**3. Modern holistic waste reduction and recovery policies**

June 5, 2015, was World Environment Day, and the PM chose that day to launch a plasticbag-free campaign to encourage Thai people to reduce the volume of trash they generate. In particular, the PM stated that the government would seek cooperation from retailers, convenience stores, department stores and shopping centers in avoiding the use of plastic bags on the 15th day of each month and instead to use cloth bags or to reuse plastic bags in order to reduce the volume of plastic waste. Meanwhile, the MNRE initiated the "Green Card" project to convince producers, suppliers and customers to produce and consume environmentallyfriendly products and packaging. Card holders will gain green points whenever they purchase eco-friendly products at participating stores which will be redeemable for special vouchers or other rewards [18]. The PM also promoted strategic planning for alternative materials to substitute for polystyrene packaging with a view to banning this form of packaging which would achieve cost reductions as well as reducing waste and also announced a feasibility study into the use of biodegradable plastic bags [19].

Thailand has a recent history of developing projects in WM in terms of sanitary landfills and managing waste through WTE facilities. Moreover, Thailand has experience of WTE projects which have been developed locally and which date back at least a decade and from these, significant lessons related to both thermal and non-thermal technologies have been learned. Thermal treatments have involved both incineration and gasification processes and under the heading of nonthermal processes, biogas has been produced from, for example, waste fermentation or AD and the following sections will examine and compare case studies relating to both these technologies.

Sustainable Waste Management and Waste to Energy Recovery in Thailand

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**5. Anaerobic digestion (AD) power plant: a case study of Rayong** 

The advantages of AD systems were set out by Spuhler [24] who noted that biogas and sludge were produced, respectively, for electricity generation and the production of fertilizer. Greenhouse gas emission can be reduced through methane recovery and efficient AD treatment systems reduce excess sludge by separating out heterogeneous organic waste, leachate, and wastewater. However, AD technologies may need to be modified to be appropriate for small and medium-scale facilities in developing countries. The high sensibility of methanogenic microorganisms need to be carefully investigated. Sulphuric compounds generated during methane production can cause erosion of equipment in AD facilities, and in order to protect AD equipment, the biogas produced may need to be significantly purified. The design and construction of AD power plants on a commercial scale needs to be under the supervision of experts, and professional operational and maintenance skills are also required to deal with

Bearing in mind that Thailand is located in a tropical area and that the main economic income is derived from agricultural activities, the composition of MSW in Thailand is largely from food waste (40–60%) which has a high moisture content. Therefore, organic waste in Thailand seems to have a high potential as a raw material for producing biogas which can be converted into electricity. The case study which follows is of a biogas power plant located in Rayong municipality and includes some lessons-learned from its installation in 2004 and its operation since then. Rayong municipality, is located in the coastal industrial zone on the eastern seaboard of

arated into eight districts, 58 sub-districts called Tambons in Thai and 440 villages. The population of Rayong municipality in December 2007 was 56,085: 27,110 males and 28,975 females [25]. Rayong municipality is a largely commercial city and in the late 20th Century generated increasing volumes of MSW due to the growth of the population. Between 1995 and 1997 the volume of waste grew from 57.47 tons to 63 tons per day. In 2000, the MSW contents were noted to be composed mainly of organic waste (67.77%) [26] and the bulk density of the MSW

The WTEF plant constructed in 2004 had the potential to treat 70 tons of organic waste per day. However, during 2004–2005, the organic waste fed to the AD system were separated in

in area and is sep-

Thailand. Rayong province is 179 km from Bangkok, approximately 3552 km<sup>2</sup>

, as illustrated in **Table 1**.

**municipality**

fluctuations in the AD process.

was 220 kg per m3
