RAYONG, 26 July 2014 – The quality of sea water around Samet Island off the coast of Rayong has been confirmed to be within the acceptable standard, and the beach ecosystem is on course for recovering to normalcy.
Suphot Towichakchaikun, deputy permanent-secretary of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and Wichien Chungrungrueang, director-general of the Department of Pollution Control, yesterday deliberated the overall situation of the area around the oil spill off the coast of Rayong in July of last year. According to the officials, no more oil slick was present around the spill area. They said that although the planned restoration of the coral reefs and beach ecosystems in the area would take five years to complete, the situation has returned to normal and visitors to Samet and Rayong may enjoy swimming in the sea without worries.
The officials indicate that although there will be some contaminants present at certain sites, the concentration would not exceed the acceptable level, nor would it pose health hazards.
