Kyaukphyu locals complain of ‘foul odour’ emanating from Shwe gas terminal drain

By Admin 08 Jul 2023

DMG Newsroom
8 July 2023, Kyaukphyu

Local residents in Mala Kyun Village, part of Arakan State’s Kyaukphyu Township, have complained about smelling drainage from the onshore gas terminal (OGT) of the Shwe gas project near the village, calling for social and environmental impact assessments.

The OGT, run by POSCO International Co., stores gas and petroleum near the Arakan coast before being piped to China.

There are around 100 acres of farms owned by local residents along the drain’s path. 

“The drain smells of a foul odour from time to time. The drain floods during heavy rainfalls. Some of our farms near the drain have been damaged,” said U Maung Wai Khin from Mala Kyun Village. 

The concrete drain is 10 feet wide, seven feet deep and runs for about two furlongs from the terminal before draining into the river near the village.

Activists monitoring the Shwe gas project have called on authorities to conduct an independent investigation to find out if the wastewater is toxic.

“We don’t know if the wastewater is treated or not. The environmental conservation department should also educate locals about whether the wastewater is toxic or not,” said one.

Assistant director U Hlwan Moe Htet of the Kyaukphyu District environmental conservation department said: “There is a rainwater reservoir inside the terminal. They dredged it, and mud water flowed out from the drain. We have told the company to properly explain this to residents.”

The terminal was built in 2010, and company officials have not publicly explained to locals whether the wastewater is having impacts on the environment.

“There are regulations imposed by the environmental conservation department,” said former Kyaukphyu Township lawmaker U Poe San. “Companies must abide by those regulations.”

After the Shwe gas project began in 2010 in Kyaukphyu, many companies rushed to the coastal township to do business. Those companies have since set up factories and workshops across Kyaukphyu, and residents say their unregulated industrial waste is inflicting environmental harm.