Suchart Leads Natural Resources Team with PM's Task Force to Crack Down on Foreign Nominees and Forest Encroachment in Koh Phangan and Phuket
A government task force led by the Prime Minister inspected Koh Phangan and Phuket to investigate foreign business operators and illegal forest encroachment, with orders to strengthen land registration and monitoring to prevent further envi
On May 13, 2025, Prime Minister Anuthın Charnvirakul and Natural Resources and Environment Minister Suchart Choomklin led a multi-agency inspection team to Koh Phangan District in Surat Thani Province and Phuket to investigate foreign nominees conducting business and illegal encroachment on state forest land. The team included Deputy Secretary-General Nipont Chumngamsiriwong, National Park Director Arthapol Chaounchansaa, and Marine Resources Director Pinsak Suraswadee, along with military and police officials and local administrators.
Minister Suchart emphasized reviewing natural resources data in Koh Phangan, which spans 121,437.50 acres, including Khao Sam Roi Yot-Koh Phangan National Park (26,866.27 acres) where recent inspections found no encroachment. The Koh Phangan National Forest Reserve (3,441.40 acres) has had four cases prosecuted with no new encroachment detected currently.
The Prime Minister issued urgent policies to manage agricultural land by properly registering farmers' rights according to law while protecting the environment and preventing further forest encroachment. He ordered relevant agencies to use geographic data for monitoring to prevent multinational capital from exploiting Thailand's natural resources. After Koh Phangan, the PM's team proceeded to Phuket to address illegal encroachment on public beaches at Freedom Beach in Kathu District.
