A SECOND airport on Koh Samui, reportedly discussed recently at a meeting at the Parliament, is, to our mind, unnecessary, dreadful and unjustified.

Koh Samui may be the third largest island in the country, but with its relatively small area and small population, it does not deserve a second airport.

It is not that more flights and more tourist passengers are unwanted.

Of course, more airport activities—more tourists coming in—will certainly result in more economic activities and more revenues for the businesses and the local government.

But constructing a new airport means appropriating a vast area of land, which means most likely having to tear down a huge portion of mountain land as most flat lands are already crowded with hotels and resorts. These hotel and resorts have in fact started to make their way to the mountains.

The island is already feeling the wrath of the wanton disregard for the environment in the past.

The mad rush to buy lands, build hotels and other tourism-oriented businesses to cash in on the rapid growth of tourist arrivals over the past few years created environmental problems for the people of this island community.

As we write this, floods, clogged drainages and canals, pollution and voluminous trash pose a headache for the local government because of the lack of a development plan and the seeming indifference of those involved in the construction of properties to the environmental impact of their projects.

Some people have the notion that because the private operator of the existing airport is allegedly charging excessive airfares and costly fees for landing rights, the smart solution would be to build another one. Koh Samui should not allow its environment to be abused again all in the name of the tourist dollar or euro.

Perhaps a better idea would be to have a dialogue among those involved in this matter initiated by the national and the local governments as suggested by Democratic Party representative Samart Ratchapolasit.

Samart is right in saying that an exchange of ideas among the parties concerned is the best way to solve the problem of high airfares and expensive landing fees rather than thinking of building a new airport.  Those advocating for a second airport better keep in mind that the tourists are attracted to Samui precisely because of its stunning underwater beauty and lush green surroundings.
Keeping Samui’s natural splendor and innate beauty intact is essential to their businesses in particular and to the island’s economic survival in general.—