The Natural Resources and Environment Ministry plans to collect a wastewater treatment fee from tapwater users and foreign tourists, to fund new facilities to treat waterways nationwide.
"Without an attempt to enhance treatment capacities, all canals and rivers will be ruined in some 20 years," Environment Minister Surasak Karnjanarat said at the Pollution Control Department in Bangkok on Wednesday.
The Pollution Control Department had studied the fee collection proposal and recommended rates of 0.43 baht per cubic metre for tapwater and 50 baht per foreign tourist.
The fee on tapwater users would raise 5.27 billion baht a year and that on foreign tourists 1.49 billion baht a year, based on the 29.88 million arrivals last year.
It was still to be decided when the new charges would be imposed. In the meantime, authorities would be strict in enforcing wastewater treatment rules over the next two years to improve the quality of waterways, Gen Surasak said.
The Pollution Control Department organised a meeting Wednesday to discuss the clean up of highly polluted Klong Saen Saep in Bangkok.
The department reported there were 631 outlets discharging wastewater into the country's longest man-made canal, which is runs for 72 kilometres, most of it in Greater Bangkok.
The waste discharge came from 62 hospitals, 107 restaurants, 14 markets, 66 hotels, 144 condominiums buildings, 81 department stores, and 157 housing estates.
Jatuporn Buruspat, director-general of the department, said 80% of the wastewater was discharged from communities. The canal received 774,363 cubic metres of wastewater daily and 56% of it was not properly treated.
The environment minister thought treatment efforts could return clean water to Klong Saen Saep within 20 years.