Summer Threat By ANDREW C. REVKIN, NY Times, 22 July 09 Coral reefs in a broad swath of the Caribbean face a substantial risk of severe bleaching and die-offs through October, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said on Wednesday in its latest Coral Reef Watch report. Similar conditions may develop in the southern Gulf of Mexico and central Pacific, the agency said. But the report said the widest area of high risk was in the southern Caribbean, from Nicaragua?s east coast across the south coasts of Haiti and the Dominican Republic and from Puerto Rico south along the Lesser Antilles. Rising ocean temperatures are contributing to the risk, the report said, noting that the National Climatic Data Center reported that in June the world?s ocean surface temperature was the warmest on record. From the report: Scientists are concerned that bleaching may reach the same levels or exceed those recorded in 2005, the worst coral bleaching and disease year in Caribbean history. In parts of the eastern Caribbean, as much as 90 percent of corals bleached and over half of those died during that event. The forecast said there was substantial risk of bleaching in parts of the Pacific Ocean, as well, and noted that this did not include the extra heat anticipated from a developing El Niño warming of the tropical Pacific. :roll:

Emissions Cut Won?t Bring Quick Relief, Scientists Say By CORNELIA DEAN 28 Jan 09, NY TIMES Many people who worry about global warming hope that once emissions of heat-trapping gases decline, the problems they cause will quickly begin to abate. Now researchers are saying that such hope is ill-founded, at least with regard to carbon dioxide. Because of the way carbon dioxide persists in the atmosphere and in the oceans, and the way the atmosphere and the oceans interact, patterns that are established at peak levels will produce problems like ?inexorable sea level rise? and Dust-Bowl-like droughts for at least a thousand years, the researchers are reporting in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. ?That peak would be the minimum you would be locking yourself into,? said Susan Solomon, a senior scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, who led the work. The researchers describe what will happen if the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide ? the principal heat-trapping gas emission ? reaches 450 to 600 parts per million, up from about 385 p.p.m. today. Most climate researchers consider 450 p.p.m. virtually inevitable and 600 p.p.m. difficult to avoid by midcentury if the use of fossil fuels continues at anything like its present rate. At 450 p.p.m., the researchers say, rising seas will threaten many coastal areas, and Southern Europe, North Africa, the Southwestern United States and Western Australia could expect 10 percent less rainfall. ?Ten percent may not seem like a high number,? Dr. Solomon said Monday in a telephone news conference, ?but it is the kind of number that has been seen in major droughts in the past, like the Dust Bowl.? At 600 p.p.m., there might be perhaps 15 percent less rain, she said. In 1850, atmospheric carbon dioxide was roughly 280 p.p.m., a level scientists say had not been exceeded in at least the previous 800,000 years. In their paper, Dr. Solomon and her colleagues say they confined their estimates to known data and effects. For example, they based their sea level estimates largely on the expansion of seawater as it warms, a relatively straightforward calculation, rather than including the contributions of glacial runoff or melting inland ice sheets ? more difficult to predict but potentially far greater contributors to sea level rise. The new work dealt only with the effects of carbon dioxide, which is responsible for about half of greenhouse warming. Gases like chlorofluorocarbons and methane, along with soot and other pollutants, contribute to the rest. These substances are far less persistent in the atmosphere; if these emissions drop, their effects will decline relatively fast. Michael Oppenheimer, a geoscientist at Princeton, praised the report in an e-mail message as a ?remarkably clear and direct? discussion of whether it would be possible to temporarily exceed a level like 450 p.p.m. and then reduce emissions in time to avoid catastrophic events like the collapse of a major inland ice sheet. Dr. Oppenheimer said the new analysis showed that ?some dangerous consequences could be triggered and persist for a long, long time, even if emissions were cut radically.? ?Policy makers need to understand,? he continued, ?that in some ways once we are over the cliff, there?s nothing to stop the fall.? Dr. Solomon said it would be wrong to view the report as evidence that it was already too late to do much good by reducing carbon emissions. ?You have to think of this stuff as being more like nuclear waste than acid rain,? she said. Acid rain began to abate when pollution contributing to it was limited. But just as nuclear waste remains radioactive for a long time, the effects of carbon dioxide persist. ?So if we slow it down,? she said, ?we have more time to find solutions.? For example, engineers may one day discover ways to remove the gas from the atmosphere. But ?those solutions are not now in hand,? Dr. Solomon said. ?They are quite speculative.?hanging ****"The total volume of all the air in the world is actually quite small compared to the enormity of the earth, and we are filling it up, profoundly changing it's makup, every hour of every day everywhere on earth" Quote from: Earth In the Balance, Ecology And The Human Spirit, by Al Gore

