Executive jailed in Nakhon Ratchasima for illegal waste disposal

An executive from an industrial waste management company has been handed a two years and six months prison sentence, and the firm has been fined 250,000 baht for the illegal disposal of chemical substances in Nakhon Ratchasima in 2021.

The Sikhiu Provincial Court found Varalee Kijsa-ard, an executive at Aek Uthai Co’s Klang Dong branch, guilty of breaching environmental and public health laws, according to Wiroj Srisang, mayor of Simamogkol in Pak Chong district, Nakhon Ratchasima.

Varalee received a two-year sentence for violating the Hazardous Substances Act, with an additional six months for contravening public health regulations. She has been temporarily released on bail, set at 70,000 baht.

Aek Uthai Co was also convicted on similar charges and fined 250,000 baht.

The Department of Industrial Works filed the complaint in 2021 after discovering the company had illegally dumped chemical substances in an unauthorised area, posing a significant threat to public health.

The court dismissed the defendants’ arguments, deeming them invalid and inconsistent with official documents provided by the Department of Pollution Control, the Department of Underground Water Resources, and the Simamogkol municipality.

Jullapong Thaveesri, the director-general of the Department of Industrial Works, stated that the fine against the company was the maximum penalty permitted by law for the offences committed.

He mentioned that the Ministry of Industry plans to establish a committee to draft revised laws for the management of chemical and hazardous substances, with the aim of enforcing stricter penalties for violations.

Further legal measures are expected against the company to ensure it takes responsibility for the proper removal and disposal of the hazardous substances and for the rehabilitation of the affected environment, reported Bangkok Post.

In related news, chemical fumes led to 21 workers being hospitalised, with two in serious condition, after a leak at a factory in Samut Sakhon. Officials are still investigating the source of the chemical odour and planned to inspect a nearby factory.