• The problem of hazardous waste pollution is a serious problem and is expected to worsen in the future. This is because generation of hazardous waste is increasing rapidly from various activities throughout the country including from industry, agriculture, communities, businesses, services, ports, hospitals, and laboratories, I 1994, approximately 1.3 million tons were generated and not all of them were destroyed. The total volume of hazardous waste produced annually from industrial sector is about 950,000 tons, of which about 530,000 tons can be treated. A total of 110,000 tons of infectious waste is generated annually of which only 40,000 tons is burned in incinerator. In addition, hazardous wastes from communities are about 360,000 tons per year, which are not properly collected and treated, and are released into the environment and impact on public health as well as degrade the ecosystem, ancient objects and natural landscapes.
  
  
• At present, the solution of hazardous waste pollution problems has been only partially achieved because they are being tackled on disposal of hazardous waste from industrial sources. Treatment of hazardous waste is not effective because the processes of control, import-export, separation, proper collection, and treatment to final disposal site are not taken into account. Facilities for the treatment and destruction of wastes from existing industries are inefficient. They are not able to provide sufficient services and are able to treat only certain types of hazardous wastes. Hazardous wastes can be treated in only two stations: Samae Dum station, and at a land fill in Ratchburi province. Moreover, mechanism, standards, and practices for controls at all levels, including collection, moving, stock-piling, separating, transport, treatment, and finally disposal, are not available at this time particularly for wastes from communities. Government and private hospitals, that are important producers of hazardous wastes, with potentially serious implications, 24,000 of them are without proper infectious waste disposal system. Ministerial decrees required by law to control the management of hazardous waste are delayed. Important too is that collaboration among government, the public, and operators or owners of commercial premises on this issue is poor.

Goals

1. Reduce and control pollution from hazardous wastes from all sources in the industrial sector and in communities, by not allowing impacts to the environment and public health.
2. Collect and destroy not less than 95 percent of the hazardous wastes from the industrial sector, and 90 percent from communities, of all hazardous wastes that are generated.
3. All public and private hospitals to have proper systems to manage infectious waste, including separating, collecting, transporting, treatment, and destroyed.

Policy and Implenmentation Guidelines

Policy

Install an efficient hazardous waste management system that will cover the process of import, exports, transport, separation, collection, treatment, and eradication. Establish an emergency system to prevent and mitigate major hazardous waste accidents in the industrial sector, in transportation, and in storage of hazardous waste. Promote and support private sector investments or participation in management of hazardous wastes at all stages.

Guidelines

1. Management Guidelines

	Formulate standards and criteria for collection, transportation, treatment, recycling, and destruction of hazardous wastes.
	Establish a mechanism for NGOs to undertake continuous monitoring, inspecting, controlling and evaluating of hazardous waste management by original sources.
	Construct and develop an information network about sources of pollution and amount of hazardous waste generated by each type of various sources.
	Apply the polluter pays principle for collection of fees, using taxation or other appropriate mechanisms, for collection, treatment, and destruction of hazardous waste.
	Support and create a mechanism for industrial factories or business premises to establish hazardous waste treatment and eradication systems and enabling them to expand their services for treatment of waste to other small scale sources of pollution, under designated standards and state regulations.

2. Investment Guidelines

	Invest in basic infrastructure for collection, transportation, treatment, and destruction of hazardous wastes from industrial factories and communities, by supporting investments by the private sector or concessionaires, or by having the state invest in construction, with the private sector responsible for operations.
	Building treatment and eradication systems for infectious waste at provincial and regional levels that are capable to absorb wastes from all hospitals.
	Use national financial and monetary measures to compensate necessary expenditures on collection, treatment, and eradication of hazardous waste from communities.
	Establish a center for cooperation to control import and export, transit, transport, and destruction of hazardous waste from other countries.

3. Legal Guidelines

	Strictly enforce legislation, take action against law-breakers, and accelerate the issuing of regulations and rules to facilitate and to support private sector participation in management of hazardous waste.
	Improve regulations, and measures for management of infectious waste to include the whole system, that conforms to hospital systems.
	Designate categories of sources of pollution to be control for release of hazardous wastes into the environment, and standards for control of pollution from their original sources.

4. Supporting Guidelines

	Support the study, research and development of systems, models, and appropriate technologies for eradication of hazardous waste, in order to reduce the volume of hazardous wastes and promote use of technology for recycling hazardous wastes.
	Establish mechanisms of financial and monetary incentives to promote private sector employees to ensure knowledge and understanding of management of hazardous waste; including continuously carrying out campaigns for the public and NGOs to become involved in management of hazardous wastes.