Seminar on Renewable Energy Technology implementation in Thailand

Experience transfer from Europe

co-organised by the Delegation of the European Union to Thailand and

the Department of Alternative Energy Development and Efficiency, Ministry of Energy

Waste to Energy: Public Participation

Paul Davison

4th October 2012

OUTLINE

• Background

– Paul Davison

– Waste management

– EfW

• What’s the problem with EfW?

– It’s not just the ‘W’ bit

– Key issues

– Protester responses

• Gaining positive public acceptance

– Positive engagement

– Three levels of communications

• Questions clinic

BACKGROUND

PROTEUS PR LTD

• Established in 1996

• An award-winning public relations consultancy

• Based in Oxfordshire, but working throughout the UK and Europe

• Have worked on environmental issues communications throughout the world

• Offering a full range of marketing communications services, with specialist experience in environmental PR

• Considerable waste management and energy experience working for waste companies, local and central government

• Planning support, strategic issues management, crisis management and effective community engagement

• Worked on more than 30 thermal energy projects including EfW, 1.2GW gas fired power station and a 300MW biomass plant and several waste projects, 30 wind farms

NEWSPAPER

ADVERTISEMENT 1912

PRE-1914 TURBINES

PERCEPTIONS = TRUTH

THE PERCEPTION

THE REALITY

SHOW THEM

THE DRAGON!

WHAT SHOULD

IT LOOK LIKE?

Boring!

Grimsby

UK

WHAT SHOULD

IT LOOK LIKE?

Theme Park!

Mishima,

Japan

WHAT SHOULD

IT LOOK LIKE?

Cool in Paris!

WHAT’S THE PROBLEM WITH

EfW?

- EMOTION vs SCIENCE

ITS NOT JUST AN

INCINERATOR!

It’s a win-win!

ENERGY FROM WASTE,

NOT

WASTE TO ENERGY

• Awareness of energy issues and climate change is increasing

• Focusing on the positive energy and waste management

outcomes of EfW is good, but it depends on who and when

• Is the benefit to energy generation and climate implications a

general panacea for EfW communications?

• Well, no actually, but it does help – it is a significant opportunity

THE PROBLEM IS

ALMOST ALWAYS

A LACK OF CONTEXT

• Some of these issues are dependent upon the maturity of the waste industry and its historical context

• But more often it’s all about who is doing the communications

• Plant operators often focused on gaining planning permission, dealing with stakeholder enquiries, and specifically their part of the waste chain

• Local government or collection authorities are interested in community engagement to deliver wastes in appropriate formats

• Central Governments are often too broad in their communications

• This lack of co-ordination is one of the main problems with a lack of context

• So why is this important…

CURRENTLY INCINERATION

IS A PROBLEM NOT A

SOLUTION

• Lack of context simply exposes your vested interest, you’re only

interested in one bit:

– Waste companies = The bit that makes you money

– Governments = Get a problem sorted quickly and quietly if possible

– Its what every is your vested interest

• This leads to a lack of trust

• So who does the public trust.......

WHO WOULD YOU

TRUST ON THE

ENVIRONMENT?

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Politicians Industry Newspapers Government

services

Television Independent

scientists

Green

organisations

4% 5%

14% 23%

25%

60% 61%

WHAT’S THE

PROBLEM WITH

WASTE?

• In most countries waste and waste management is seen as a problem

and not a solution

• Waste is rarely perceived as a resource

• Waste is seen as dangerous to the environment and therefore

management facilities pose a high risk

• Until recently, waste management has always been someone else's

problem and communities have had little engagement, except near

waste facilities

• In reality most concerns are related to nuisance

WHAT’S THE

PROBLEM WITH EfW?

• In a word – incineration

• They tend to be large with big nuisance issues

– Emissions

– Visual impact

– Transport

– Smells, dust, etc

• Recently there has been a shift onto.....

– Energy efficiency

– Impact on property values

• Need to review the vested interest of near neighbours

– Impact on their amenity

– Impact on their vested interest

WHAT’S THE

PROBLEM WITH

EfW?...2

• Historical context

– Performance

– Need

• Cultural context

– Need

– Community benefit

EMOTIONAL

ENGAGEMENT

• EfW objections:

– Adversely affecting health and wellbeing

– Adversely affecting an individuals rights or vested interests

– Nothing positive for the individuals and a lack of control

– Impact on resource recovery……

RECYCLING

VERSUS EFW

EMOTIONAL

ENGAGEMENT

• Result:

– People will become emotionally involved in development issues

– They will look for any anti information and filter out positive messages

– They will stop listening and start shouting…..

