The Marine Department has allocated almost 600 million baht to replenish sand on 3.5km stretch of Jomtien beach in Chon Buri which has been affected by coastal erosion.
Ekkarat Khantharo, director of the 6th Marine Region Office, Pattaya, said the beach restoration covers the coastline from Lung Sawai restaurant to Jomtien Soi 11.
About 680,000 cubic metres of sand will be required for the project which will restore the beach and increase its width to 50 metres, he said.
According to Mr Ekkarat, the sand will be dredged from Koh Rangkwian, which is about 10km from Koh Lan, and also in Chon Buri.
Italian-Thai Development Plc has been hired to undertake the project worth 586 million baht under a 900-day contract and the contractor is slated to begin the work later this month, said Mr Ekkarat.
He said the beach restoration project is divided into two phases and the second phase, from Jomtien Soi 11 to Khao Phra Tamnak, is likely to be implemented in 2022.
The Jomtien beach replenishment follows the success of a similar project along a 2.8km stretch in Pattaya from the Dusit Thani Hotel in North Pattaya to Walking Street at the southern end of the city. That project cost the department 429 million baht.
The project was approved following an official survey in 2016 which said Pattaya is among 10 beaches likely to be lost within a decade without drastic measures to solve chronic erosion.
Mr Ekkarat said the budget for the project in the 2021 fiscal year is also earmarked for Bang Saen beach which has also begun to suffer from similar erosion.