Municipal Solid Waste Management in Thailand: Challenges and Strategic Solution

Thailand, covering an area of approximately 513,115 km², is the world’s 50th largest country, while its population of approximately 64 million is ranked at the world’s 20th most populous country. In general, the average generation rate of municipal solid waste (MSW) is 0.64 kg/capita/day varying from 0.4 to 1.5 kg/capita/day based on the density of population and around 41,064 tons MSW /day was produced. The moisture content of MSW ranges between 40 and 60%. The 2007 constitution appeared a positive sign in environmental management affirmed the rights and freedoms of people to participate in the management, besides providing the public right to be involved in waste management. The 3Rs campaigns can be viewed as an illustration of the philosophy of sufficiency economy and show how the least technically complex can be the most cost-effective solution when small communities participate in MSW management. The basic information about MSW such as definition, classification, composition, method of collection and transportation, treatment and disposal including Thailand’s experiences in MSW case studies to elucidate the tension between existing policies and practices are presented. In addition, ways of effectively accommodating a renewed national policy commitment to MSW management are proposed. Then, tease out a sequence of perspectives and ideas of what should be the best research and development (R&D) opportunities for MSW management as the challenges and strategic solution in Thailand..