Refinery disaster could happen on our own doorstep

The devastating blaze at a Venezuelan oil refinery is a tragedy that left more than 40 people dead as of press time. The accident should draw the attention of the Thai public to the question of appropriate locations for oil refineries. Thailand has, after all, seen a similar accident earlier this year, at the Bangchak petroleum refinery complex. 

The Venezuelan authorities struggled for more than 30 hours to extinguish flames at storage tanks at the refinery. The refinery is located in a district that’s home to many refinery workers and their relatives, with poorer families in surrounding neighbourhoods. The accident has caused the additional risks of gas leaks.

The casualty list was severe, but President Hugo Chavez has assured the nation that the damage will be repaired. This will be possible, of course, but the loss of life is not reversible. The authorities are investigating the cause of the accident. 

The fire at the Bangchak refinery complex in Bangkok’s densely populated Phra Khanong district should serve as a warning. Luckily, the incident was nowhere near as bad as that at the refinery in Amuay, Venezuela. 

The Bangchak accident led to calls for relocation of the oil facility, but Energy Minister Arak Chonlatanon ruled out any move from Phra Khanong – despite the fact that its distillation unit had seen two fires in two years.

Arak reasoned that the cost of relocation would be too high, at Bt80 billion to Bt90 billion, and could boost retail oil prices since the refinery owner would likely pass on the costs to customers.

In addition, Bangchak district, which is partially owned by the state, argues that the company established the refinery in the area before it became heavily populated. 

Bangchak has a valid point, but the argument does not address the issue of safety. The area around the refinery and depot on Sukhumvit Soi 64 is now one of the main populous areas in Bangkok, with thousands of people and businesses. 

As we have seen, a tragedy can happen at any time, whenever safety measures are compromised.

The presence of the oil refinery also raises concerns over environmental pollution. An accident at the refinery could contribute to much higher levels of toxic sulphur dioxide in the air, or leaks of hydrogen gas. Smoke from a blaze would also affect people living nearby.

Of course Bangchak tries to assure the public of its safety measures, but no one can guarantee absolute safety, especially at a petroleum facility. Even in highly developed countries we know that things can always go wrong. 

The distance between the refinery and the local community is a practical factor in helping to mitigate possible catastrophe in the event of an accident. The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration has stated that it wants to discuss the possibility of moving all oil refineries and arms depots away from Bangkok. However, such relocation may be prohibitively expensive. 

Thus, any such move will require clear instruction from the government, as well as measures to assist refineries, if they agree to relocate. Perhaps there has to be some compromise. If costs have to be passed on to consumers, then they must accept the burden; similarly, the refineries must accept the concept of polluter pays. 

However, if this issue isn’t resolved one way or another, we may end up mourning victims when it is too late.