Calls grow to shut border mines contaminating Kok, Mekong

On the evening of May 24, 2025, a civic group led by Niwat Roykaew, chairman of the Rak Chiang Khong conservation network, held a public gathering at the plaza in front of Tung and Khom Garden in Chiang Rai’s Mueang District.

The event featured speeches and traditional ceremonies aimed at raising awareness of increasing toxic contamination in the region's rivers.

The group called on the governments of Thailand, Myanmar, and China, as well as the United Wa State Army to acknowledge and address pollution in the Kok, Sai, and Mekong Rivers. 

The contamination, they say, is a result of gold, manganese, and rare earth mining operations upstream on the Myanmar side of the border.

Niwat stated that it is widely known that toxic runoff from mining activities has already entered these major waterways. “If left unaddressed, the impact will only intensify over time,” he warned. “This is why it’s crucial for civil society to speak out and show collective resolve.”

As part of the event, participants performed traditional “Seub Chata” rituals to honour and protect the Kok River. Ethnic groups from the region also conducted spiritual ceremonies to reaffirm their commitment to safeguarding their waterways.

Pianporn Deetes, Campaign Director at International Rivers, cited satellite imagery from GISTDA showing over 40 mining sites opened in Wa-controlled territory in the past two years alone. 

“These areas operate outside the scope of international environmental regulations and are a major source of river pollution,” she explained. “During the 2024 rainy season, we couldn’t even identify all the substances that had washed downstream.”

She further criticised Chinese companies for securing mining concessions in the region without consulting communities living downstream. “Toxic waste from these mines flows directly into the rivers and accumulates in the vegetables, fish, soil, and eventually, in people,” Pianporn said. 

“If these operations continue unchecked for another 10 to 15 years, both our generation and the next will inevitably suffer the consequences.”

Suebsakun Kidnukorn from the School of Social Innovation at Mae Fah Luang University has voiced deep concern over the economic and social toll of worsening water pollution in the Kok, Sai, and Mekong Rivers. 

He says the contamination, largely linked to upstream mining operations in Myanmar, is disrupting local livelihoods and raising costs for businesses.

“The impact is already being felt,” Suebsakul said. “Fishermen have lost their source of income, market vendors are struggling, and hotels are now forced to invest in regular water quality checks to reassure their guests. Even restaurants have stopped sourcing fish from the Kok River due to contamination concerns.”

While Thai authorities continue to monitor water quality periodically, he emphasized that the root cause lies across the border in mining zones in Myanmar. 

“This is a serious transboundary environmental issue that demands urgent attention. The people of Chiang Rai — and Thailand — must take a firm stand. We can no longer accept the destruction of our rivers by these mining operations,” he stated.

In response, local civil society groups are organizing a major demonstration on June 5 at 9am, beginning at the Territorial Defense Student Training Center in Mueang District, Chiang Rai. The event will include a symbolic march to the Kok River Bridge.

The movement aims to show collective citizen resistance and culminate in the submission of a formal petition to the Chiang Rai Governor, urging the Thai government — along with authorities in Myanmar, China, and the United Wa State — to shut down the mining sites responsible for the environmental damage.