MORE INTERNET EXPERTS

GET MARCHING

CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENT

MORE MEDIA

FRIENDLY

NETWORKING

PROTESTORS

TRADITIONAL

WASTE REACTIVE

COMMUNICATIONS

Protesters Issues Audience Story MEDIA

Stunts Waste

company

IMPLICATIONS

• Effective communications must demonstrate that the waste is the

problem and EfW is the opportunity

• Our communications can start with energy needs but only when the

context of EfW is generally established and understood, otherwise it

will be seen as a ‘smokescreen’ on what you are really up to which

is good old fashioned waste incineration and genuine benefits will

be lost on consumers

• The environmental benefit of EfW plants must include landfill

emissions avoidance or it will be positioned as a highly ineffective

way of generating power

• However, we should never forget that a lot changes with proximity to

the site......

MODEL OF LIKELY

NEGATIVE REACTION

TO A PROPOSED

DEVELOPMENT

GE

NE

RA

L S

CA

LE

OF

NE

GA

TIV

E R

EA

CT

ION

RELATIVE DISTANCE AWAY

PROXIMITY TO PROPOSED FACILITY FACILITY

HERE

MODEL OF LIKELY

PUBLIC REACTION

GE

NE

RA

L S

CA

LE

OF

NE

GA

TIV

E R

EA

CT

ION

RELATIVE DISTANCE AWAY

PROXIMITY TO PROPOSED FACILITY

FACILITY

HERE

EfW FOR OXFORDSHIRE,

UK

Positive

Neutral

Negative

Chipping Banbury Ardley

Norton

(26 km) (14km)

WHERE IS

OXFORDSHIRE?

LONDON

LONDON

OXFORDSHIRE

WHERE IS

OXFORDSHIRE?

IMPLICATIONS

• First – need to think about who is the right messenger

• Second – need to think about where the audience ‘sits’ in relation

to the site

• Third – need communications to target a broader community

MODEL OF LIKELY

PUBLIC REACTION

GE

NE

RA

L S

CA

LE

OF

NE

GA

TIV

E R

EA

CT

ION

RELATIVE DISTANCE AWAY

PROXIMITY TO PROPOSED FACILITY

FACILITY

HERE

NOT JUST

HERE, BUT....

COMMUNICATE WITH

WHOLE COMMUNITY

GE

NE

RA

L S

CA

LE

OF

NE

GA

TIV

E R

EA

CT

ION

RELATIVE DISTANCE AWAY

PROXIMITY TO PROPOSED FACILITY FACILITY

HERE

Here!

GAINING POSITIVE PUBLIC

ACCEPTANCE

- A broader dialogue

THE PUBLIC’S VIEW

OF PLANNING

DECISION MAKING

THE FUNDAMENTAL

TRUTHS BEHIND

CONFLICTS

• People do not like change

• Especially if they feel they have no influence or control

• Perception is truth

– Today opinion has the same value as FACTS

• “What’s in it for them?”

– If they see no value to them, they are more likely to object

• How to ‘sell’ to consumers

SELLING ‘ANYTHING’

TO CONSUMERS

GENERATE DESIRE FOR SOLUTION

IDENTIFY

ISSUES

DEFINE

NEEDS

DELIVER

SOLUTION

WHAT’S THE PROBLEM

SATISFY DESIRE

CURRENT POSITION

We have always done

waste management like

this, why change?

SELLING ‘EfW’ TO

CONSUMERS

PO

SIT

IVE

CH

AN

GE

IN

UN

DE

RS

TA

ND

ING

AN

D B

EH

AV

IOU

R

SHORTEST TIME POSSIBLE

DEMONSTRATE

PROBLEMS

INCREASE AWARENESS

OF NEED/ISSUES

WIDESPREAD

COMMUNICATIONS

PROGRAMME TO ALL

STAKEHOLDERS

DEMONSTRATE

EFFECTIVENESS AND

PROVIDE FEEDBACK

GENERATE DESIRE FOR

PROPOSED SOLUTION

PROVEN EXPERIENCE

INCREASE

UNDERSTANDING OF

OPTIONS AND PROCESS

LANDFILL AVOIDENCE

SPECIFY TIMEFRAME

ROLE OF RECYCLING AND

RESIDUAL WASTE

IMPLICATIONS

• First – there is a problem – Deliver historical context – ‘How did it come to this?”

– It cannot continue

• Second – it involves the public at every level – It’s their waste!!!!

