Plans to rebuild Jomtien Beach will see the shoreline widened to 50 meters with underground systems to quickly drain storm runoff.
Former Marine Department chief Wittaya Yamuang consulting on the 586-million-baht project said the rebuild is urgently needed and that, if nothing is done, Jomtien Beach could disappear within ten years.
Similar claims, of course, were made about Pattaya Beach eroding to nothing in five years, but remedial patchwork and repairs maintained the shoreline for a decade until it was rebuilt.
The first phase of the project is set to begin Nov. 13 and calls for 3.5 kilometers of Jomtien Beach to be restored first, with widening stretching to the Najomtien border by 2022.
While the source of the sand and the contractor – Italian Thai Development Co. – will be the same as were used in the rebuild of Pattaya Beach, the two projects differ in several respects.
In addition to widening the beach to 50 meters over that stretch, the project also calls for a sand reserve of 225 meters, installation of a “dry beach” system of pipes to drain floodwater over 2.1 kilometers, new drainage pipes linking to the existing system over 51 meters, 67 new concrete staircases, sculptures and landscaping.
Officials estimate that the project will be profitable for Pattaya over the long-run with every baht invested returning 3.2 baht.
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