Another Phuket beach befouled by wastewater, again

[webfact]

Another Phuket beach befouled by wastewater, again
Phuket Gazette

Foul water flowed across the beach at this time last year, and boatmen sought treatment for skin irritations and blood infections. Photo: Kritsada Mueanhawong

PHUKET: -- Dirty, smelly water is flowing across a Phuket beach again, not in the south this time, but in Bang Two in the north, causing health and economic problems for local boat operators.

The source of the problem, say the boatmen, is local hotels dumping untreated wastewater into the Bang Tao Canal, which spills it onto the beach and into the sea.

“Some of us have skin problems because we have to walk through the water every day to make a living,” said longtail boat operator Apinan Panan.

Fisherman Saman Panan said that he has already paid 2,000 baht in medical bills to treat skin rashes, and local resident Yusub Panchalad said his skin was so itchy he couldn’t sleep.

“And a lot of tourists are afraid of going in the water because they think it might harm them. That means we have fewer customers. The water has been very bad for the past three days,” Mr Apinan told the Phuket Gazette.

When foul water flowed from the Bang Tao Canal over the beach at about this time last year, local boatmen blamed it for skin rashes and blood infections (story here).

The Cherng Talay Subdistrict Administrative Organization (OrBorTor) responded by initiating a 355-million-baht wastewater treatment project, which includes two treatment plants and seven pumping stations.

At the end of January 2014, those projects were said to be nearly 40 per cent complete, with the entire project scheduled to be finished by August next year (story here).

Boatmen this year complain that they have seen no official response to the problem this time, but Cherng Talay OrBorTor President Ma-Ann Samran told the Gazette this morning that he is aware of the foul water and has ordered officers to inspect every hotel and restaurant in the area.

“They will be checking how they manage wastewater,” said Mr Ma-Ann. “If they find a problem, they will issue a letter giving the establishment seven days to fix it.

“The officers will go back to inspect again seven days later. If the problem is not fixed, we may shut the business down.”

In the meantime, the approximately 100 boatmen say they will continue to rush to take a shower as soon as they get out of the water, and warn their children to stay away from it.

The cost for wastewater infrastructure upgrades in Bang Tao is about the same needed for upgrades in Karon.

Karon has applied for 350mn baht from the 2015 fiscal budget to upgrade its facilities, but the director of Regional Environmental Office 15, Pornsri Suthanaruk, said the money might not be be granted due to a number of other pressing environmental projects.

Ms Pornsri suggested that the municipality borrow the money instead (story here).

— Kritsada Mueanhawong

Source: http://www.phuketgazette.net/phuket-news/Another-Phuket-beach-befouled-wastewater-again/29120#ad-image-0


-- Phuket Gazette 2014-04-11

[LivinginKata]

Bang Two beach --- never heard of that beach

Oh wait they got it right in the next paragraph - Bang Tao.

And they expect tourists to swim in the beaches. I have not swam at a Phuket Beach for many years.

[clockman]

Thai people think tourists will come for ever. You have to reinvest. The golden days are long gone.

[eezergood]

More posturing, nothing wil be done!

[WoopyDoo]

If the local authorities got off their backsides and actually did something to control the pollution, then maybe they can save this tourist destination.

Once word spreads through the global tourism grapevine, it could be the death of Phuket as a premium resort.

Stop milking the cash cow for all its worth and start investing in the area.

[fatdrunkandstupid]

ah ha haaa ah ahhhhhh haaaaaaa....

Thai locals warn there children not to swim in the sea at Phuket...

But they are happy for any of the many Farangs on Bang Tao beach to swim to their hearts are content.

In my other thread, I have already identified that they are now clear felling the forest around the estuary at the northern end of Bang Tao at Layan and so that once healthy waterway will be turned into a sewer like the klong at the southern end of the beach that is the subject of this article.

Phuket is finished....

[muratremix]

What about shitholes (yes, shit dump ponds inside beach with foul smell! About 10-15 meters diameter) next to premium beaches on karon / kata (I could be remembering names wrong, but these beaches on western side of Phuket and receive lots of tourists) ?

