The Limited Times

Now you can see non-English news...

Climate Conference in Glasgow: How do you bring Thailand to more climate protection?

2021-11-07T11:13:49.116Z


Thailand would be the perfect location for solar energy and green innovation. But the country gets most of its energy from oil, gas and coal. Experts issue a devastating climate certificate.


Enlarge image

Bangkok in early November: traffic jam in the city center

Photo: Peerapon Boonyakiat / SOPA / LightRocket / Getty Images

Yes, there are some signs, some promises.

“Green BKK 2030”, for example, is written on a poster that was put up in Lumphini Park in the middle of Thailand's capital.

A green Bangkok in 2030.

Anyone who lives in the Southeast Asian megacity and is looking for a bit of a park within walking distance cannot object to this idea.

Green spaces and fresh air are rare.

But if you are looking, you also know: To make the concrete city of Bangkok really greener within the next nine years, to make space for meadows with trees instead of another cooled-down shopping mall, is a huge task.

Even before the corona crisis, many people in Bangkok wore masks as soon as they left the house.

In February, March, and April every year, for example, when the smog hangs thickly between the skyscrapers and the fine dust pollution exceeds the limit values ​​in Germany many times over.

When it hurts to breathe in and apps warn against outdoor exercise.

While the cars with their internal combustion engines are stuck in a traffic jam on the streets.

"The climate crisis is a matter of life and death," said Thailand's Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha at the world climate conference in Glasgow.

But tackling the grievances in his country required more determination than a few words and a poster rammed into the ground.

The Gulf of Thailand is one of the regions in Southeast Asia that has been particularly hard hit by climate change.

Right in the middle of it all is Bankgok, the city of ten million, built in the Chao Praya river delta;

many live here only one and a half meters above sea level.

Bangkok is struggling with heavy rains that cannot seep away because of the sealed surfaces.

The sewer systems are unable to cope with the number of residents - plus millions of tourists before the pandemic.

The climate crisis could cause sea levels to rise three to five meters in the next few centuries.

Bangkok is sinking an inch a year while the sea level is rising half a meter.

Not far away, on the coast, you can already see how the erosion is eating meter by meter of land.

Thailand's climate goals "minimally or not at all sensible"

If the effects of the climate crisis and environmental pollution can be felt so clearly in Thailand - how important is climate policy in the country?

Not a big one.

Thailand's energy consumption has increased enormously over the past 50 years.

The country gets its energy almost exclusively from coal, gas and oil.

Renewable energies such as sun, hydropower or biomass - all of which are available in large quantities - play a negligibly small role.

Thailand emitted 3.7 tons of CO₂ per capita in 2020.

The country is not one of the major polluters in an international comparison.

It produces half as much CO₂ per capita as Germany or China, a quarter of the USA.

Nevertheless, the "Climate Action Tracker", operated by the United Nations Development Program together with the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, gives Thailand a devastating testimony in terms of climate policy.

The study examines the voluntary commitments of 32 countries around the world to the Paris Climate Agreement.

It classifies Thailand's climate goals as »critically insufficient

«

.

Thailand's CO₂ emissions will rise again massively by 2030, and the country could not be climate neutral until 2065.

The government's climate targets are "minimally or not at all sensible."

"If all countries followed the Thai approach," say the authors, "the temperature rise would exceed four degrees Celsius."

The country must cut 50 percent of its emissions in the next few years, in industry, in transport, in private households, all of which are full of air conditioning.

So far, however, the country has only offset emissions: by reforesting mangrove forests.

Even if people are severely affected by climate change: The urgency for climate protection has not necessarily reached the general public.

This is shown by a study by the UN development program from January 2021. According to the survey, young people under 18, potentially of the “Fridays for Future” generation, see less need for climate action than young people in an international comparison.

Climate protection as a job guarantee

In 2019 people went on strike in Bangkok for the climate - but maintaining a permanent social movement is difficult in Thailand.

