A long-term expat who first moved into the area more than two decades ago told The Phuket News, “The Kamala beach klong is stinking so much no one is eating in the restaurants next to the river…
“The smell is so bad people have headaches. Even the jet-skis are not going into the water. It’s sad to see,” he said.
The expat noted that Kamala’s problems with the black wastewater in the canal became exponentially prominent after a large resort opened in the area, right alongside the canal, yet the resort has yet to be highlighted for its contribution to the problem.
Officials have long “asked” local residents to ensure wastewater is “treated” before being emptied into the canal, which runs through key areas in the popular tourist town.
The long-term Phuket expat also noted that officials give the recurring problem, nearly an annual event, little serious attention as the problem does not present itself during the rainy season, when regular rainfall helps to flush the canal into Kamala Bay.
“The other contributing factor is that when the post-tsunami ’beautification’ of the beach and the local park took place, the original, natural flow of waters from the hills was diverted,” the expat explained.
Only last week did local officials say they would urgently have a channel dredged deeper across Kamala Beach so that the black wastewater could flow quicker across the beach and into the sea.
The decision was made last Tuesday (Mar 28) during an inspection of the beach by Kathu District Chief Thitiwat Boonkij and Kamala Tambon Administration Organisation (OrBorTor) President Jutha Doomluck.
The couple inspected the beach following a ‘red tide’ of what officials like to call a “plankton bloom” washing up onto the beach over the previous days.
A cleanup of the red “seaweed” was conducted to make the beach picturesque once again. However, the black wastewater in the Pak Bang Canal, which runs through Kamala and streams across the beach, remained unresolved.
Kathu District Chief Thitiwat admitted that the water had turned black due to the accumulation of wastewater being dumped into the canal by local sources.
An aerator would be installed to generate oxygen in the water in the canal, he said.
“In addition, the water-treatment machine in the canal is broken,” Mr Thitiwat told The Phuket News.
once burned | 10 April 2023 - 10:48:02