BANGKOK, March 23 (TNA) – The Department of Industrial Works campaigns for the proper recycling of abandoned vehicles nationwide to reduce the problem of particulate matter.
Wanchai Phanomchai, director-general of the department, said the department was promoting the recycling business on abandoned vehicles because if they were reused, they would be a main source of particulate matter 2.5 micrometers and less in diameter (PM2.5).
According to him, the proper recycling of abandoned vehicles can also result in the recycling of steel and reduction in steel import. Steel forms as much as 69% of a vehicle and its value is estimated at over 30,000 baht.
According to the Land Transport Department, as of Jan 31 there were 5,033,307 vehicles that had been used for over 20 years in the country. If all of them are recycled, about 6.55 million tons of steel will be retrieved.
At present, there are only two factories that can fully recycle vehicles. One belongs to Hidaka Yookoo Enterprises Co in Chon Buri province and the other is of Wongpanit International Co in Ayutthaya. They are capable of gathering unusable vehicles, dismantling them and eliminating waste from dismantled vehicles. (TNA)
