Noise hits homes in a 10km radius
The Pollution Control Depart-ment (PCD) said yesterday homes up to 10 kilometres from Suvarna-bhumi Airport would be affected by aircraft noise and Airports of Thailand (AOT) must compensate the first group of 320 homes by January 31.
National Legislative Assembly member Akkarapol Sorasuchart. meanwhile, said the Thaksin administration had opened the airport when it was not ready and it had led to many problems. PCD director-general Supat Wangwongwatana and AOT President Chotesak Artpawiriya held a press conference following a meeting to tackle airport noise yesterday. Forty resident representatives were present. Supat said the PCD had simulated the new airport's full capacity of 76 flights per hour and found homes affected by the noise at a measure of 30 NEF (Noise Exposure Forecast) to 40 NEF were as far as 10 kilometres from the airport. The authorities would have to help all of them by 2009 to 2010, he said, although for now the priority would be on those living in the 40 NEF zone. For the 320 homes to which the Cabinet had agreed the AOT should pay compensation, a January 31 deadline was set. The AOT would buy the properties or improve the existing houses so they were noise-proof, Supat said. AOT had said it was negotiating to buy 71 homes in the 40 NEF zone that yielded over 70 decibels of noise. Most homeowners wanted to move but had not yet reached agreement regarding compensation, according to Supat. The resident representatives urged AOT to be clear on the land expropriation and give them a fair price because the offered price was lower than the real price, making it hard for them to buy new places. Orawan Jaemsila from Rom Klao Village said AOT in late November had offered Bt15,000 to Bt21,000 per square wa, whilst the media had reported the price at Bt15,000 to Bt52,000. Meanwhile, Akkarapol raised questions about whether the Thaksin government's decision had led to many problems including aircraft noise, insufficient cargo and toilets and security breaches. He questioned slow passenger luggage delivery which came from the luggage conveyor belt system and some malfunctioning CTX bomb scanners. "Do these problems come from the Thaksin government's premature opening or specification rigging? What will the government do to solve corruption problems from the new airport's construction and when will it be officially opened?" he asked. Nerisa Nueykhiew Janjira Pongrai The Nation
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