Today (April 23) Prompong Nopparit, spokesman for the ruling Pheu Thai Party, inspected the klong, made black from pollution.
Mr Prompong decided to examine the problem after a complaint was sent by village chief Kecha Kroahlek to PM Yingluck Shinawatra’s office.
“We have to solve the issue urgently so that it will not destroy our tourism image, the quality of life for local people, and also marine life,” he said. “Phuket is the window of Thailand, and the local quality of life affects the whole country’s economy.
“I have heard there are many places in Phuket that have similar problems, not just Bang Tao. This will be a model for others to start making Phuket’s water clean.”
Dr Prapornsri Narintaruksa, Deputy Doctor of the Phuket Provincial Public Health Office (PPHO) said people should not swim in, wash in or otherwise use the water in the klong or the sea nearby because many cases of skin infection have already been reported.
Phuripat Theerakulpisut, Director of the Phuket Marine Office, explained that the flow of water in the klong had been changed and restricted by building construction in the area. Had the flow not been slowed, he said, bacteria would not multiply and the klong would not be so polluted.
At a meeting after the site inspection, Vice-Governor Somkiet Sangkhaosuttirak announced that Cherng Talay OrBorTor, led by Ma Ann Samran, will arrange for 1.6 km of the klong to be dredged. In addition, the OrBorTor will check which businesses in the area have no waste water treatment system.
“There should be a campaign to get local Bang Tao people to be more concerned about water quality. We should ask people to cooperate to install waste water treatment systems,” Mr Prompong said.
“The most important thing to make the water clean and safe is awareness among local people.” The meeting agreed.
As a short-term remedy, balls of Effective Microorganisms, or EM, will be supplied by the Phuket Provincial Public Health Office (PPHO). The bacteria in EM are credited with the ability to clean up water. They were much used during the disastrous flooding in Bangkok in 2010 as a way to prevent water-borne diseases spreading in the capital.