Anti coal power plant protest ends peacefully

BANGKOK, Feb 20 (TNA) – Protesters against coal-fired power plants dispersed after the government agrees to scrap the EHIA reports and conduct new studies on the suitability of the coal power plant projects at two locations in Thai South. The protesters decided not to move to Government House to put pressure on the government as planned after Energy Minister Siri Jirapongphan negotiated with Prasitchai Noonuan, a protest leader at the protest site this morning. Both sides agreed with the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), in which the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) will revoke the Environmental and Health Impact Assessment (EHIA) reports of the Thepa and Krabi coal fired power plant projects within three days after the signing of MoU. Under the agreement, the Energy Ministry will have neutral academics conduct Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) to study whether Krabi and Songkhla’s Thepa district are suitable locations for the construction of coal power plants. The SEA will be completed within nine months. If the SEA results show that both locations are not suitable for the coal power plant projects, the EGAT must scrap the plans. However, if the studies show the projects can be done, the new EHIA will be then conducted by neutral persons, accepted by both sides. Moreover, the EGAT agrees to drop lawsuit against the protesters. After the agreement was reached, the protesters travelled home after they had camped out in front of the UN headquarters in Bangkok for more than a week. (TNA)