The government is cracking down on all forms of protest.

The student protests, which have been brutally suppressed, bear witness to this.

Those who join a global climate movement cannot avoid a good command of English - another hurdle for many young people in the country.

In the pandemic, hundreds of thousands in Thailand also lost their jobs and slipped into poverty.

How can you explain to these people that they have to tighten their belts for the climate again?

By seeing climate protection less as a sacrifice than as an opportunity: for new jobs, better wages, cheaper energy.

Not just as an advantage for the climate, but as an economic and financial advantage for everyone.

Thailand is a perfect place for solar energy

.

Instead of using expensive fossil fuels, private households could cover their energy needs independently of the sun on their roofs.

Running your air conditioners, running your stove, charging your cars.

To do this, the technology would have to become cheaper.

The country could establish itself as an innovation location for solar or modern battery technology, which will create jobs of the future.

There are a few initial projects there: one of the largest floating solar cell projects in the world is being built in the north-east of the country.

But in order to quickly switch to regenerative energies, in addition to political will, less rich countries like Thailand often lack the money.

One approach is therefore: green economic development from abroad - through CO₂ compensation and private-public partnerships.

An example will be discussed in the days of the world climate conference in Glasgow.

It's about 250 electric buses for Bangkok, cross-financed by a Swiss foundation.

In order to offset CO₂ at home and comply with the Swiss CO₂ law, the company is investing in a climate-friendly project in Thailand.

Legally covered by Article 6.2 of the Paris Climate Agreement.

Such investments can help to push the expensive conversion to renewable energies in less economically strong countries.

A Swiss franc invested in Thailand can possibly have more effects than a Swiss franc invested in Switzerland.

The investments are intended as a lever for further green projects and to create awareness among the population.

Critics, on the other hand, describe emissions trading as a kind of indulgence trade;

rich countries outsourced their responsibility to less economically strong countries instead of pursuing decisive climate policies in their own country.

Because too often the projects remain primarily good PR.

In the case of the 250 electric buses in Bangkok, for example, one has to ask oneself: What can they do - in a city with ten million inhabitants and more than 40,000 old buses, whose internal combustion engines briefly cover every stop in a cloud of black soot when they approach?

In a city of shopping malls that are cooled down to 18 degrees around the clock?

Incidentally, the representatives of the major oil companies sit on the council of the Swiss Climate Foundation involved: Migrol, Varo Energy, BP.

This contribution is part of the Global Society project

Expand areaWhat is the Global Society project?

Reporters from

Asia, Africa, Latin America and Europe

report under the title “Global Society”

- on injustices in a globalized world, socio-political challenges and sustainable development.

The reports, analyzes, photo series, videos and podcasts appear in the international section of SPIEGEL.

The project is long-term and will be supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) for three years.

A detailed FAQ with questions and answers about the project can be found here.

AreaWhat does the funding look like in concrete terms?

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) is supporting the project for three years with a total of around 2.3 million euros.

Are the journalistic content independent of the foundation?

Yes.

The editorial content is created without the influence of the Gates Foundation.

Do other media have similar projects?

Yes.

Big European media like "The Guardian" and "El País" have set up similar sections on their news sites with "Global Development" and "Planeta Futuro" with the support of the Gates Foundation.

Have there already been similar projects at SPIEGEL?

In the past few years, SPIEGEL has already implemented two projects with the European Journalism Center (EJC) and the support of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: the “Expedition ÜberMorgen” on global sustainability goals and the journalistic refugee project “The New Arrivals” as part of this several award-winning multimedia reports on the topics of migration and flight have been produced.

Where can I find all publications on global society?

The pieces can be found at SPIEGEL on the topic Global Society.

Source: spiegel

All news articles on 2021-11-07

You may like

News/Politics 2024-02-10T20:13:22.527Z

Trends 24h

Latest

© Communities 2019 - Privacy

The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.
The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.