The Central Administrative Court has dismissed a petition, filed by the gold mining company Akara Resources, asking it to revoke an order from the Department of Primary Industries and Mines (DPIM) instructing the company to fix seepage of wastewater into the environment.
The company claimed that such an order, by the director-general of the DPIM and the deputy permanent secretary of the Ministry of Industry, is illegal as the company had been granted concessions to mine gold in Wang Pong district of Phetchabun province and Thap Khlo district of Phichit.
The Central Administrative Court ruled, however, that the department had sent experts to inspect the wastewater ponds in Phichit, to determine whether wastewater has been leaking into the environment.
According to the court, the experts employed scientific methods to check water and soil samples and are convinced that wastewater from the ponds, containing mineral residues, has been leaking into the environment.
Based on the reports of the inspectors from the DPIM, the court ruled that the order for the company to fix the wastewater pond leakage in Phichit is reasonable and legal.
