The Department of Industrial Works and a special task force known as the Sudsai Team recently intercepted over 736,000 kilogrammes of illicit red dust at the Port of Bangkok.
This operation, conducted on June 10, involved collaboration with the Bangkok Port Customs Office, the Department of Special Investigation, and the Natural Resources and Environmental Crime Suppression Division.
Initial investigations suggested that the shipments, imported from abroad, might include hazardous waste, which falls under the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal. This matter is also covered under Thailand’s Hazardous Substances Act.
Previously, Ekkanat Promphan, the Minister of Industry, instructed the Sudsai Team to rigorously combat the illegal importation of electronic and hazardous industrial waste, focusing particularly on red dust. This substance was reportedly smuggled without the necessary permissions from the Department of Industrial Works and had links to several regions, including Pathum Thani, Chon Buri, Rayong, and Samut Sakhon.
Consequently, officials coordinated to monitor and investigate the situation further. It was discovered that KMC 1953 Co., Ltd, located in Khlong Song subdistrict, Khlong Luang district, Pathum Thani province, was responsible for illegally importing 10,262 tonnes of red dust, selling it to recycling plants across various regions.
During the search of the company premises, officials seized evidence, including crucial cargo tracking documents. These documents indicated plans to import red dust through the Port of Bangkok, prompting immediate coordination with customs for stringent monitoring.
Teerach Atthanavanich, the Customs Department Director, affirmed the department’s collaboration with other agencies, adhering to government policies to control the importation of hazardous materials under the Basel Convention.
The investigation identified residual cargo on the ship’s manifest, listed as zinc concentrate, which was, upon X-ray fluorescence analysis, found to be fine brown powder with a pungent odour.
The composition included significant amounts of zinc and iron, along with contaminants like lead and cadmium, packaged in 40-foot containers.
The cargo’s characteristics suggested it was furnace dust, or red dust, contaminated with hazardous elements, making it a type 3 hazardous substance under the Hazardous Substances Act and a chemical waste under the Basel Convention.
If not managed correctly, such waste could severely impact the environment and public health. The cross-border movement of hazardous waste without consent from the destination country constitutes illegal transboundary movement under the Basel Convention.
Following this discovery, the Department of Industrial Works, as the competent authority under the convention, will initiate the return shipment of the containers to the country of origin and notify the convention’s secretariat about the unlawful transboundary movement, reported KhaoSod.
The Customs Department plans to prosecute the importers under customs law and repatriate the cargo. This joint operation between the Department of Industrial Works and the Customs Department serves as a precedent for enforcing multiple laws to protect the environment and public health.
The story Police intercept 736,000kg of illicit red dust at Bangkok port as seen on Thaiger News.
