Environment and natural resources
Popular Thai beach forced to close to tourists before 'damage is beyond repair'
Authorities in Thailand are set to close the island of Koh Tachai because of the impact heavy tourism has had on natural resources and the environment. “We have to close [the island] to allow the rehabilitation of the environment, both on the island and in the ...
Farmers irked by irrigation pump charges
Many farmers are reluctant to use irrigation systems that involve electrical pumps to deliver water to rice fields, as they are charged for the electricity consumed. This was confirmed by the former Minister of Agriculture and Forestry when speaking to the media recently.Keep reading ...
Locals on polluted Ba riverside thirsty for clean water
Since the day the An Khe – Ka Nak hydropower plant was put into operation, it has been taking away water to generate electricity, depleting and polluting the lower course of the Ba River. Things got worse recently when the river section which runs across Krong ...
Wanbao requests talks with Letpadaung protesters
In response to protests outside the site of a controversial, re-launched copper mine, the company behind the project released a statement ridiculing the demonstration as representing a reckless minority. Residents are calling on the government to intervene, and have said the mine should not be allowed ...
Road seems to deliberately threaten protected forest in Kon Tum
Thousands hectares of forest in the central highlands province of Kon Tum, Vietnam are facing extinction as the local authorities are determined to construct a road that seems of little benefit to travellers. The road project, invested by the provincial Department of Transport, was started since ...
Battle over mangrove sees SEZ trump NGO
A special economic zone developer will be allowed to continue bulldozing a mangrove forest in Preah Sihanouk province’s Teuk Thla commune, the provincial governor said on 10 May. Civil society groups had persuaded the provincial Fisheries Administration to ask the governor to protect the ecosystem, which ...
Digging deeper wells costs more
Amid a devastating drought, the need to dig more, and deeper, wells is threatening to overwhelm the government’s relief budget. The cost of wells rises exponentially with depth. And as groundwater continues to drop, itself exacerbated by the digging of more and more wells, deeper is ...
Gold miners face business shutdown
Thailand’s gold mining industry is set to go out of business as the cabinet has decided to stop renewing and issuing licences for gold ore exploration and gold mining following a public outcry over health and environmental issues. Industry Minister Atchaka Sibunruang said the cabinet had ...
Across Thailand, a cruel drought takes terrible toll
In Pathum Thani’s Lam Luk Ka district, the Lam Luk Ka-Thanya Buri Road in Moo 8 of Tambon Lat Sawai has been damaged by subsidence, causing a 1.5-metre-deep and 100-metre-long section to collapse yesterday, prompting authorities to close the road as a safety precaution. In Chon ...
Auctions of illegal timber to resume, officials say
Top officials on 9 May said the government would be auctioning off some of the 70,000 cubic meters of wood authorities have seized in recent months, backtracking on a recent pledge Hun Sen made to stop the sales. In a surprise move at the Education Ministry’s annual ...
