The news about a caesium-137 tube that disappeared from a power plant and is believed to have been melted at a steel factory is quickly fading from view. But the problem hasn't gone away and is likely to resurface amid anticipated protests as the government must find space to store the contaminated furnace dust.
Two weeks after the news first broke, 24 tonnes of radioactive dust remain at the steel melting factory in Prachin Buri province. It will stay there for another two months -- or longer, depending on when the Office of Atomics for Peace (OAP) finds a suitable storage site.
The OAP and the Thailand Institute of Nuclear Technology (TINT) -- another state body tasked with handling radioactive waste -- are suffering a headache trying to find a good spot for the toxic dust, as it must have plenty of room, be in an off-limits area and be welcomed by local communities.
The 24 tonnes of dust represent the largest case of radioactive waste the country has handled to date.
Unlike regular rubbish, radioactive waste is relatively small. The missing tube weighs just 25 kilogrammes and measures 30 centimetres in length and 15cm in diameter. As such, it requires a small but highly secure storage area.
In Thailand, radioactive waste has to be handled by a company called TINT, according to the law. TINT has storage space for radioactive waste at its office in Bangkok on Vibhavadi Road adjacent to Kasetsart University, or at its facility at Klong 5 in Prathum Thani province. All of the waste, which is housed in a metal case, will be put in thick concrete tubes and kept in special storage rooms for decades.
TINT has a third facility in a flood-prone farmland area in Ongkharak district of Nakhon Nayok province. But local villagers have already protested against TINT's nuclear project, and no doubt they would do the same this time round.
Whichever site is selected, the OAP and the government must keep the public updated and tackle any potential resistance. The dust must be safely transported and monitored over the long term.
As villagers in Prachin Buri have to live in fear and fruit growers and farmers have seen many buyers cancel their purchases, the OAP and other government agencies must be transparent in their handling of this matter. Merely saying the radiation is not that serious is not enough.
The case again shows that Thailand lacks a reliable system with which to manage hazardous waste. Our principle of "polluters must pay" does not seem to be working all that well.
One month after the tube first went missing, local police still cannot find out how it disappeared from the power plant.
Society has yet to see how a National Power Plant 5A Company shoulders the burden for its utter lack of responsibility. For example, it took power plant staff two weeks to inform the OAP that the tube had disappeared. Moreover, there still has not been a statement from the power plant on how it will react and show responsibility for the harmful impact on farm products, sales, and the cost of waste management.
What is unforgivable is the response from Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, who also serves as chairman of the National Committee on Nuclear Use, and Anek Laothamatas, the Minister of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation (MHESI). The public have barely seen their faces or leadership in recent weeks. Apparently, politicians are too busy with the election.
