Rayong beach still affected by 2013 oil spill

[Thaivisa News]

Rayong:- Local villagers and fishermen of the eastern province of Rayong complained that the oil spill caused by PTT Plc oil tanker in the Royong sea in July 2013 is still affecting Rayong beaches and locals fisheries.

On Monday Thairath dispatched its team of reporters to inspect the popular Mae Ramphueng Beach and Prasae River mouth area following complaints by many groups of local people.

The people filed a complaint with the mass circulation after their letter sent to the Interior Ministry’s Damrongtham Center failed to lead to any action.

About 100 people from the groups led Thairath reporters to inspect the beach and found that there were still crude oil stains along the Mae Ramphueng Beach and there were also many blackened beach rocks. The beach appeared dark and many kinds of seashells became black because of hardened crude oil stains on their shells.

Worawut Khongnarong, a representative of the local fishermen, said the 2013 oil spill had severely affected the life of the local fishermen.

He said local fishermen could make small cashes, not enough to make their living, and this prompted many of them to sell their fishing boats and turn to other careers.

Worawut said hardened crude oil lumps were still washed ashore each day. He wondered when the crude oil leftover would be completely cleaned up so that fishes would return to the sea in abundant.

Songkran Songsilp said the fishermen mostly found black rocks with hardened crude oil stains instead of fishes and crabs.

He called on Rayong Gvernor Somsak Suwansujarit to inspect the scene to gather first-hand information for planning measures to help the local people.

[upena]

But, but, but, the Tourism Authority of Thailand said it was clean the day after the spill

[sandrabbit]

When the original spill occurred there was no oil washed ashore at Mae Rumphueng beach but you could smell it as it was getting blown past on it's way to Koh Samet, we did have detergent washed ashore from the clean up operation. What's happening now might not even be from that spill as you see the tankers moored offshore in the distance and one of them or even a large fishing boat might have dumped oil. There have recently been high tides and the oil is visible at low tide and our dog had got oil on herself while swimming and then jumped up on me covering my jeans in oil.

Also nothing is said about rubbish covering the beach from the Bangkok weekend crowds and what gets washed down the rivers plus what the fishing fleets throw over the sides including the occasional Cambodian.

[Boatfreak]

So they complain about the oil? Really? It looks like they have a much bigger problem....caused mainly by the fishermen using plastic bags for ballast. These pics from Mae Rumphueng beach

[Stargeezr]

It is a shame how an oil spill can affect the area for so long, and seeing the other post of

the Mea Rumphueng beach with all the plactic bags and other garbage is sad as well,

I guess it is not a tourist beach where the local clean it up for others.

I was always impressed when I visited Kata beach in Phuket, as a group of people would

clean the beach almost every day, when they seen plastic bags or other items, it was

cleaned right up. I seen a filthy beach in Fiji years ago and I asked the hotel manager,

why it was like that when us tourists paid so much money to his hotel for staying there,

and they could not make an effort to keep their beach in good shape. The next day I seen a crew

of hotel staff and locals using garbage bags and scoops, and after that the beach was

a lot nicer to be around. I found out later that the guy standing next to me at the lobby counter, was one

of the hotel owners, and he did not know how bad the beach was, so when he took a look,

he was also disgusted and got the beach cleaned.

[spacebass]

I live Mae Ramphueng Beach, I think they after compensation, check it out for yourself before You believe this.

[chatette]

Thank you for posting the photos BoatFreak. That's not just Rumphueng; it could be anywhere along the gulf coastline. And it doesn't depict the rubbish that day trippers walk away from after their picnics or the dumps on vacant blocks by adjacent building managements who might clean up their little patch of beach.
The incredible amount of garbage washed up on the Rayong coast is as bad a problem as the oil spill and possibly more enduring. The beaches, not just Rumphueng,but all the way along the coast to at least Mae Phim are filthy and dangerous to walk along. There are even used hypodermic needles among the rubbish washed ashore from the cesspit called the Gulf of Thailand. I imagine it's the same on the Chaam/Hua Hin/Pranburi side, too.
Typically, the only clean areas are those cleared by properties' management. Great swathes of otherwise pristine coast line are utterly disgusting. It's a shameful destruction of otherwise stunning natural assets.
I find it remarkable (as in worthy of comment, not surprising in any way) that Pattaya and Phuket municipalities are clearing the beaches of deck chairs and umbrellas while no municipalities anywhere seem to have any concern for the shocking amount of crap surrounding the coastline of a country in which tourism is such an important contributor to GDP.
Priorities continue to be grossly misplaced, people are selfish and careless. Of course the last sentence could be applied to many aspects of the majorities' approach to life here.

[55Jay]

I stayed at a place near Mae Phim 2 weeks ago and as I waded in the waves, the sand stuck to the bottom of my feet like a pancake, and would fall off in pieces when taking a step. Had a blob of black tar on the bottom of one foot as well.

[Sputnik699]

Hey guys, took these while down at MLP about 4 weeks ago. Black oil all over my feet after I went for a swim...took forever to scrub it off too. I'm not surprised there's no fish living round there !

[Spacer]

Try using baby oil (mineral oil) to dissolve the tar. Then wash with soap and water.