– They must have a role in solving the problem

• Third – if we can deliver the solution it will benefit everyone – It will reduce waste and make better use of resources

– It will clearly benefit the environment

– Effective waste management is a positive environmental opportunity

THREE STEPS TO

SUCCESS

• Step 1 – National level debate – Government advisors/independent scientists – energy security and

environmental arguments

– Specific national needs and benefits

• Step 2 – Regional awareness – specific regional needs – What needs to happen across each region

– Co-operation/partnerships between regional authorities

• Step 3 – Effective community engagement – Demonstrate how delivery will benefit the whole community

– Specific communications programme for those who live closest

STEP 1 –

NATIONAL DEBATE

• National campaign: – Need steady stream of positive messages about total waste solution,

including benefits of EfW in terms of national energy security

– No vested interest, simply sorting out a problem with win-win outcomes

• Desired outcome – Climate change is happening

– Increased awareness and understanding of climate change will result in a deep-rooted change in behaviour – provides an opportunity – they can do something about it

– Increased understanding of the need for more energy generation

– Understanding benefits of recycling, composting and EfW use that wasted resource

STEP 2 – REGIONAL

AWARENESS

• Gain regional acceptance that change is a desired state

• Regional campaign – Need to take national debate messages and put them into context

– Identify its everyone’s problem, but solutions are at hand

• Desired outcome – Laying the ground work that shows a fundamental need for, and an

acceptance of, proposed solutions – before targeting specific sites

– Demonstration of benefits to host community

– Adult relationship with the public and their wastes

STEP 3 – EFFECTIVE

COMMUNITY

ENGAGEMENT

• Talk to the broader community

• Phase 1 – early dialogue

– Stakeholder dialogue – workshops, meetings etc

– Take key messages from national and regional debate

• Phase 2 – presentation of initial ideas

– Exhibitions and briefings

• Phase 3 – pre-planning applications engagement

– Exhibitions and briefings

– Demonstrate impacts of dialogue throughout

– Get third party experts and existing community hosts to enter debate

INDIRECT

COMMUNICATIONS

ROUTES

• Third party endorsement is one of the most effective

communications routes due to positive support without clear vested

interest

• Target opinion formers

• Target all relevant communications nodes.....

Nodes

Opinion

formers

CITY - A

COMMUNICATIONS

NODES AND OPINION

FORMERS

Nodes

Opinion

formers

COMMUNICATIONS

NODES AND OPINION

FORMERS

Nodes

Opinion

formers

COMMUNICATIONS

NODES AND OPINION

FORMERS

PROACTIVE

COMMUNICATIONS

MEDIA

Issues

Stunts

Protesters

STORY AUDIENCE

Issues

Information

Campaigns

Positive

Letters

Resistance to message

Informed

filtering

Waste

company Third Party

Advocates

Low profile

operator Full go ahead

and

commissioning

Regional and

national positioning

Full friends and

foes analysis,

communications

strategy and plan,

key arguments

Q&As,

key messages,

support tools

(website, literature

exhibition/

roadshow)

Get act

together

Brief key

opinion

formers,

and media Brief

community

Run

campaign

on two levels

Isolate local

antis as

understandable

NIMBYs with clear

vested interest

Proactively push

proposals as

part of solution

to waste problems

with energy

generation

Regional campaign

to demonstrate positives and

robustly debunk myths

Proactive

Council,

MPs,

business

leaders,

media

Roadshows,

communications

nodes and

ongoing

briefings

activate TPA

DELIVERING EFFECTIVE

COMMUNITY

ENGAGEMENT

THE FUTURE

• Change in attitudes of audience

– Climate change is happening

– Increased awareness and understanding of climate change will result in a deep-rooted change in behaviour – provides an opportunity – they can do something about it

– Increased understanding of the need for more energy generation

– Understanding benefits of recycling, composting and EfW

• National campaign

– Need steady stream of positive general messages about total waste solution including benefits of EfW

• Desired outcome

– We are not persuading anyone, just providing information

– Grown-up relationship with the public and their wastes

CONCLUSIONS

• An international perspective would help the debate

• A national debate should take place to establish context on policy and

the potential win-win-win scenario provided by EfW

• Too much emphasis on planning with the developers vested interest

clouding hosting community’s judgement

• It’s in everyone’s interests to get it right

• We need to get on with this now!

THE FUTURE OF

EFW?