Just found a Thai website focusing on Climate Change issues in Thailand. http://www.thaiclimate.org/Eng/ List of Khun Thai working on Climate Change issues: http://www.thaiclimate.org/Eng/People.cfm Apirak Kosayodhin Since becoming Bangkok's Governor in 2004, Apirak has emerged as one of the first Thai politicians to incorporate global warming as a principal component of his platform. In May 2007, he launched a CO2 reduction campaign encouraging Bangkok citizens to recycle their garbage, use less energy and start riding bicycles. Using media events followed by placards and signs scattered throughout the capital, he?s hoping to keep the idea of reducing our carbon footprint in the public eye. In June 2007 he released a draft 2007-2012 Action Plan to guide the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration?s response to Global Warming. Aree Wattana Toomakoed Often referred to as Thailand?s climate lady, the senior official from the Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning (ONEP), the agency charged with implementing the Kyoto Protocol in Thailand, routinely represent Thailand at international climate change meetings and negotiations. Although Thailand remains a relatively inactive player within these negotiations, she tries to secure funding from donor countries for adaptation and CO2 reduction programs. She feel Thailand, like many developing countries, will benefit from technology transfers to combat global warming. Scientists Dr. Sitanon Jetsadapipat Dr. Sitanon, presently Technical Advisor of the Red Cross/ Red Crescent Climate Centre, serves on Thailand?s National Climate Change Committee. Since 1996, he has closely monitored the politics of climate change, from developing countries' perspectives, with a view that developing countries are persuaded to believe in developed countries' dominance in science, technology and mindset, without realization of their own weaknesses in negotiating climate change. He is a strong advocate for the Thai government to enhance its own research capacity, broaden participation of stakeholders and to implement appropriate policies. He is also founder of Climate Policy Initiative of SEA START, a global change research network, based at Chulalongkorn University. Dr. Lisa Schipper Dr. Schipper is a Project Manager with Southeast Asia Global Change System for Analysis, Research and Training. Her specialty is exploring adaptation mechanisms in response to climate change. She has written extensively on the adaptation issue, many of which can be found on her climate change adaptation website. Her focus in Thailand now is the development of a network to facilitate the training of scientists in Southeast Asia in different areas of climate change research. Email Suppakorn Chinvano Suppakorn is a consultant with the Southeast Asia Global Change System for Analysis, Research and Training. He works closely with Anond Sanidvongs on Thailand climate models as well as his own field research. He is particularly interested in understanding the impacts global warming will have on Thailand?s agricultural sector and adaptation strategies that may need to be developed. His initial research on the impact of climate change on farmers and their production of the famous Hom Mali fragrant rice at Thung Kula was the first of its kind. email Dr. Thiravat Hemachudha Dr. Thiravat is Professor of Neurology at the Department of Medicine and Molecular Biology Center for Neurological Diseases Chulalongkorn University Hospital. He studies disease transmission from animals to humans, particularly viruses. He feels strongly that global warming will alter the life cycles of animals and insects, likely changing how, when and what types of diseases we need to be prepared for. For example, Thailand?s tropical climate makes it particularly vulnerable to disease transmission via mosquitoes; major changes in their environment could change their ability to transmit new strains of tropical diseases. He has aggressively urged policy makers to look into this issue. Dr. Anond Sanidvongs Dr. Anond is Director of the Southeast Asia Global Change System for Analysis, Research and Training. He is one of the first scientists to seriously study the impact of climate change in Thailand, and remains one of the most cited Thai experts on climate change issues. He assisted the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration in drafting its global warming Action Plan. In November 2007 he will release the findings from new climate change modeling for Thailand, developed in cooperation with the UK-based Handley Centre. Atsamon Limsakul Atsamon is a researcher with the Department of Environmental Quality Promotion. He studied earth and atmospheric sciences at Nagoya University, and his principle focus now is global warming in Thailand. He has produced a study to confirm the likely temperature changes Thailand will experience due to global warming, slated for publication by the Atmospheric Research Journal in late 2007. He also is collaborating with Dr. Sangchan Limjirakarn?s on the Assessment of Extreme Weather Events and Hotspot Areas in Thailand.   