Chiang mai: The Rak Chiang Khong group, along with their legal team, has filed a lawsuit at the Chiang Mai Administrative Court against the Prime Minister, the Cabinet, the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC), and the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT). The lawsuit alleges neglect regarding transboundary environmental impacts and citizens’ rights linked to the Pak Beng Dam project. Concerns have been raised that the project could transform the Mekong River into a toxic sediment reservoir in Chiang Rai Province. The group has also called for EGAT to cease electricity purchases from the Pak Beng Dam, pointing to issues of transboundary toxic emissions originating from illegal mining activities.
According to Thai News Agency, Mr. Niwat Roikaew, president of the Rak Chiang Khong group, alongside lawyers from the Community Resource Center Foundation, academics, and members of the Mekong Riverine Network, initiated the lawsuit against the Prime Minister, the Cabinet, the National Energy Policy Council (NEPC), and EGAT. These governmental bodies are accused of ignoring the safety of residents and their properties, especially in the Mekong River basin and its tributaries. The defendants have reportedly failed to reassess resolutions or contracts associated with the Pak Beng Dam project, which risks turning the Mekong River in Chiang Rai Province into a toxic sediment reservoir. The Pak Beng Dam, slated for construction across the Mekong River in Oudomxay Province, Lao PDR, lies about 97 kilometers from the Thai border at Kaeng Pha Dai, Chiang Rai Province. Despite a 29-year power purchase agreement with EGAT, no evaluation of transboundary impacts has been carried out. Alarming levels of heavy metal conta
mination, including arsenic and lead, have been reported due to unregulated mining operations. The increasing number of mines in neighboring countries exacerbates the situation, with toxic wastewater anticipated to be trapped and sedimented in the reservoir following the dam’s construction. This situation is perceived as a transboundary environmental threat and a direct infringement on the rights of residents in Chiang Rai Province.
The Rak Chiang Khong group, with legal representation and public support, is urging the Administrative Court to mandate the EGAT, the contractor, and the ERC, the approving agency, to annul the project and rescind the electricity purchase contract from the Pak Beng Dam. They are demanding urgent interventions to oversee the private sector’s execution of projects impacting natural resources, the environment, and transboundary public concerns. The group also seeks a judicial directive for the defendants to fulfill their constitutional obligations and for the government to undertake restoration and rehabilitation of the natural resources and environment along the Mekong River bordering Thailand and Laos in Chiang Rai Province, restoring them to their former state.