The water of the Mekong and its tributaries in Chiang Rai, northern Thailand, dangerously exceeds the permitted arsenic levels.
Thai environmental and human rights groups point to Chinese mining activities in Burma as responsible for this transboundary ecological disaster.
See: China's rush for rare earths in Burma is poisoning Thailand
Arsenic levels exceeding standards
Blistered fish caught in the Mekong. Photo: Thai PBS World
According to the Pollution Control Department, the water quality in the Mekong and Sai rivers, as well as in some parts of the Kok River, is below standards due to high levels of arsenic.
The department stated that it has regularly monitored the water quality in the Kok River and its tributaries, Sai, Ruak, and Mekong, between March and September.
It found that samples taken from the Kok River at the Chalerm Phra Kiat Bridge and in the Tha Khao Pluek sub-district, Mae Chan district, Chiang Rai, contained high levels of arsenic, measured between 0.011 and 0.026 mg/L.
According to the department, the water in these rivers is also cloudy with a reddish-brown color.
The department indicated, however, that continuous rain since July had "perhaps" diluted the heavy metals, such as arsenic, contained in the Sai and Ruak rivers.
China's rare earth exploitation is poisoning Thailand
Bao Youxiang is the chairman of the Wa State People's Government, the secretary-general of the United Wa State Party, and the commander-in-chief of the United Wa State Army.
The extraction activities of rare earth, gold, and other precious minerals by Chinese-funded companies in Shan State, Burma, are being called into question.
They are accused of having discharged untreated wastewater into natural watercourses, which then flow into or through several provinces in northern Thailand.
Thai environmental and human rights groups have urged the Thai government to address the issue of toxins in the rivers, but to no avail.
The Shan State is largely controlled by the United Wa Army, a powerful ethnic group independent of the Burmese government and closely linked to China.
See: The Red Wa poison Thailand: drugs and arsenic pollution
It remains to be seen whether Thailand has already engaged in dialogue with Beijing on this matter.
The issue is all the more delicate because the extraction of rare earths is a major strategic stake for China.
- Dangerous levels of arsenic have been detected in the Mekong, Sai, and Kok rivers in Chiang Rai.
- Chinese mines in Burma are accused of being the source of this cross-border pollution.
- Thai NGOs denounce the government's inaction despite health and environmental risks.
See also:
Arsenic poisoning of rivers: Thailand relies on filtering nets
North Thailand: children poisoned with arsenic by Burmese mines
Thailand: mutant fish discovered in the Mekong, arsenic alert
Thailand: Dangerous arsenic levels confirmed in northern rivers
Thailand: Arsenic-poisoned rivers threaten thousands of lives
Source: Thai PBS World
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1 comment
“Bao Youxiang”, it's a name with a strong Chinese resonance, isn't it?
From there to imagine that the "President-Secretary of the Party-Commander-in-Chief of the Army (the local equivalent of Xi Jinping!) was placed directly by Beijing for the political and economic purpose of removing the region from the authority of the Burmese dictatorship, there is only one step that I take without hesitation!!!
The "Wa United State" can therefore be considered by default as an illegal Chinese "extraterritorial" province, escaping all control (political, economic and military) of the dictatorial government of the Burmese generals.
And when you know how little attention is paid by industries, manufacturers and other factories and organizations responsible for global pollution to the quality of life of the environment and consumer products for the Chinese populations and to all areas of ecology in general by the authorities in Beijing, it is not surprising that the exploitation of rare earths in Myanmar by the Chinese results in heavy metal and arsenic pollution to catastrophic and alarming degrees for the populations of northern Thailand, residents of the Mae Kong and its tributaries.
(By the way, and off topic: the bunches of Chinese grapes that had been analyzed with pesticide doses 4 to 10 times above the standards authorized for consumer health and that had been withdrawn from sale in 2024, have reappeared on Thai supermarket shelves for several weeks now !!! End of aside…)
What can Thailand do?
Apart from protesting, and protesting again, something it has been doing for months, without any success…
There is obviously nothing to be expected from the Burmese authorities and its army to dislodge Bao Youxiang's Army, heavily armed and equipped by Chinese military logistics.
Thailand is thus at an impasse in dialogue with Beijing, which boils down to bowing, "yellow" smiles and hollow, insipid, colorless and odorless communiqués... unlike the polluted waters of the rivers and streams in northern Thailand..
Nothing will change in the short, medium or long term, as long as rare earths are exploitable in this region by the Chinese with the blessing (due to powerlessness) of the military leaders in Nay Pyi Taw.