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The
use of energy partly contributes to environmental problems,
particularly air pollution in Bangkok. The government and the
energy sector have move quickly to alleviate this problem.
Unleaded
gasoline was introduced for the first time on 1 May 1991 and is
now avialable throughout the country. Mandatory installation of
catalytic converters in all new gasoline vehicles became
effective on 1 September 1993. Regular leaded gasoline which
contains 0.15 gram per liter of lead will be completely replace
by regular unleaded gasoline by 1 January 1995. Moreover, the
sulphur content of diesel oil is being reduced from 0.5 percent
to 0.25 percent by 1 January 1995 with a target of 0.05 percent
by the year 2000. The distillation point has been lowered to
make the product lighter, this should help reduce the emission
of sulphates, particulates and black smoke. More restrictive
controls have also been placed on the level of benzene and
aromatices in gasoline.
At
present lignite fired power plants are the main source of
sulphur dioxide emission in Thailand. Following incidents of
atmospheric inversion in October 1992 at Mae Moh district, where
the 2,000 MW lignite-fired power plant complex is located, the
Thai Government immediately applied a short-term measure to
rectify the situation by reducing electriciry generation
according to the real-time measurement of sulphurdioxide
concentration in Mae Moh. The government also ordered EGAT to
install flue gas desulphurization units (FGD) in all new lignite-fired
power plants to minimize emissions and to retrofit four existing
unit FGDs. This is expected to reduce sulphurdioxide emission at
Mea Moh by 50 percent.
Moreover,
the government from now on will implement a more aggressive
policy towards energy efficiency and conservation, which is the
most direct way of reducting carbon dioxide emission, thereby
alleviating global warming. After government approval at the end
of 1991, EGAT recently launched a five year Demand Side
Management Programme (DSM) which will provide financial
incentives for projects to promote the construction of energy-efficient
buildings and the use of energy efficient euipment and
appliances. The programme will start with efficient lighting
programme. At the end of the programme, EGAT expects to save
over 300 MW of electricity while spending 4.8 billion bath and
also expects that the programme will develop the utilites'
ability to achieve much greater saving in the long term.
Conclusions
The
energy security of the country has been achieved through
developmint of the main domestic resources, namely natural gas,
oil, and lignite. It is expected that more natural gas and
lignite reserves will be identified and that dependency on
imported energy will be further reduced.
Biomass,
especially fuelwood, will still remain the main energy resource
in rural areas of Thailand for the next two decades. Plantation
of fast-growing trees can provide an alternative source of
energy and help decrease deforestation. The large potential of
hydro-power from domestic and international rivers can be
utilized once environmental and political constraints are
removed.
Domestic
lignite and imported coal apprar to be the most viable
alternative sources of energy for electric generation and
industry. Technologies for pollution controls on their uses are
already available. Large domestic reserves of oil shale can also
be utilized when the proven shale oil extraction processes
become economical in the future.
Domestic
resources of solar energy and biomass, especially agricultural
and industrial wastes, have high potentials for utilization snd
viable technologies are being identified or developed. During
the next decade, it may be stated with confidence that Thailand
will have adequate energy supply for the development of the
country. |