I couldn't believe it when I saw it, amazing Thailand indeed.

[Always18]

After the tsunami clear-up this was one of the most beautiful, unspoilt and relatively tourist-free beaches on Phuket - perfect for swimming and BBQ-ing............................what a bloody shame to see how it's been ruined by greed in that short time.

[DinoSabanovic]

Dirty? don't be ridiculous. Mai pen rai.

[lucjoker]

live around Pattaya for 11 years,

never saw clean water (nor in Jomptien)

So we went for a holiday to the Andaman sea (Khao lak)

The water should be crystal clear ,but it's not , it is better than Pattaya for sure ,but

not really clean .

So ,i gave up my hope to find the clear waters of my childhood ,it does not exist any more .

This was the last holiday we spend in expensive resorts with a polluted sea.

The children wont go in the water because their skin starts itching right away, i couldn't believe it and

went in myself and my skin started itching also .( center beach in Khao Lak )

We will not continue to Pucket ,but turn back home .

From now on we will only swim in our pool at home ,i wont wast time on seaside holidays anymore.

[davidmann]

its the same in Many places in Thailand ,in 1970 Pattaya sea was clean ,look at in today

[swifty5x5]

Show your Thainess.

[sandrabbit]

just wait and see the state of beaches all over Thailand when the Songkran holiday crowds return home, why walk a few metres to a rubbish bin when the beach still has plenty of empty spaces to drop. this is not exclusive to Thailand, just see a Brit city centre when the nightclubs have closed and the punters throw their kebab wrappers and waste food on the pavement.

[nbg]

live around Pattaya for 11 years,

never saw clean water (nor in Jomptien)

So we went for a holiday to the Andaman sea (Khao lak)

The water should be crystal clear ,but it's not , it is better than Pattaya for sure ,but

not really clean .

So ,i gave up my hope to find the clear waters of my childhood ,it does not exist any more .

This was the last holiday we spend in expensive resorts with a polluted sea.

The children wont go in the water because their skin starts itching right away, i couldn't believe it and

went in myself and my skin started itching also .( center beach in Khao Lak )

We will not continue to Pucket ,but turn back home .

From now on we will only swim in our pool at home ,i wont wast time on seaside holidays anymore.

Try Similan islands next time, have not been for many years but Im sure it is still good out there

[spidermike007]

Thai people think tourists will come for ever. You have to reinvest. The golden days are long gone.

I am not sure if that concept has taken hold on any significant level. On Samui the island is going downhill very, very fast. Increasing levels of traffic, with few improvements to the roads lately. Poor sewage, though minor improvements in the past few years. Terrible, rolling blackouts, that last up to 8 hours. I counted 8 in the past 4 weeks. Poor water supply. And the local officials continue to either permit, or support the massive fouling of the waters around Samui. All the coral has died, and on some days, the beaches smell like latrines. What a terrible lack of pride, on the part of the politicians, the central government, which continues to refuse to support Samui, and the local mafia, which sucks the island dry, and gives NOTHING back. They are increasing prices of everything, but offering nothing in the way of improved services.

[tomdfc]

15 years ago Bang Tao / Layan was one of the most beautiful bays I had ever seen. Pristine, idyllic. The Laguna complex was there but had been done sensitively and had in fact reclaimed previously-toxic ground after the end of tin-mining. The Rydges Hotel (now the Amora, I think) was also there but set well back from the beach. The sand met mature trees which wafted in the sea breezes. And, yes, there were a handful of small bamboo-constructed beach restauarants, and at the far south-end of the bay the fishing community. Everything was in balance, at least to my eyes.

With each pasing year since then an unfolding catastrophe to anyone who looked. No planning, over-development, greed and short-sightedness.

Who would want to eat a fish caught in the waters of the bay now?

"They paved paradise and they put up a parking lot." I think Joni understated it.

How sad.

[Pinot]

In see it in Kamala too. The water in the klong was black and the entire ocean along the beach was brown. It's still bad.

