Chart Thai Pattana pushes for carbon-credit centre and flux towers in Thailand
The Chart Thai Pattana Party is pushing for the establishment of a carbon-credit centre and the installation of flux towers in Thailand to help the country take a leading role in sustainability, party leader Varawut Silpa-archa said on Friday.
A carbon-credit centre will be open for traders across the Asia-Pacific region, Varawut told The Nation in an interview.
Thailand can be a leader in environmental preservation and sustainable development.
"The United Nations has praised Thailand as a leader in the Asia-Pacific region on climate change mitigation and sustainable development," he said.
Apart from its role in carbon-credit trading both domestic and overseas, Varawut said the carbon-credit centre will provide knowledge on climate change, carbon credit, carbon footprints and laws that would affect businesses, such as the European Union's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism and the US Clean Competition Act.
Thailand opened the carbon-trading platform FTIX on September 21 last year as a partnership between the Thailand Greenhouse Gas Management Organisation (TGO) and the Federation of Thai Industries.
"The ministry has asked the TGO to improve carbon-credit assessment to meet international standards," he said.
Carbon-credit assessments are expensive and time-consuming because there are few carbon-credit assessment companies.
Varawut, who is the outgoing environment minister, said flux towers can help facilitate carbon-credit assessments and carbon-footprint measurement. They can help Thailand monitor carbon footprints in each sector and save assessment costs, he added.
Having carbon-credit and carbon-footprint data is essential for businesses to deal with carbon-tax barriers, Varawut said. He estimated that Thailand needs 700 to 800 flux towers and said they cost 6 million to 8 million baht each.
