Showing 1 - 10 of 549
Move quickly to seize forests back from rubber planters
Veera Prateepchaikul, Published on 21/04/2015
» With the blessing of the National Council for Peace and Order, the Royal Forest Department intends over the next two years to seize back one million rai of former forest that has been encroached on, cleared and planted in rubber.
A fund for toxic waste
Oped, Editorial, Published on 24/04/2024
» Accidents involving toxic waste are not unusual in Thailand. With weak law enforcement and irresponsible operators, Thai society has been affected by several accidents and threats caused by toxic waste management or the lack thereof.
Hands off our parks!
Oped, Editorial, Published on 13/02/2024
» The latest attempt by the government to carve out 260,000 rai of Sor Por Kor land plots out of Thap Lan National Park has sparked concerns about the potential misuse of national resources to fulfil the administration's populist promise to hand out land to local villagers.
Chokepoints could cripple trade
News, Published on 16/01/2024
» When traffic through the Suez Canal ground to a halt in 2021, the extraordinary cost and disruptions to global commerce seemed overwhelming. But 8,000 kilometres from the canals of Suez and Panama lie even more important shipping lanes, chokepoints that could cripple global trade should any disaster befall them.
Apply law of the land to all
News, Editorial, Published on 29/11/2019
» The poor had it before. They were accused of encroaching on protected forests or national parks. Thirteen landless forest dwellers were convicted of forest encroachment by the Appeal Court this year and sentenced to imprisonment. Now, an MP from the ruling Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP), Pareena Kraikupt is facing an accusation of committing a similar offence. Given the influence of the PPRP, all eyes are now on law enforcement officers over whether there will be "double standards" in their handling of the case.
Righting land deed wrongs
Oped, Editorial, Published on 06/10/2023
» A court saga over land ownership involving Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, leader of the Progressive Movement, suggests managing state land can be a messy business.
Sad tale of a sycamore and a chainsaw
Roger Crutchley, Published on 08/10/2023
» Every now and again there is a news story that leaves you scratching your head prompting the question "What were they thinking?" That was my reaction on reading of the destruction by vandals of an iconic sycamore tree in the northern England county of Northumberland.
Breaking the cycle of land inequality
News, Editorial, Published on 02/04/2023
» Thailand's land ownership disparity is one of the worst in the world. As such, land reform should be a crucial campaign policy for the upcoming general election. Unfortunately, it is not.
Reforestation rethink required
News, Editorial, Published on 24/07/2022
» The military was given an earful early this month for using invasive alien species in their aerial reforestation mission, and rightly so. The blunder, however, is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Thailand's reforestation policy, which puts dictatorship and money before ecological health. To save the forest, this self-serving mindset must end.
Are you sure you're in the right job?
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 14/05/2017
» Following last week's column on the perils of picking mushrooms, I received an email from a professional mushroomologist. I thought he might embark on heroic tales from the forests and how to avoid poisonous varieties of fungi. However, his advice was quite blunt. He admitted the mushrooms he consumes "have to come wrapped in cling film in an environmentally unfriendly polystyrene carton and from an air-conditioned establishment with a name like Sainsbury's, Tesco's, Waitrose etc".