Major cleanup of Saen Saeb Canal approved

 

The Saen Saeb Canal water treatment project would be an integrative work between numerous related agencies including the BMA, the Transport Ministry and the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry, Office of the Prime Minister spokesman Maj-General Sansern Kaewkamnerd said.

Sansern said Cabinet approved a Transport Ministry proposal to clean up the canal within two years and gave the Interior Ministry responsibility for project monitoring and auditing. It must report back to the Cabinet regularly.

“It was found that the origins of water pollution in Saen Saeb Canal came from domestic and industrial wastewater,” he said.

“So [the construction of] a biological water treatment is needed to be done alongside the building of a concrete dike along the canal and setting up a system to irrigate the wastewater at the water treatment plant.”

The Drainage and Sewerage Department revealed that Bt6.8 billion has been approved for 11 projects.

Almost half has been earmarked for the Saen Saeb Canal water-purification project, while another Bt1.8 million has been set aside for the dike project. 

The rest of the money will be spent on water-purification projects in smaller adjoining canals, a public relations campaign, a water-quality monitoring project and other construction projects. 

The projects were originally slated for completion by 2019 but the time scale was shortened to 2017 in line with government policy.

The department also revealed that it would cooperate with district offices to instruct people not to throw litter in the canal and keep the water clean.

There were several projects designed to clean the canal over more than 10 years.

A test of the canal’s water quality in September was listed as category five, meaning the water is severely polluted and can only be used for transport.