[Sputnik699]

Cheers Spacer, I'll stock up on mineral oil for next time, lol. TBH I cant believe the authority's ( and even the local's that rely on the beach to make a living...Thai and Foreigner's ) let the beach's get in such a state..my G/F helped out with a volunteer beach clean in june / july last year...I think it may be time for another one.

[Spacer]

Amazing how much trash is in the water and washes up on the beaches. A ban on plastic bags would get rid of most of it. There are only a few beaches I will go to now because of it.

[55Jay]

Cheers Spacer, I'll stock up on mineral oil for next time, lol. TBH I cant believe the authority's ( and even the local's that rely on the beach to make a living...Thai and Foreigner's ) let the beach's get in such a state..my G/F helped out with a volunteer beach clean in june / july last year...I think it may be time for another one.

Thanks for the photos, it's a shame. The Rayong spill looked pretty bad.

I passed on swimming there last month, and just sat on the beach listening to the waves.

[Sputnik699]

Was any action taken against the oil company's after the spill ? I've been going to MLP for the past couple of years now as my G/F is from Rayong. Having backpacked all over S.E. Asia in the last 4/5 years I can honestly say this is one of the filthiest beach's I've come across ( in it's current state ) and without doubt the worst I've seen in Thai water's...and I've seen a lot of beach's too

Oil spill's aside and focusing more on the rubbish.....I cant help thinking why the local community don't organise regular beach clean's rather than just cleaning there section. There's well over 100 different Hotel's, G/H's, Restaurant's and other small business's that make a living from the tourist trade down there and yeah a lot of the rubbish is washed up from other place's..BKK, Fishermen..etc and not dumped there by local business's. However surely it would make good business sense to keep the beach clean, effectively making it a more appealing place to visit and im sure in turn lining the pocket's of all the local's with more baht.

As im currently back in the U.K working I'd hope that something's done by the time I return later in the year as I quite like MLP and the other beach's in the area. I guess if it's still in it's current state I could just go to another place and effectively spend my money elsewhere.

[steve654]

I stayed in Mae Phim last week. Just love the area but really shocked at all the garbage on the beach. I feel this is just too nice a beach

to waist away. Would be great if the community came together and used a tractor and an attachment that cleans the sand and just hire

someone full time to run back and forth on the sand each and every day. I've seen these used in Florida and they are amazing. I know

if the will is there and someone pointed them in the right direction, the beach would be the cleanest looking beach in Thailand.

Edited June 6, 2015 by steve654

[Mooner]

There would be 100'ss of nice beaches in Thailand if people cleaned up.

The lack of education and application here is shocking

[impulse]

Try using baby oil (mineral oil) to dissolve the tar. Then wash with soap and water.

+1 We kept a bottle of baby oil and a clean rag in the car whenever we went to the beach in Padre Island, Texas for decades after the Ixtoc spill in Mexico. I imagine they're still stepping on tar balls from that one 35 years later.

But in fairness,ships and fishing boats emptying their bilges pump more oil into the Gulf of Thailand than any oil left behind by PTT.

[impulse]

I stayed in Mae Phim last week. Just love the area but really shocked at all the garbage on the beach. I feel this is just too nice a beach

to waist away. Would be great if the community came together and used a tractor and an attachment that cleans the sand and just hire

someone full time to run back and forth on the sand each and every day. I've seen these used in Florida and they are amazing. I know

if the will is there and someone pointed them in the right direction, the beach would be the cleanest looking beach in Thailand.

Photo taken in Songkhla late last year, on Samila Beach right after a storm blew through.

[steve654]

I stayed in Mae Phim last week. Just love the area but really shocked at all the garbage on the beach. I feel this is just too nice a beach

to waist away. Would be great if the community came together and used a tractor and an attachment that cleans the sand and just hire

someone full time to run back and forth on the sand each and every day. I've seen these used in Florida and they are amazing. I know

if the will is there and someone pointed them in the right direction, the beach would be the cleanest looking beach in Thailand.

Photo taken in Songkhla late last year, on Samila Beach right after a storm blew through.

Exactly what I was talking about, thanks! I googled samila beach and google map says that beach is permanently closed? Maybe because of the situation in south Tthailand I guess.

[steve654]

There would be 100'ss of nice beaches in Thailand if people cleaned up.

The lack of education and application here is shocking

I have to admit that it is shocking as many communities are losing out on tourist money by letting their beaches

turn into garbage dumps. I understand the problem they have if much of it is coming from the surf and floating

from elsewhere onto their beaches, but for starters, on the larger beaches at least, using a tractor and sweep attachment

would not be that hard to do and the return everyone will get on a clean beach would be a thousand fold.

After that, having enclosed garbage bins throughout the beach road so everyone can dispose of their own trash would

be the next step and also if the wind picked up and they tipped over, nothing would fly out as they would have a swinging

door like you see over here in our parks. These are two very minor steps that would lead to a huge improvement.

Edited June 7, 2015 by steve654

[Franky Bear]

I live in the city. I wouldn't let my kids swim here

When the spill happens the detergent they use to diapers oil. They used roughly 20 times the dosage they are supposed to. Because ...Thai logic.

The stuff they use is cancerous if used in a big dosage

I work in oil

And gas for the record

[steve654]

I think they did the same thing with the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. This planet is taking a beating from all our mistakes.

Edited June 27, 2015 by steve654