[Ulic]

Nothing will be done until the tourists stop coming. Then there will be a lot of finger pointing. But don't worry there will

be lots of money to be made on kickbacks on the construction bidding process. So it will be fixed eventually.

[EASYDOGG]

IMO the mafia run island has been deteriorating for years, now the beaches are going too.

[atsiii]

One of the big problems with infrastructure all around Thailand is the pervasive corruption. The construction contracts will be let to cousins and brothers who have never built an engineered structure in their lives, there will be no construction engineering or management, and when done, the plants will either not come on line or only marginally. This is happening all over Thailand with the result being that only 14% of the country's wastewater is treated before being released to the environment. That means 86% is being released directly with no treatment. How long can Thailand shoot itself in the foot before it realizes it can no longer walk?

[Soupdragon]

Do all those new properties in the background of the photo have waste treament facilities. For sure they consume their share of the local water supply.

[marcusd]

Walk and smell the sewers everywhere here. Walk and smell the clean air in Singapore.

Thailand is richer than Singapore. But smell the difference

Marcusd. Via tapatalk

[kannot]

Bet those fishermen never pollute anything eh?

[kannot]

just wait and see the state of beaches all over Thailand when the Songkran holiday crowds return home, why walk a few metres to a rubbish bin when the beach still has plenty of empty spaces to drop. this is not exclusive to Thailand, just see a Brit city centre when the nightclubs have closed and the punters throw their kebab wrappers and waste food on the pavement.

and do they sweep it under the carpet there too?

[Rimbuman]

live around Pattaya for 11 years,

never saw clean water (nor in Jomptien)

So we went for a holiday to the Andaman sea (Khao lak)

The water should be crystal clear ,but it's not , it is better than Pattaya for sure ,but

not really clean .

So ,i gave up my hope to find the clear waters of my childhood ,it does not exist any more .

This was the last holiday we spend in expensive resorts with a polluted sea.

The children wont go in the water because their skin starts itching right away, i couldn't believe it and

went in myself and my skin started itching also .( center beach in Khao Lak )

We will not continue to Pucket ,but turn back home .

From now on we will only swim in our pool at home ,i wont wast time on seaside holidays anymore.

There clean spots and I found a breathtaking spot with emerald clear water. But there is one condition and that is that no Thai and or tourist go there.

Thai mismanage and abuse their tourist ventures.

[Rimbuman]

Bet those fishermen never pollute anything eh?

Thai fisherpeople are the dirtiest of all Thai.

[grumpyoldman]

This Bangtao Khlong is old news. They busted a couple resorts last year (surely collected) but back "to same same not different".

[marko kok prong]

i first came to thailand in 1989 backpacking i recall snorkeling at samui water crystal clear great visibility,wonder what it is like now,also Koh chang went there in 95,crystal clear water,went back in feb,forget snorkling, there visibility was about as far as my outstretched arm,once Burma opens up more it will grab many tourists from thailand,look how many islands they have along their Andaman coast,let us hope they learn a lesson from Thailand and develop it with care.

[sandrabbit]

Bet those fishermen never pollute anything eh?

Thai fisherpeople are the dirtiest of all Thai.

Just come and see the beach where I live in Rayong with all the rubbish thrown overboard by the squid boats including huge sodium lamps and the occasional Cambodian fisherman who's family will never know what happened to him.

[zaZa9]

If we can walk over grates and nearly pass out from the smell , this means that the storm water system is carrying raw sewage , and whenever it pours , rain run off will flood though the grates and into the 'system ' ( or what the authorities are trying to pass of as a system ) and overload/overflow any treatment plants.

In other countries , authorities do all they can to keep rain water out of the sewage system , including inspecting and fining those who would direct guttering or storm water into the sewage system and cause it to overload during weather events.

In Thailand , storm water is Directed into the system , then rain water blamed for entirely avoidable 'overflows' .

The creeks are for rain water to flow to the sea , NOT ( treated or untreated ) sewage .

Beware the sea after the first days of rain following a dry spell ...