Dr. Sangchan Limjirakarn Dr. Sangchan is senior researcher at Chulalongkorn University?s Environmental Research Institute. One of her recent studies investigated the release of methane gas from rice fields. As methane is a greenhouse gas, the global levels of which need to be reduced, rice farming has been a target of some western governments. She has helped to document the limited contribution rice farming in Thailand make to global methane releases. Currently, she is working on the Assessment of Extreme Weather Events and Hotspot Areas in Thailand funded by the Thailand Research Fund. The results are expected in 2008, and will help Thailand prioritize areas in need of improved natural disaster preparation. Dr Kamphol Rujiwich Dr Kamphol teaches at Thammasat University?s Applied Health Faculty. He constantly warns that rising temperature in Thailand could increase the likelihood of epidemics. He's now exploring this hypothesis through pioneering research on the changing genes and DNA of the cholera virus, enabling it to spread year-round instead of during only the summer months. The three-year research project, which began in 2005, examines the mouths of four key rivers in the Central region: Chao Phraya, Bang Pakong, Thachin, and Mae Klong. His initial findings indicate that only a 0.5 degrees centigrade increase in water temperature can enable the cholera virus to grow rapidly and cause previously benign strains of the virus to now trigger the disease. Dr. Thanawat Jarupongsakul Dr. Thanawat is a lecturer in geology at Chulalongkorn University specializing in soil erosion. He studies coastal areas with severe erosion problems, and more recently has been investigating how climate change and sea level rise may be an important contributing factor to accelerating coastal erosion. He recently engineered a new type of coastal barrier installed in Baan Khun Samut Jeen in Samut Prakarn. These new barriers have received wide acclaim for their effectiveness, and are now being promoted as one of the tools Thailand should use to respond to sea level rise caused by global warming. Advoacy Tara Buakhamsri Tara Buakhamsri is climate and energy campaigner for Greenpeace Southeast Asia. He first captured media attention as a respected critic of industrial pollution in Thailand. With Greenpeace he has lead opposition efforts to clean coal and nuclear power plants offered as mechanisms for Thailand to reduce CO2 emmissions. In August 2007, Tare and launched Greenpeace Thailand?s mobile Climate Clinic, and accompanying handbook, for people to calculate the amount of CO2 emissions they are individually responsible for through the course of any given day, and the strategies they can take to reduce these emissions. Wanun Permpibul Wanun consults for the Renewable Energy Institute of Thailand, a member of Climate Action Network, a worldwide network of non-government organisations working to promote government, private sector and individual action to limit human-induced climate change to ecologically sustainable levels. She emerged as a vocal activist in April 2007 when Bangkok hosted meetings or the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. She cautioned Thai society that the government can't be allowed to use the need to reduce carbon emissions as a rationale to promote nuclear power. Wanan is concurrently a PhD candidate at the Asian Institute of Technology researching Thailand's vulnerability to climate change and its capabilities to adapt. Chom Greacen Chom is a public interest electricity sector analyst working to shift Thailand to more appropriate energy producing technologies. From 1999 to 2003 she worked as a policy analyst with Thailand's Energy Policy and Planning Office (EPPO), responsible for electricity policy reform. She studied environmental engineering at Dartmouth College and has a MS from the Energy and Resources Group at the University of California at Berkeley. She co-found Palang Thai, a Thailand-based non-profit organization that promotes transitions within the region's energy sector to more economically, social and environmental just energy generation and distribution practices. International NGOs Christopher Seeley Mr Seeley is City Coordinator for the Clinton Climate Initiative. Bangkok is one of the 40 largest cities the Clinton Foundation is working with to develop and implement a range of projects and programs to increase energy efficiency and generate cleaner energy. The initiative?s main focus is to provide technical assistance by combining the purchasing power of many cities to accelerate the evolution of markets for alternative energy products. There's a good .pdf report on Thailand's Energy Sector & Climate Change, "Climate Change and Energy Policy in Thailand. Politics versus Realities", by Vanessa Buth, published by HBF http://www.boell-southeastasia.org/en/web/106_128.html Excerpt: Thai energy politics: undemocratic, non-transparent and misleading The news about new regulations published in the media often shine a very positive light on the overall situation. But still, energy sector