ONCE BUILT

MAINTAIN

COMMUNICATIONS

• It is vitally important that once built you maintain communications

with local stakeholders and the host community

• Open days for site visits should be an annual event

• Plants must always be kept clean

• Data on performance should be published on-line in real-time

OPEN DAY!

OPEN DAY 2

OPEN DAY 3

OPEN DAY 4

OPEN DAY 5

OPEN DAY 6

FIND OUT MORE

• Paul Davison, Managing Director

• Tel: +44 (0)1295 279626

• Email: paul.davison@proteuspr.co.uk

• Visit: www.proteuspr.co.uk

QUESTION CLINIC

PROTEUS PUBLIC RELATIONS

GAINING PUBLIC SUPPORT FOR

NEW COMBUSTION DEVELOPMENTS

CONTENTS

• What we offer

• Combustion development experience

• Why work with Proteus

• Conclusions

WHAT WE DO

• We offer:

– Strategic communications advice

– Contentious planning development support and delivery

– Good understanding of planning and technical issues

– Experience of IPC (now National Infrastructure Planning)

development

– Good value for money

– Direct talking, proactive advice with results focused delivery

COMBUSTION

DEVELOPMENT

EXPERIENCE

• Proteus has successfully delivered communications support for

many different combustion processes including:

– Energy from Waste

– Food waste processing

– Clinical waste incineration

– Cattle waste incineration including BSE and foot and mouth wastes

– Conventional power stations

– Renewables including wind farms

– Landfill gas power plants

– Large scale biomass power stations

DELIVERING NEW

DEVELOPMENT • Work is varied but includes:

– Planning support – including public inquiries, community and

organisational behaviour change, community liaison group

development, protester management and proactive media management

– Corporate communications to enhance reputation and help grow brand

values and business

– Media training and crisis management

– Materials delivery including brochures, newsletters, websites and

exhibitions, as well as all media materials such as features, press

releases, briefing materials for key stakeholders

– Public exhibitions and facilitating community group meetings* and

dialogue

*Not public meetings

CASE STUDY – PLANNING SUPPORT

NEWLINCS DEVELOPMENT

NEWLINCS

DEVELOPMENT –

OVERVIEW

• 25 year contract to manage the disposal and recycling of MSW in

North East Lincolnshire

• Key to success was development of an Integrated Waste

Management Facility, including an EfW plant, at a COMAH site near

the Humber

• Planning permission granted but targeted by anti-campaigners

• Negative media coverage, particularly regarding health issues

• Council decided to hold a review, with possibility of revoking the

planning decision

NEWLINCS

DEVELOPMENT – HOW

PROTEUS HELPED

• Developed and implemented a proactive communications strategy

• Worked to gain support from key opinion formers

• Addressed local media in a robust but constructive manner,

resulting in more balanced reporting

• Organised and managed exhibitions and meetings so they were

effective communications exercises

• Helped to form a community liaison group which has continued to

report community views and feed back information

NEWLINCS

DEVELOPMENT – THE

OUTCOME

• Council accepted an

Officer’s report that no new

evidence had been

submitted to support

opponents’ claims

• NEWLINCS became the

first EfW plant for seven

years to gain planning

permission

NEWLINCS

DEVELOPMENT –

WHAT THE CLIENT

SAID

“The strategic communications advice provided by Proteus was invaluable. Its

understanding of the environmental issues involved, coupled with its

communication skills, played a very important role in ensuring that the true

facts about the development and the safety of the facility were more widely

known and appreciated.”

Ian Crummack, General Manager

CASE STUDY – STRATEGIC POSITIONING

PETERBOROUGH CITY COUNCIL

PETERBOROUGH EFW

PETERBOROUGH CITY

COUNCIL – OVERVIEW

• Initial requirement was for support to communicate PCC’s

decision to commission an EfW facility in the city

• Requested PR support to planning submission, plus longer term

communications around implementation

• Proteus to be part of larger project team including other external

consultants, e.g. planning, design, engineering

PETERBOROUGH CC

– HOW PROTEUS

HELPED

• Strongly recommended a different communications approach to place

the EfW facility firmly in the context of Peterborough’s ambitions to

retain its status as a top recycler and attain Environment City status

• Developed a detailed communications strategy with the key objective of

broadening the debate to encompass a ‘total sustainable solution’ to

waste management in the city

• Developed and implemented a brand – 65% PLUS – under which all

waste and recycling messages could be communicated

• Developed timetable of stakeholder briefings, planned and manned

roadshows to launch 65% PLUS to public and developed supporting

materials including brochures, website, exhibition displays, etc

PETERBOROUGH CC –

THE OUTCOME

• More than 60 stakeholder organisations were briefed and every

household in Peterborough received information about 65% PLUS

and its aims

• Planning application for the EfW facility was made in December

2008

• Permission was granted in November 2009

• To date there has been no organised protest

PETERBOROUGH CC –

WHAT THE CLIENT

SAID

“The 65% PLUS campaign has enabled Peterborough City Council to

demonstrate a clear strategic vision and proactively engage with its public,

resulting in a far better understanding of the need for change, the

technological solutions available to manage our waste in future and the

public’s role in the process.”

