Step Up For SustainabilityMULTIPLE BOOSTS TO LOCAL ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS

Step Up For Sustainability

MULTIPLE BOOSTS TO LOCAL ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS

Three separate but related stories concerning the environment and how Hua Hin, and the wider province are trying to improve sustainability, waste management and greenhouse gas emissions in the governance of the region, have been prominent in the last week.

The provincial level efforts were showcased at the launch of “Bio Mart Hua Hin 2025”, in an opening ceremony at Market Village for a major fair aimed at elevating bio-tourism and driving sustainable local economies. The fair is a result of the combined efforts by Thailand’s Biodiversity-Based Economy Development Office (BEDO), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP Thailand) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF), and was presided over by Prachuap Khiri Khan Governor Sitthichai Sawatnasan, with Dr. Thanit Changthaworn (BEDO Director), Niamh Collier-Smith (UNDP Thailand Representative), Deputy Governor Preeda Sukjai, provincial natural resources officials, tourism association leaders, local administrators, and community representatives also in attendance.

Dr. Thanit stressed the “treasure trove of biodiversity” in the province, that encompasses mountains, forests, coastlines, and wetlands. Niamh Collier-Smith noted how tourism growth has to align with environmental conservation to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and announced that by 2027, an Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) system in Thailand will be introduced by UNDP and BEDO to ensure fair benefit distribution from biological resources. Governor Sitthichai reiterated the value and importance of combining tourism with conservation, while echoing Dr Thanit’s words when specifying the province’s abundant natural assets, such as Kui Buri National Park, Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park (pictured below), and the Pranburi estuarine wetlands.

1004 - Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park in thailand

Also announced was a pilot program called “BEDO Reach to Love: Travel Deep to Preserve” offering one-day trips to connect visitors with nature and local communities, which will include prominent conservationists and influencers, such as wildlife photographer Wanchai Praman and researchers from the Green World Foundation.

Simultaneously, two efforts for the city to be more environmentally friendly were announced; Mayor Nopporn Wutthikul is overseeing a community-level greenhouse gas reduction programme, via better management of community and agricultural waste; the pilot project will include community training to educate and inform local communities on better practices, such as separating organic waste, improving small-scale composting and managing agricultural residues. The overall goal is to turn Hua Hin into a low-carbon city by embedding emissions-cutting practices at village level and scaling what works.

Meanwhile the Mayor chaired a meeting to discuss a project that will use black soldier fly larvae to decompose organic waste, with the aim of reducing landfill requirements. Currently about 40% of the landfill at the Thap Tai Subdistrict site is organic, and the aim is to firstly separate this, and then use the larvae to break down the food waste quickly; once mature, they can be processed into protein-rich animal feed. The remaining residue can be used as organic fertiliser. This should create a circular economy that reduces the environmental impact of waste disposal. The focus will be on organic waste from households, schools and temples, and the project will try to prevent this being mixed with general waste before being sent to landfill, both by direct interventions and information campaigns to encourage residents to separate waste at source.

Image: A herd of wild elephants in Kui Buri National Park (attribution KOSIN SUKHUM, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)

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