Mining and polution in Thailand

[Brer Fox]

The country doesn't seem to care and like many other environmental problems it seems that if enough money it thrown at it the problem it will disappear in favour of the miners.

THE Akara (Chatree) mine is controlled by Sydney-based Kingsgate Consolidated Limited located 280 kilometres north of Bangkok. The accusations follow earlier charges by local villagers over pollution from its operations.

In January the mine was forced to temporarily cease activities after more than 200 local villagers complained they had fallen ill due to arsenic and manganese contamination.

But a month later the Department of Primary Industries and Mines gave the mine the all clear to reopen after separate laboratory tests were carried out on employees of the mine, as well as local villagers.

But separate tests by the Justice Ministry's Central Institute of Forensic Medicine (CFIS) found more than half of the 600 villagers living near the mine faced elevated levels of arsenic and manganese in their blood, with many falling ill.

Some people are making a motza in allowing this to happen. No surprises about that.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/latest-news/austthai-mine-faces-pollution-charges/story-fn3dxix6-1227356986050

[Thongkorn]

All you have to do is walk around Bangkok, You can see polluted canals, rivers, Go to Sahmut Prakan and look at the tanning Factory s pumping out toxins into rivers and tribulets, Look at all the plastic bags around, just thrown anywhere, in the streets on vacant land in the sea, If they cannot sort this what hope for bigger things. It all starts with Education , in School.

[Aussieroaming]

Disappointing if the metal effluent comes from the Chatree site because it is a very well designed and constructed facility.

The metals reported as causing poison to the local population are unfortunately present in many watercourses if the rock type is acidic in nature.

The Chatree mine operates at high pH, so the manganese and arsenic won't be coming from the process plant itself per se as the water chemistry ( alkaline solution ) in the plant causes manganese and arsenic metals to precipitate out of solution as pretty stable solids.

However if the mine de-watering isn't being managed properly then there is every possibility that these heavy metals can be mobilised into solution in waste water run off streams. If the mine rock is reactive then the waste water streams

from the mining area need to be closely controlled and managed, or heavy metals will be potentially released into the local watercourses.

[Aussieroaming]

Disappointing if the metal effluent comes from the Chatree site because it is a very well designed and constructed facility.

The metals reported as causing poison to the local population are unfortunately present in many watercourses if the rock type is acidic in nature.

The Chatree mine operates at high pH, so the manganese and arsenic won't be coming from the process plant itself per se as the water chemistry ( alkaline solution ) in the plant causes manganese and arsenic metals to precipitate out of solution as pretty stable solids.

However if the mine de-watering isn't being managed properly then there is every possibility that these heavy metals can be mobilised into solution in waste water run off streams. If the mine rock is reactive then the waste water streams

from the mining area need to be closely controlled and managed, or heavy metals will be potentially released into the local watercourses.

[IMA_FARANG]

I am afraid that I can't agree that the mining activities are designed for the benefit of the locals and not mainly for the benefit of the owner and especially the investors that have invested money in the mines and factories.

I may be wrong but in my experience the main purpose of such places is always to make a profit for the outside investors, even if those profits come at the expense of the health of he local workers and residents of the local area.

Many times the factory and mine owners has as it's primary purpose the profit of outside investors even at the cost of the health of the local community, Money needed to implement safety and health methods are regarded as to expensive and these health and safety requirements are ignored in the desire for profit to the investors.

Where I grew up in the U.S. in the 1960's and 1970's there was an example in a town near to my home.

It was a paper factory which the local town had to fight for 30 years before they could clean up the environmental and toxic problems from that plant. The plant had been discharging toxic chemicals into the river that ran by it for over 50 years and all life for 5 miles below the plant had been killed by those chemicals.

The excuse the company used was that cleanup would be to expensive.... and they fought cleaning up the mess for years until they were finally forced to clean up their damage.

That is why I very much doubt that here in Thailand plant and mine owners have an interest in safety and health above profit.

I wish I would believe they would do that, but my personal experience is different.

[Brer Fox]

All you have to do is walk around Bangkok, You can see polluted canals, rivers, Go to Sahmut Prakan and look at the tanning Factory s pumping out toxins into rivers and tribulets, Look at all the plastic bags around, just thrown anywhere, in the streets on vacant land in the sea, If they cannot sort this what hope for bigger things. It all starts with Education , in School.

Sadly the education system is jigged and rigged. In recent reports it was stated that Thailand was one of the lowest education achievers in Asia, particularly in maths and science. My GF who is an English teacher in a higher education college confirmed that this has been common knowledge for years. Education qualifications in Thailand are just like everything else; you pay for what you get! Students couldn't care less about pollution and toxins so long as they can wander around with big big cups of fattening milk drinks and then throw the containers anywhere they choose. Pollution control in Thailand and other Asian countries is the skill of passing the inconvenience of your own rubbish to someone else.