Lively Exchange During NGO Consultations

The University of Hawaii's Globalization Research Center was the site of a spirited exchange between of NGO, ADB, and Thai Government representatives on Thursday 10 May. The subject of the interchange was the Samut Prakarn Wastewater Management Project partially financed by ADB and currently underway. The project includes construction of a centralized treatment plant for industrial and domestic wastewater from the lower Chao Phraya river area.

A villager from the project site, Ms. Chantarahassadee, presented concerns that construction of the proposed treatment plant would endanger the traditional livelihoods of mussel growers and fisher folk in the area adjacent to the plant's treated water discharge point.

Ms. Chantarahassadee and Arjun Thapan

Arjun Tappan, Manager of the ADB's technical group responsible for the Thai project and Mr. Sirithan Pairoj-Boriboon, Director General of the Pollution Control Department, Government of Thailand, provided an overview of the Project and its technical considerations. ADB General Auditor Peter Pedersen provided information to the group on ADB anti-corruption policies and confirmed that extensive review had found no evidence to support allegations of conflict of interest in the Samut Prakarn activity.

The project received attention during the 2000 Annual Meeting of the ADB in Chiang Mai, Thailand, when a number of local residents and NGOs staged a protest to raise awareness of residents' unhappiness with the project. In November 2000, ADB and the Thai Government initiated an Independent Review of the project. Results of the Review will be made public late May 2001.

Patricia Moser, Senior Liaison Officer, ADB North America Representative Office