Conservation effort begins on Thailand's Pattaya beach
Conservation efforts have begun in Thailand's popular resort city of Pattaya, due to erosion described as "critical", the Marine Department confirmed to dpa Thursday.
Marine Department Deputy Director-General Somchai Sumanushajonkul told dpa the main Pattaya beach is "practically gone," citing the shrinkage of the 30-metre wide beach to merely 1-2 metres.
A private company has been hired for Bt430 million (US$12.1 million) to replenish the 2.8-kilometre stretch of the entire Pattaya coast with 300,000 cubic metres of sand, according to the department.
The project will take six months to complete.
The land nourishment on Pattaya beach, 150 kilometres south-east of Bangkok and popular among international tourists, is the country's first such project as erosion in Pattaya is considered to be the most serious.
Feasibility studies for other beach replenishments are currently under way, Somchai said.
"Sand replenishment is a standard procedure used worldwide for beach erosion," he added, citing examples of beach replenishments in Miami and the Netherlands.
