Achieving Low Carbon Growth in Cities through Sustainable Urban System Management: Case Study of Waste Management Khon Kaen Municipality

Abstract

          This research had the objective to investigate the question of whether the City of KhonKaen has achieved low carbon growth through a sustainable urban management system.  This study identified factors affecting success or failurein achieving low carbon growth.  This research is a documentary research of waste management, and the factors behind a successful waste management system. The author conducted a review of the related literature.  This study had the following findings.     
          The waste sorting promotion project to reduce the amount of waste in KhonKaen City has 32 waste sorting networks with a total capacity of 3,303 tons of organic waste. The amount of greenhouse gas emissions is calculated at 1,739 tons of carbon-dioxide-equivalent. There is a learning center on organic waste management which applies sufficiency economy principles as a model community of how a low-carbon family operates. There is an Environmental Conservation Curriculum Project and a project to convert solid waste into electric power. The Khon Kaen Municipality has entered into a memorandum of understanding with private companies to convert solid waste into electricity on the condition that all investors are private.  As a result, operations are carried out at both upstream, midstream, and downstream. The system is able to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 98,413.46 tons of carbon-dioxide-equivalent. That quantity is close to the target that Khon Kaen has set of100,500 tons of carbon-dioxide-equivalent. It was found that the key condition for the development of a low-carbon city is cooperation between government agencies, the private sector, Civil Society, educational institutions, and other sectors in the area. It is also very important that the local administrative organization(s) is a key player and that there is a clear roadmap for implementing the system.