A vast majority of participants in an online survey conducted by the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) have opposed the proposal to revoke the protected status of 265,286 rai (425 square kilometers) of land in Thap Lan National Park.
The survey, functioning as a public hearing from June 28 to July 12, attracted 922,898 responses. According to DNP Director-General Attapol Charoenshunsa, 95.3% of these respondents, amounting to 879,595 individuals, were against altering the park’s boundaries.
The proposal to modify the park boundaries originated from the Office of the National Land Policy Board (ONLPB) following adjustments to the boundary lines of state land plots. These changes are intended to unify mapping systems used by nine different agencies into the One Map system established in 2000. The online poll results will be integrated with feedback from onsite hearings conducted recently in Nakhon Ratchasima, Prachin Buri, and Sa Kaeo provinces, and the combined findings will soon be presented to DNP committees for further consideration.
Thap Lan National Park spans nearly 1.4 million rai (2,235 sq km) across five districts, with the contentious area located in Soeng Sang and Wang Nam Khieo districts of Nakhon Ratchasima. The area has been a subject of dispute due to its long-term occupation by local people and subsequent development into resorts, which contravenes regulations. (NNT)