governance, planning and practice in Thailand are centralized, monopolistic, inefficient, and gender-biased. This has created a static energy situation that can be defined as unsustainable, growth-oriented, reliant on expansion and negligent of energy efficiency. The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) EGAT, the state the government when it comes to energy politics in Thailand. EGAT itself is accounting for 59% of the country?s energy generating capacity (a minimum of 50% is EGAT?s share by legal regulation). It wholly owns its two subsidiaries, the Independent Power Producers (IPP) Electricity Generating Public Company Limited (EGCO), in which it is the major share holder with approximately 25% stakes, and Ratchaburi Electricity Generating Holding Public Company 56 about 45% stakes. This powerful position has created a policy in favour of EGAT and widely undemocratic and non-transparent in energy forecast, generation, distribution and pricing. ?As a monopoly for over three decades, EGAT is one of Thailand's most powerful vested interest groups. Years of technocratic accomplishment have bred a deep sense of entitlement over national resources. Perks proliferated, including free electricity for all EGAT's over 29,000 staff. Insulated by its technical expertise, management usually handed the government its investment plans as a done deal, often designing power plants and negotiating financing with the World Bank or other aid agencies independently.? EGAT also wants to maintain its monopoly hold on transmission and distribution. EGAT focuses on coal and lignite, natural gas, large hydropower, and will be responsible for nuclear power generation.

I saw a show about earthships that I enjoyed. An architect. Mike Reynolds designed his Earthship using Thermal Mass for heating and cooling, Solar and wind power for electricity and a water collection system that sends rain water to a holding tank under the home. The results are a home with no heating or electric bill. He built whole comunnities in Taos, New Mexico of these Earthships and was almost shut down by new local zoning rules as the town of Taos grew in size and outside influences. These Earthships use discarded tires filled with earth for walls as well as cans and bottles used for bricks. A house built with recycled garbage. He was called by some people hit by the tsunami to help rebuild and he taught them his technique and they were grateful. Using the earth and sun and collecting the rain that falls from the sky living with the earth !!!!!!!! Some of his designs even include indoor green houses for food as well as some animals for food. Some houses were designed so a person could live in the house without leaving. I like the no Heating and electric bill concept !! The thermal Mass wqorks so well Homes needed no heating or cooling systems installed. And Taos gets temperatures to 30 below F and 110 F amazing and very real !!

Tell me what do you think of Malaysia's 'latest' idea. Greener fuel in your tank 11 Feb 2007 Elizabeth John and Yamin Vong -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- KUALA LUMPUR: You will be breathing cleaner air sooner than you think. Thanks to new government regulations, drivers and motorcyclists in Malaysia will be filling up with cleaner petrol and diesel by end of next month. The new fuel will have lower levels of sulphur ? the sulphur content in diesel will go down from 0.3 per cent to 0.05 per cent, and for petrol, the reduction will be from 0.15 per cent to 0.05 per cent. This means that motor vehicles will be spewing less of the environmentally hazardous sulphur dioxide which contributes to respiratory illness and the formation of acid rain. ?The quality of diesel that we are using is far below international standards,? Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Azmi Khalid told the New Sunday Times. ?The Cabinet has approved our move to get all oil companies in Malaysia to adhere to the new standards.? "We may have to pay a little more but it is better to pay now than to pay later to cover health costs and damage to the environment," said Azmi. An industry source said it would cost 3 or 4 sen more per litre. Diesel now costs RM1.58 per litre, and petrol RM1.92. Datuk Rosnani Ibarahim, the director-general of the Department of Environment, said they had been working with oil companies on the improvements for some time. "We are working towards making this a regulation (under the Environment Quality Act) by end of next month. "At present, we are going by the MS123 standard for diesel fuel and MS118 for petrol, which are inferior." The new fuel standard will be similar to the Euro II emission standard set by the European Union that limits the amount of pollutants that can be released into the environment. "We are prepared to go Euro II any time the government wants," said a Petronas senior manager, who did not want to be identified. "It just means a bit more refining of the feedstock." Vicky Lee, the fuels development manager of Shell Malaysia, said: "We will comply with the government?s regulations on Euro II and work towards the deadline." Industry observers said the local industry had been aware of the move to Euro II and that the indication was that it would not be later than March.