Contact:
Buntarika Sangarun
(+66-2) 686-8326
bsangarun@worldbank.org

BANGKOK, June 26, 2009  – Thailand’s first umbrella Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) program will allow owners of pig farms of all sizes to benefit from the global carbon market and will help the country reduce its carbon footprint.

The new program allows many small clean energy projects to come together under the umbrella of a single broader program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The first such program in Thailand is expected to reduce emissions of up to 234,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per year – almost two percent of the national emission reductions at present.

The World Bank will purchase up to 500,000 tons of “carbon credits” from this program over the next four years. The Energy Research and Development Institute (ERDI), of Chiang Mai University, will manage and report progress on the program.

This new CDM program is also the first of its kind for Southeast Asia. Significantly, it affords an opportunity for smaller pig farms to tap into the carbon market as well as for larger-scale producers.

“This umbrella program is an excellent way to allow small businesses to also enjoy the multiple benefits of CDM,” said Annette Dixon, the World Bank’s Thailand Country Director. “This is designed to redress the imbalance of traditional CDM projects, which tend to be for large businesses. The program enables developing countries to enhance their participation in greenhouse gas mitigation, while promoting sustainable development.”

The program aims to tackle emissions of methane from pig farming, one of the largest sources of livestock greenhouse gas emissions in Thailand. Traditionally, Thai pig farmers store wastewater in open lagoons, allowing it to decay and emit methane as well as its foul smell.

Under the new CDM program, participating pig farms in several locations throughout Thailand will install wastewater treatment systems to capture methane for use in electricity generation, cooking and heating. This will reduce both the direct emissions of methane as well as the production of greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels.

So far, 36 pig farms in 14 provinces in the North, Northeast, Eastern and Central region have joined the program. More farms are expected to join during the program’s 28 years of life.

Each of these farms is expected to reduce its emissions of between 1,600 to roughly 56,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent annually, amounts too small to be readily administered. But together, these projects are expected to curb up to 234,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emission per year.

“As a knowledge institution, Chiang Mai University is proud to be a part of this innovative program that helps Thailand reduces its emissions, while helping pig farms gain better access to the carbon market,” said Pongsak Angkasith, President of Chiang Mai University.