Climate Change Master Plan 2015-2050

1 Climate Change Master Plan 2015-2050 The Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment July 2015 _____ Approved by the Cabinet on 14th July 2016 Approved by the National Committee on Climate Change on 20th November 2014 Index Part Page 1. Introduction 1 Background 1 Main Purposes of the Master Plan 2 Analytical Framework of the Master Plan 3 Master Plan Preparation Process 7 2.

2 Analysis 9 Economic and Social Development - Trends and Directions 9 GHG emissions at the global level and in Thailand 16 Climate Change at the global level and in Thailand 28 Consequences of Climate Change 39 Response to Climate Change issues 50 3. Climate Change Master Plan 58 Vision 58 Mission 58 Goals 58 Components 65 1. Climate Change adaptation 66 2. Mitigation and low carbon development 80 3. Enabling environment for Climate Change management 94 4 Guidelines to implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the Master plan 105 Guidelines for putting the Master plan into practices 106 Monitoring, evaluation and revision of the Master plan 111 Annex 1 Part 1 Introduction Background Thailand is facing major a challenge to sustainable development, namely the global phenomenon that is Climate Change .

3 Initially linked to the burst in economic development heralded by the industrial revolutions of developed countries, Climate Change is now also the product of industrial activity which has spread inexorably to other nations with aspirations to the epithet of developed . This has dramatically accelerated the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere and exacerbated the severity of Climate Change . Climate Change is now very much a global problem which affects not only the developed countries but also developing countries such as Thailand in two major ways: Firstly, the changing weather patterns have a profound effect on Thailand s economy.

4 Thailand s agricultural sector is a key pillar of the national economy which has lately been battered by the unpredictability and extreme variations in weather conditions caused by Climate Change . The changing climatic conditions have also resulted in changes to the patterns of how diseases spread as agents of diseases mutate to the changing conditions, leading to the re-emergence of infectious diseases thought to have been previously eradicated or contained. A disrupted ecological balance disrupts Thailand s ability to plan for sustainable development, maintain economic growth and address poverty issues.

5 Climate Change directly threatens Thailand s livelihood by challenging the conservation and management of natural resources. Secondly, Thailand must face the complex challenges posed by greenhouse emissions. Rapid urbanization has resulted in an exponential rise in energy consumption, placing great pressure on an energy grid that relies chiefly on fossil fuels for energy production. This creates tension against the imperatives to address greenhouse gas emissions and adds another layer of complexity to Thailand s efforts in confronting and adapting to Climate Change .

6 The complexity does not end there; the growing importance of Climate Change in the eyes of the international community has led to the establishment of various initiatives for cooperation 2 among nations which have introduced yet more tension to Thailand s balancing act. Thailand can ill afford to shirk such responsibilities, yet in striving to meet the demands of international plans to tackle global Climate Change Thailand is placed in a handicapped position against partners and competitors alike who are enacting trading regulations from a position of technical advantage and greater economic maturity.

7 Examples of the newly initiated rules concerning Climate Change include the EU ETS regulations for the aviation industry and mandatory carbon footprint labelling. As a country with an export-driven economy, Thailand cannot avoid being affected by these new regulatory responsibilities. In recognition of the need for said cooperation, Thailand has participated in the early stages of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) as a member state in 1991 as well as the ratification of the Kyoto Protocol in 2002 which brought the treaty into effect.

8 As an early and regular participant of the international Climate Change resolutions framework meetings, it behoved Thailand to have a national strategy to handle the Climate issues affecting the country. To that end, Thailand first formulated the National Strategic Plan on Climate Change 2551-2555 (2008-2013). The cabinet passed a resolution on the 22nd January 2008 which ordered all government departments and agencies concerned to apply the strategy as a framework for planning. This was recently reinforced with the Climate Change Master Plan 2558-2593 ( 2015-2050 ) which has been developed as framework for long term planning.

9 The expectation is that the parties concerned will use the framework contained within the Master Plan to develop an effective plan of action to tackle Climate Change in their respective areas. Main Purposes of the Master Plan (1) To provide a long-term national framework for Climate Change adaptation and low carbon growth promotion according to sustainability development principle; (2) To provide a policy framework for the development of mechanisms and tools, at sectoral and national level, to achieve effective resolutions for Climate Change . (3) To provide government agencies and relevant organizations with a framework for detailed action plans; facilitating awareness and mutual understanding by means of a common framework of reference points, thereby increasing integration and reducing redundant processes.

10 3 (4) To provide budgeting agencies with a clear framework for budget allocation, thus enabling the mobilization of concrete Climate Change resolutions. Analytical Framework of the Master Plan Given the depth and breadth of issues relating to Climate Change , a framework for the comprehensive analysis of situations is required. The Master Plan utilises the Driving Forces-Pressure-State-Impact-Response (DPSIR) framework, which is an evolution of the Pressure-State-Response framework. The DPSIR framework works by focusing first on the current environmental problems ( Climate Change ) and then by analysing the surrounding factors comprehensively in order to identify the causes and reach effective solutions.