Wastewater Management in Eastern Economic Corridor

Chonburi and provinces have been designated for developing the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC), a pilot project for the of ’s Eastern Seaboard since 2015. The EEC covers the area of over 13,000 km2. In the future, the EEC will become a hub of and investment, regional transportation and logistics, and the most modern Gateway to Asia.

Pollution Control Department (PCD) has been monitoring inland and coastal water quality of Chonburi and Rayong provinces. The results show that the water quality is at deteriorate and fair levels. The main causes of come from domestic and industrial sections. This is due to the fact that some point sources may discharge wastewater which is not compliant to the standard.

In , there is Industrial Estate, the largest industrial of Thailand. For , there are a lot of industries and Map Ta Phut Industrial Estate is the largest one. To manage the industrial wastewater quality, it will be emphasized on the reduction of wastewater at point sources, establishment of a permit system to control industrial loading, and installation of online monitoring equipment at point sources. Moreover, PCD is revising effluent standards in order to control and prevent pollution discharged from various point sources more effectively and efficiently.

With regard to domestic wastewater management, there is a municipal action plan consisting of four key measures. These include wastewater control and minimization at point sources, public participation, effective law enforcement, and rehabilitation and construction of wastewater treatment facilities. Presently, there are nine and three wastewater treatment plants in Chonburi and Rayong provinces, respectively. All of these will be rehabilitated in the near future. Total of 25 wastewater treatment facilities will be constructed in both provinces in order to manage the increasing amount of wastewater.

The development of EEC needs to be accomplished simultaneously with the environment protection and conservation by emphasizing on Eco Industrial Town. All of the new wastewater treatment plants are to be constructed by 2036 in the priority area to treat all the wastewater generated from point sources. The ultimate goal of the ECC could be reached under the implementation of our action plans.