Mae Sot locals sue two zinc mining firms for B3.7bn

CADMIUM CONTAMINATION

Villagers in Tak's Mae Sot district whose lives have been devastated by cadmium contamination are taking court action to demand total compensation of 3.7 billion baht.

Villagers from Mae Tao, Mae Ku and Prathat Pha Daeng in Tak’s Mae Sot district show what they say is cadmium-contaminated grain. The

In civil suits filed yesterday against two mining firms, the 1,037 plaintiffs from tambons Mae Tao, Mae Ku and Prathat Pha Daeng accused Padaeng Industry Plc and Tak Mining Co of contaminating soil and water supplies with cadmium while mining zinc in the area.

The villagers said they had developed severe health problems, including renal failure and other kidney diseases, because of the dangerously high levels of cadmium in their blood.

The case was filed at the Bangkok Southern Civil Court.

Lawyer Srisuwan Janya, of the Lawyers Council of Thailand which represents the villagers, accused the two companies of violating article 96 of the 1992 Environmental Quality Promotion and Protection Act. The Act stipulates that a polluter must take responsibility for any environmental damage caused by its activities.

The Mae Tao saga began in 2004 when a study by the International Water Management Institute found that soil and water supplies in the Huay Mae Tao and Huay Mae Ku areas in Mae Sot district were heavily polluted with cadmium.

The contaminated area covered 13,200 rai, including paddy fields, plantations, waterways and residential areas.

The Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry and the Pollution Control Department later confirmed the cadmium contamination, but none of the agencies could confirm the source of the pollution.

The government between 2004 and 2006 spent 90 million baht to buy rice produced on the cadmium-tainted land to help the villagers, who later stopped growing rice and switched to non-edible crops such as sugar cane.

Padaeng Industry has repeatedly denied that its zinc mining had caused the contamination and has come up with development projects to help the affected villagers.

However, the villagers say they want to return to growing rice and called for the polluter or a third party to shoulder the medical costs arising from the cadmium poisoning.

Pirat Yathern, a village leader, said authorities had banned locals from growing rice on the cadmium-tainted land, leading to loss of livelihood.

"Our traditional way of life has been completely destroyed so we need to seek justice from the court," said Mr Pirat.

He said health officials had continued to test the villagers' blood and found dangerously high levels of cadmium.

The villagers next month will file an administrative charge against the Land Development and Primary Industries and Mining departments accusing them of negligence in dealing with the problem.