Coal plant’s toxic emissions from across Laos border fuel Thailand’s health and environmental fears

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The Hongsa flower may have faced several more challenges, according to Ms. Sukraroek, a member of the Thailand Extraterritorial Obligations Watch Coalition, if it had been built or run in Thailand itself.

” There is a reason why these Indian companies come abroad to spend because, if you did it in Thailand, there would be civil society protests, demonstrations, and so many other things. According to her, the environmental impact assessment ( EAI ) must go through a process of public participation.

A business building a fuel plant would need to create a comprehensive monitoring system and conduct modeling of gasoline and mercury deposition.

” I believe this job may take longer in Thailand, and the local communities would demand compensation based on the effects,” he said.

She said,” All of these things are the main drivers why they are going out to plug into the sources of neighboring places.”

No Thai climate legislation applies to Hongsa’s procedures despite the apparent transnational effects. Ms. Wora claimed that ETO’s goal is to force Thai investors to adhere to” lasting, best practice principles” with their outside practices.

According to her,” Or to require a little more accountability to the requirements and the objectives of the areas and to uphold the principle of human right,” she said, citing the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

” At least show the kindness of supporting communities, talking about the project’s effects, and providing the information needed for the areas to be aware of the environmental and social effects that directly affect them and their health,” she added.

Instead of communities being wholly subjected to conclusions reached by consulting groups engaged by the developers themselves, the citizen science design being promoted in Nan could be a pilot project for more directly led economic data gathering.

According to Prof. Tanapol, this modeling indicates that the Chinese population, who reside close to the plant, is also likely to experience effects. When the plant was constructed, fresh transfer villages were constructed to relocate people from their immediate surroundings.

There is little solid evidence that could be presented to support the happiness of those communities, but with no ability to perform any assessments across the border. &nbsp,

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Vietnam’s ‘rice bowl’ cracks in monster heatwave

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HANOI: Southern Vietnam, including business hub Ho Chi Minh City and its “rice bowl” Mekong Delta region, suffered an unusually long heatwave in February, weather officials said Wednesday (Feb 28). Several areas of the delta are also suffering drought and farmers are struggling to transport their crops due to lowContinue Reading

Art of making traditional Thai lanterns dying out, as younger generation lose interest

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CHIANG MAI: Ms Konkit Khanapanya has been making lanterns by hand for some 40 years. 

But the 53-year-old owner of Khom Mae Bua Lai Kana Panya lantern shop in Chiang Mai is worried that such crafts will end with her generation, as young people are losing interest in them. 

“The young only care for things that can give them money. They are not proud of a hand-made product anymore,” said Ms Konkit, who picked up the skills from her mother-in-law.

“All the local knowledge will be gone, like what we are seeing with the elderly using traditional methods, the young won’t know them anymore.”

The lanterns, which come in various colours and sizes, are unique to northern Thailand, especially in the Chiang Mai province, where the Yee Peng Festival is celebrated annually towards the end of the year.

This festival is meant to mark the transition from the gloomy days of the rainy season to the brighter days of the cool season.

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Asia Pacific 32 years behind schedule in achieving sustainable development goals: UN

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Areas that have shown substantial progress are eliminating poverty, and bolstering sustainable industry, innovation and infrastructure. Even so, steps taken so far are insufficient to meet the 2030 targets for both goals, the report said.

It attributed the sluggish performance to an unfavourable global environment.

Numerous economies have yet to fully recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Ongoing conflicts, both within and outside the region, have also disrupted global supply chains, stoked inflation and created lingering uncertainty.

The report added that recalibrating domestic policies is crucial to meeting these challenges.

DATA COLLECTION

However, some success stories have emerged from the region in recent years, particularly in data collection and usage, said Ms Beaven.

“A lot of nations across the region are using much more detailed information on causes of death, such as to address maternal mortality, and looking at the specific causes to work out the best policies,” she said.

Still, she said there is a need to address data gaps that continue to hinder the comprehensive assessment of the goals’ progress.

“We don’t have enough data to be able to really identify what specific policies are needed within each individual country, which will also be very context-specific. We need much more detailed data (for better assessment),” she said.

“We want to invest in data systems because once we have that data, then we can identify which groups are being left behind most, and decide which policies are needed to help those groups.”

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Why New Delhi residents are finding it hard to switch to electric vehicles for personal use

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Mr Shouryendu said it takes four hours to get his Nexon EV, a sport utility vehicle produced by India’s iconic carmaker Tata Motors, fully charged. 

Charging his EV at home is as easy as charging his phone, he added. 

“The manufacturer has given us an option between a rapid charger and a slow charger. We have opted for a rapid charger. It charges quickly,” he said. “There are also charging stations located quite conveniently at malls (and) shopping complexes.”

His Nexon EV, which costs nearly US$22,000 two years ago, is among the most popular and affordable personal green vehicles on Indian roads, according to market watchers. Today, the same model has gone up in price, costing about US$1,000 more.

Currently, there are two Indian carmakers that produce EVs. Compared with foreign brands, they are a cheaper option for Indian consumers.

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