Picture courtesy of Khaosod.

 

Residents of a quiet village in Phanom Sarakham district were shocked to discover towering mounds of what appeared to be soil, only to realise it was in fact shredded electronic waste, dumped illegally under cover of night.

 

Villagers in Moo 10 of Khao Hin Son subdistrict came across two large piles of waste dumped in an overgrown area beside the Ban Pho Si–Bu Yai Phong Road, near a canal. Upon closer inspection, the waste was found to be finely ground insulation and wire casings, industrial by-products from electronic manufacturing processes.

 

Mr Banchaa, the local resident who first made the discovery, said the materials resembled the so-called “free soil” that had previously made headlines after it was revealed to be hazardous e-waste. “It’s disgusting. This isn’t just rubbish, this is toxic waste. It’s poison. We’ve never had anything like this in our village before,” he said.

 

Residents believe the dumping occurred overnight. “I pass this area every morning and evening. There was nothing there yesterday,” said Mr Banchaa. “There are no factories nearby. Someone must have trucked it in from elsewhere.”

 

Another resident reported hearing a vehicle speeding away around 01:00 the previous night. “At first I thought someone was fleeing from wild elephants. I didn’t get a good look, but it felt suspicious,” she said. “We’re really worried, this stuff is full of chemicals, and it’s dangerously close to our local water sources.”

 

Despite growing concerns, no authorities had arrived to inspect the site. Villagers are now calling for an urgent investigation to trace the origin of the waste and prosecute those responsible under environmental laws.

 

 

  Adapted by ASEAN Now from Khoasod 2025-06-22

 

 

Driving on back roads in the Pattaya/Jomtien vicinity. it's really sad to see endless piles of illegally dumped refuse, mostly building materials dumped on almost every non-developed piece of land.  The lack of any kind of enforcement against these dumpers is discouraging.