Bangkok Official Says Waste Cleanup Not Delayed, Residents Adding Trash
Bangkok’s deputy governor said the waste‑cleanup operation in the Khwa Rom Klao community is proceeding at full speed and is not delayed, but residents keep adding new trash, hampering progress. Crews have removed about 700–800 tonnes of garbage over five days and aim to finish by October 11. He urged locals to stop dumping waste in cleared spots to avoid repeat work.
The deputy governor said the work area was split into four zones: Zone 1 handled by the Department of Public Works and Town Planning, Zone 2 by the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, Zone 3 by the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration and the Royal Thai Army, and Zone 4 by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. Zones 1 and 4 had relatively little waste, so cleaning began immediately after the floodwaters receded, with about 200–300 workers from the Lad Krabang district office. Zone 3, which contains more waste, received reinforcement from neighboring districts—Thon Buri, Bang Khae, Phra Nakhon, and Bang Khun Thian—each contributing 30–40 personnel along with six‑wheel trucks, loaders, and grapples. In the densely populated part of Zone 3, over 400 workers were assigned.
For the main road or Khwa Rom Klao road where large piles of garbage accumulated beside the street, workers manually dragged trash from narrow alleys that trucks could not reach, bringing it to the alley entrances before using Bangkok Metropolitan Administration and Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department grapples to load it onto dump trucks.
The original dump sites at On Nut and Tha Raeng are about an hour away, causing delays, so temporary collection points were set up within the Khwa Rom Klao community, located away from homes to facilitate work, even if it caused some traffic congestion; traffic‑control officers were asked to help direct flow. Waste gathered at these temporary points is later hauled by large central trucks to the final disposal sites.
Over the past five days, crews have collected roughly 700–800 tonnes of garbage, but the job is not finished because considerable waste remains in the alleys. The deputy governor said they aim to complete the cleanup by Sunday, October 11, 2026, so residents can return to normal life.
He acknowledged complaints that the work is slow, but stressed that the city is working at full capacity; the problem is that residents keep adding new trash to already‑cleaned spots, making it appear as if work is lagging. He urged the public not to dump garbage in cleared areas, noting that re‑cleaning would slow progress and that waste management must proceed together with the city’s overall management.