Richard Pearn, Waste Infrastructure Programme Manager

CASE STUDY – PRE-APPLICATION

CONSULTATION

BIOMASS POWER PLANT, DONG ENERGY

HULL BIOMASS

DONG ENERGY

BIOMASS POWER

STATION – OVERVIEW

• Proposal for a 300MW biomass burning (clean woodchip) power

station on the north bank of the Humber on the borders of Hull City

and the East Riding of Yorkshire

• Nationally significant development under Infrastructure Planning

Commission (IPC)

• Existing local sensitivity following a recent planning application for a

large Energy from Waste plant nearby

• Requirement for extensive stakeholder engagement, both as part of

the IPC approach and also to conform with DONG’s own approach

to consultation

DONG ENERGY – HOW

PROTEUS HELPED

• Development of proactive communications strategy for the full

consultation process including regional public affairs, stakeholder

engagement, community relations and media management

• Development of key arguments and key messages

• Delivery of media relations programme to promote a positive

debate in the local press

• Development and delivery of the programme including website,

literature, public exhibitions, newsletters, standard presentations

and briefing notes for different stakeholders including the media

• Development and delivery of key documents including Statement

of Community Consultation and non-technical Summary

DONG ENERGY – THE

OUTCOME

• Vast majority of the regional stakeholders were publicly in favour of

the development, including local media

• Supportive statements obtained from Associated British Ports

(landowner) and Hull City Council

• Communications recognised as best practice by IPC

• Strategic decision by DONG Energy to withdraw from development

of large-scale biomass projects internationally meant project was

terminated

• Managed a professional withdrawal from the project that also

enhanced DONG’s reputation

DONG ENERGY –

WHAT THE CLIENT

SAID

““The standard of communications support we have received from Proteus has

been excellent. Proteus’ consultation programme, combined with a

responsiveness and sensitivity when handling issues raised about the

Humber Renewables project, helped to convince the local community that

they were being listened to and taken seriously.”

Claus Nørgaard, Project Director

BUDGETS

• Direct and frank approach

• Cost-effective

• Normal day rate £750

• Budgets range from £5,000 to £200,000+

• Full timesheet reporting with absolute clarity on budget

reconciliations

PROTEUS

BACKGROUND • Established in 1996

• Based in Banbury, Oxfordshire, but working throughout UK and in

Europe

• More than 60 years combined PR experience within the team

• Specialists in environmental and issues management

• Substantial planning support experience at all stages and routes

including IPC

• Recognised by the trade media as quality writers of excellent media

copy

WHAT THE MEDIA

SAYS ABOUT

PROTEUS

“Proteus is a very professional and enthusiastic agency. Not only do they

always meet deadlines, but they are always happy to come forward with

ideas and understand the needs of journalists.”

Paul Sanderson, Editor,

Materials Recycling Week (MRW)

"Proteus is what good PR is all about. It helps that members of the Proteus

team have worked in the environmental sector and this shows with their

knowledge of the industry and ability to generate news and feature ideas

proactively. Other PR companies could learn a lot from Proteus.“

Tom Freyberg, Chief Editor,

Waste Management World

ETHOS AND

APPROACH

• Understand client sectors

• Understand journalists

• Direct-talking consultancy

• Pro-active and efficient

• Collaborative style

• Creative

WHAT WE OFFER

• Strategic communications planning, consultancy and delivery

• Pro-active media relations

• Key influencer and community relations

• Issues and crisis management

• Corporate and internal communications

• Stakeholder and political research

• Project marketing

• Media training

• Events support

• Materials production

CONCLUSIONS

• We have considerable experience and skills in waste management

projects for public and private sector clients

• We will drive communications programmes

• We are specialists in public relations and public affairs

• We are cost-effective

• We are genuine consultants

FURTHER

INFORMATION

• Call: Paul Davison on 01295 279626

• Email: paul.davison@proteuspr.co.uk

• Visit: www.proteuspr.co.uk