Environment Ministry Orders Probe Into Chonburi Odor Crisis
Thai authorities shut down a color-mixing facility in Chachoengsao after detecting volatile organic compounds at hazardous levels of 90 ppm, with investigations expanding to other suspected pollution sources in the province.
Environment Minister Suchart Chomklin has ordered the Pollution Control Department to urgently investigate foul odor complaints affecting residents in Chonburi province and to inspect all nearby factories and businesses that could be pollution sources. The priority is to find the true cause and implement corrective measures while prioritizing public health and quality of life.
On September 2, 2026, Pollution Control Department Director General Surin Vorkitthamnong led a team including officials from the Prime Minister's Office, the provincial environment office, Bo Thong Police Station, and related agencies to inspect three facilities in Moo 3, Bo Kwang Thong Subdistrict, Bo Thong District, Chonburi Province. These included two industrial factories and one business operator.
Inspections revealed that the first factory, which produces plastic pellets and synthetic fibers, emitted odors from plastic melting processes. Its activated carbon air pollution control system proved insufficiently effective, and the factory pledged to upgrade the system within seven days. The second plastic pellet factory, using a wet scrubber system combined with ozone, showed no odor issues.
The third facility, which mixes color using solvents for reuse, emitted high levels of solvent odor with volatile organic compounds (VOCs) measured at 90 ppm—a level potentially hazardous to health. The Bo Kwang Thong Subdistrict Municipality issued an order to permanently cease operations, dismantle structures, and properly dispose of all waste according to law and technical standards.
Director General Surin noted that this inspection followed an online social media video posted on September 1, 2026. When investigators questioned the woman appearing in the video, she clarified that her complaint concerned odor from a factory in Non Bon Daeng Subdistrict, Ban Bueng District, not from Bo Kwang Thong as the edited video suggested.
At the petroleum product mixing factory in Non Bon Daeng Subdistrict that was the subject of the actual complaint, the Subdistrict Municipality had issued a shutdown order on August 26, 2026, due to air pollution control system deficiencies under the Public Health Act. However, when officials inspected on September 1, 2026, the facility remained operational. Authorities ordered a temporary operational halt, banned intake of new raw materials, and demanded completion of pollution control upgrades by October 2026, with additional public health and emission control measures to follow.
