Mae Hong Son Local Governments Urge Premier to Address Forest Zone Infrastructure Crisis

Officials from Mae Hong Son's local government organizations submitted letters to Thailand's Prime Minister and relevant cabinet ministers on August 6, 2025, during a national seminar on local administration crisis management held in Pattaya. Pongphipat Meebenchamaas, chief administrator of Mae Sam Laeb Subdistrict Organization in Sob Moei District, Mae Hong Son, explained that the delegation raised three major issues. First, they requested that the cabinet relax forest protection laws to allow development of basic infrastructure and public services in protected forest zones, where 98% of Mae Hong Son's territory is legally classified as forest reserve. Currently, 6,743 approved infrastructure projects—including road repairs, electricity, water systems, and housing—cannot proceed due to restrictions under the Forest Reserve Act, National Park Act, and Wildlife Conservation Act, which also require environmental impact assessments. "Mae Hong Son residents face severe hardship," Pongphipat stated. "Many villages lack concrete roads, electricity, and water systems. Travel from villages to town is extremely difficult, and this severely impacts people's quality of life." The local governments also requested removal of a June 23, 2020 cabinet resolution that blocked emergency energy crisis relief projects, and they asked the Transport Ministry to upgrade a dangerously deteriorated rural road in Mae Sam Laeb. Additionally, officials petitioned the government to urgently address heavy metal contamination in the Salween River and publicly disclose water quality data.