Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has ordered the Ministry of Industry to improve the safety standards of all industrial plants following the recent gas leak in the Map Ta Phut industrial estate.

During the Cabinet meeting today, PM Yingluck assigned the Industry Ministry to make industrial factories nationwide safer for people and the environment. Relevant ministers were also urged to go on provincial visits more frequently, especially in Rayong where two explosions recently occurred in the Map Ta Phut industrial estate and led to a gas leak.

Regarding health concerns among people residing near Map Ta Phut, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment informed the Cabinet that only a non-harmful amount of toluene had been detected in five sections of the industrial estate. Some types of volatile organic compounds have been found at high levels from late afternoon to night.

The Department of Pollution Control and the Ministry of Industry are continually holding meetings with the tripartite committee overseeing the air quality in the Map Ta Phut area and other relevant officials in order to follow up on the situation until they are certain that no chemical residue is left in the environment.

Source: http://thainews.prd.go.th/en/news.php?id=255505080020