Pui
Pitsawongprakarn has been using her own money to buy sandbags to try and
save a portion of the beach.
Ekachai Sukwattana
The sand isn’t the only thing being washed away on
Pattaya Beach.
After working 40 years on the beach, Pui
Pitsawongprakarn has watched as her business has eroded along with the
shoreline. Within a few years, there may be nothing left of either.
Pui has tried to shore up her North Pattaya
livelihood by buying sandbags, but she’s uncertain how long that will
help. Her average income of 5,000-6,000 baht a month is now down about
20 percent. Public officials have pledged to save the beach, but with
work not expected to begin for as many as four years, she wonders if
there will be anything left to save.
A new study by Chulalongkorn University found that
Pattaya Beach has shrunk from 96,128 sq. meters in 1952 to just 50,500
sq. m. by 2002 and even less today. Within five years, researchers said,
Pattaya Beach could be no more.
Local officials have come up with three scenarios to
expand the beach. But the cost - up to 600 million baht - and
environmental impact has drawn criticism from national officials who
insist more studies are necessary before any action can be taken.
At a meeting last month, a Bangkok official said
wrangling over studies, existing environmental laws and budgets could
postpone any move to save the beach by three or four years.
