Srisuwan takes aim at EIA panel

Srisuwan takes aim at EIA panel

An anti-graft petition has been filed against an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) committee for allegedly failing to acknowledge calls from residents to amend construction plans for a luxury condominium in the Ekkamai area of Bangkok.

Activist Srisuwan Janya, who is also president of the Stop Global Warming Association, said on Thursday he had submitted the petition to the National Anti-Corruption Commission urging the agency to prosecute the committee responsible for vetting the EIA report of the condo project.

Furthermore, he alleged the committee is planning to go ahead with a meeting scheduled for Monday to consider the project's EIA report although it has not been amended as demanded by residents.

The residents who live around the project site have complained the construction of the 40-plus-storey condo, located between Sukhumvit sois 61 and 63, poses a potential environmental and fire hazard to the community and these faults have not been addressed in the EIA report.

The residents want the EIA report amended with the potential hazards factored in.

The committee had initially invited the residents and project owner to give statements. However, the panel later resolved to require the project owner to take the residents' complaints into consideration and resubmit a revised report.

However, Mr Srisuwan insisted the meeting set for Monday will presumably be held to study the assessment even though the report has not been altered or improved.

He claimed the issues which remain unaltered include the project being too large and the fact that it may obstruct firefighters in case of emergencies. These concerns are among some 40 issues which the residents raised and demanded be reflected in the report.

Mr Srisuwan said he was also curious about the meeting because if the committee agrees with the report as it stands, it can be held to account for dereliction of duty and graft.

Koranit Ngamsukonrattana, a Palang Pracharath Party MP, said she was also looking into complaints from residents.

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