CABINET TO MULL PROPOSAL ON ENVIRONMENT WATCHDOG

       The Cabinet on Tuesday will consider a proposal to issue laws pursuant to Article 62 of the Constitution that will pave the way for the establishment of the independent environmental body to ease conflicts in the Map Ta Phut area.
       A meeting chaired by Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and attended by eight government units charged with having violated the Constitution also agreed the National Environment Board should issue guidelines on environmental-impact assessments (EIAs) in line with Article 62.
       With clear guidelines, investors will know how to obtain operating licences legally.
       Abhisit said the draft laws should reach Parliament by the end of the month, while the guidelines should be completed within three weeks for the National Environmental Board's consideration.
       He also told reporters that the private sector had proposed a Bt100-billion contingency fund for project owners, in view of potential lawsuits from contractors resulting from the suspension of 76 industrial projects in the Map Ta Phut area.
       The size of any legal damages will be known after the ruling on the government's appeal against the court's injunction, as well as after the issuance of health impact assessment (HIA) guidelines under Article 62, he said.
       He also said the local communities would be informed that some projects were intended to reduce pollution and that these should proceed as planned.
       Santi Vilassakdanont, chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries, said the contingencyfund proposal had been agreed by the FTI, the Board of Trade and the Thai Bankers' Association.
       "The court's injunction [on Map Ta Phut projects] poses uncertainties over damages if the project delays continue. This fund will help those projects for which the owners have struck deals with contractors. If the construction is delayed due to the court order, contractors may file sutis," he said.
       He also said the cases would be more complicated if commercial banks were to stop their credit lines, while private operators would be scrambling to find ways to finance debts if their investment were delayed or stopped altogether.
       Some operators that issued bonds to finance the investments could also face rating downgrades and bond sell-offs.
       It is not known whether the government would in those circumstances buy into the dumped bonds, he said.
       The FTI chief said the owners of the 76 products affected by the Central Administrative Court's injunction concerning the Map Ta Phut area did not expect their plans to lead to any environmental damage and added that whether the proposed fund was disbursed depended on the court's final verdict.
       Santi suggested the incorporation of HIAs into the EIAs process in order to shorten the filing period.
       However, if the government wants to separate the two requirements, it should take into account the need for convenience on the part of private companies.
       The University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce said the prolonged conflict over investment in Map Ta Phut could slow economic growth in the current quarter and next year.
       Economic growth could be slashed by 0.5 percentage point in the current quarter, due to the disappearance of industrial investment worth between Bt10 billion and Bt20 billion.
       If the injunction were in place for another six to 12 months, growth next year could drop by 0.5-1 percentage point, from a target of 2-3 per cent, the university said.
       Chatree Charoensiri. deputy secretary of the National Health Commission Office of Thailand, yesterday said after the fifth and final public hearing on HIA guidelines that it was agreed all industrial projects with intense environmental impacts should strictly comply with the Constitution.
       That is, they must complete the EIA and HIA process and win consent from local communities and the independent environmental body.
       The HIA guidelines should also allow local communities to ask for a health-impact evaluation.
       Attending yesterday's hearing were hundreds of representatives from the government sector, local communities and private companies.