CCOP-47AS/3-12 COORDINATING COMMITTEE FOR GEOSCIENCE PROGRAMMES IN EAST AND SOUTHEAST ASIA (CCOP) 47th CCOP Annual Session 17-21 October 2010 Manado, Indonesia Member Country Report of Thailand Submitted by Thailand Delegation (For Agenda Item 3) COORDINATING COMMITTEE FOR GEOSCIENCE PROGRAMMES IN EAST AND SOUTHEAST ASIA (CCOP) CCOP Building, 75/10 Rama VI Road, Phayathai, Ratchathewi, Bangkok 10400, Thailand Tel: +66 (0) 2644 5468, Fax: +66 (0) 2644 5429, E-mail:
[email protected], Website: www.ccop.or.th ANNUAL MEMBER COUNTRY REPORT Country: THAILAND Period: 1 July 2009 – 30 June 2010 GEO-RESOURCES SECTOR 1. MINERAL PROGRAMME The year 2010 is a difficult year for many sectors, especially on the mining side. Mineral Resources continue to be important for the development of the country’s social and economic development. However, due to the concern for the environment and promotion of the principle of sustainable development, it is important that all mining projects carry out a proper BIA process, with selected mega projects also required to perform special HIA and SEAs. Furthermore, mining projects must be approved by the local communities and the relevant NGOs. The situation mentioned above is not necessarily bad, rather it gives many stakeholders opportunities to develop their ability, knowledge and performance, and use this to adjust their programs and management. This has caused many of the responsible offices to initiate green projects and, through their work, to evaluate their geological and mineral resources so as to sustain resources for the new generation to come. The work on Georesources is summarized below; 1.1 Summary During the reporting period (fiscal year 2010), the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) has carried out the technical projects which are the “Mineral Exploration Program outside Legally Conserved/protected Areas” and “Mineral Zoning and Geological Resources Management”.