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If the US and British militaries decided to invade Thailand in search of chemical weapons of mass destruction, their campaign would easily be successful. All they would have to do is look in rubbish bins and garbage dumps. They would find a bigger threat than Al Queda could ever pose.
Did you know that we in Thailand produce nearly 300,000 tons of hazardous waste every year? That's the mass of about 50,000 large elephants! Of all this toxicity, batteries are currently, unquestionably one of the biggest threats to nature.
The main concern is the handling and disposing of tens of millions of old batteries. Last year alone, 8,000,000 lead-acid car batteries were disposed in Thailand. That's a deadly amount of toxic chemicals. If that weren't enough, millions of household batteries are improperly disposed and mixed in with general waste.
As our society increasingly becomes more mobile, we have become reliant on batteries. Whether for cell phones, computers, mp3 players, cameras, toys, or watches, the production of batteries has exploded on the market. Inevitably, our consumption has also increased.
Battery collection and disposal in Thailand is only in the pilot and planning stages. The Mobile Phone Battery Take-Back Program is one of the latest developments. Headed by the Pollution Control Department (PCD), under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the program brings together mobile phone battery manufacturers, mobile phone companies and agencies, as well as academic associations to collect old mobile phone batteries to be recycled and disposed of properly. In its first phase, PCD launched the distribution of 2000 yellow bins to be placed at Universities and other public arenas across the country. By plan, an additional 28,000 bins are expected to be distributed by the end of the year.
These bins are intended for only mobile phone batteries, however. What about other house-hold batteries? Though institutions like PCD and BMA have taken much initiative over the past few years to improve the collection/disposal system, Peeraporn Wiriwutikorn, a PCD Environmental Officer states that the current collection system is ineffective. “The main issue lies within the attitudes and awareness of the general public. Most people don't care enough to separate house-hold batteries from general waste.” While government agencies do their best to implement new ideas and strategies, Peeraporn stresses that the public must do their part to separate and properly dispose of household batteries and other hazardous wastes.
Here are some tips to keep in mind when dealing with and disposing batteries..
Improperly disposed batteries risk not only contaminating the soil, but water supply as well. When throwing away household batteries, separate them into sealed plastic soda bottles or bags so that city collectors can easily discern them. Additionally, local Government authorities such as the BMA have special trucks to collect household hazardous materials twice a month (1st and 15th), so if possible get your batteries to them.
Try to use only rechargeable batteries. Most rechargeable batteries are recyclable and will cut back consumption. Additionally, avoid using batteries with mercury. Though a cheaper technology, mercury is a highly toxic chemical that should be avoided at all costs.
For additional information and news regarding batteries and toxic waste disposal in Thailand, check out PCD's website at :
http://www.pcd.go.th
BMA website :
http://www.bma.go.th
END OF ARTICLE Contact Jao Moragoat
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