The Mon State Government has asked for assistance from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as it tries to assess the scope of pollution from a Bilin chemical factory. The government had been struggling to make sense of contradictory reports on lead and acid levels in the water.
UNDP is helping to assess the water quality around Kanbe Lake, where a methylated spirits factory owned by a military-linked company was dumping wastewater.
“We’ve asked UNDP for help determining whether there is excessive lead in the area, and whether it came from the factory or other sources,” said Mon State Minister of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation, Dr. Min Kyi Win.
He said that there had been inconsistencies in reports produced by his ministry and the department of agriculture, and welcomed the outside help.
“The Mon State health department laboratory and the agricultural laboratory in Bago use different equipment and found different levels of lead and acid in water samples.”
Residents of the area near Kanbe lake have complained about vomiting and dizziness from exposure to water and fumes near the plant. Wastewater that has seeped into nearby fields has also rendered them infertile, cutting off many from their primary source of income.
“The Kanbe lake is now totally destroyed. Neither households nor businesses can use water from the lake or even from their own wells,” said a resident of the nearby Kanthayar Quarter.
The Mon State government held a meeting on May 4 to discuss the crisis and discuss solutions. The factory, which is owned by the military-linked Union of Myanmar Economic Holding Limited (UMEHL), had not submitted any of the required environmental impact assessments and was told to shut down the next day. For now, the government is distributing drinking water to residents in affected areas.
By Min Tway Tit/ Mon News Agency
