Abstract

In 2018, the total area of oil palm plantation in Thailand reached 922,000 ha, and it has grown by about 4.5% over the past 10 years (2009-2018). In the same period, the output of fresh fruit bunch (FFB) reached 15.39 million tons. Although greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have increased yearly, the oil palm plantation area has been continuously increasing since 2009. In addition to this increase, the increase in global crude palm oil (CPO) inventory levels led to the continuous decrease in the price of palm oil. In this research, we aim for a sustainable development of Thailand's oil palm industry. System boundaries were formulated for the four oil palm plantation regions in Thailand. The life cycle inventory (LCI), a global greenhouse gas calculation model, and an ecological footprint (EF) calculation method were used to determine the GHG emissions palm oil in each of these regions in Thailand and Thailand’s EF. Thailand's oil palm plantations and palm oil processing areas are mainly distributed in the south. The total carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂ eq) of the palm oil industry in Thailand is about 4.34 million tons, which accounts for about 1.44% of Thailand’s annual carbon emissions, of which 29,800 tons is in the north, 71,000 tons in the northeast, 355,300 tons in the center, and 3.87 million tons in the south. Although the total amount of GHG emissions in southern Thailand is high, the CO₂ eq harvested per ton of FFBs is the smallest and the ratio of revenue to EF is the highest. Compared with the southern region, the northern and eastern regions need to invest more fertilizers and energy in oil palm cultivation. The cost is higher, and the market price of CPO is less competitive.