Wat Khun Samut Chin: Graphic indicator of Bangkok being reclaimed by the sea

Wat Khun Samut Chin in Samut Prakan is a stark reminder of Bangkok's vulnerability to rising sea levels, with flooding risks increasing by 2050 due to coastal erosion.

A popular temple in Samut Prakan, surrounded by the sea, serves as a graphic indicator that Bangkok could be reclaimed by the sea by 2050, an academic warned on Monday.

Dr Sonthi Kotchawat, an environmental expert, posted on his Facebook wall that Wat Khun Samut Chin in Samut Prakan was clear evidence that both Bangkok and Samut Prakan were facing a serious issue of coastal erosion due to global warming.

He noted that the temple used to have 76 rai of land around it, but now most of the land had been reclaimed by the sea, leaving only five rai of dry land for the temple grounds.He explained that while the land in Bangkok was subsiding at an average rate of one to two centimetres per year, the sea level was rising at an average rate of 5.8 centimetres per year.

These indicators suggest that both Samut Prakan and Bangkok could be entirely flooded by 2050, Sonthi explained.

The temple is located in Tambon Laem Fah Pha in Samut Prakan’s Phra Samut Chedi district, near the mouth of the Chao Phraya River, which flows into the Gulf of Thailand.

The temple was built during the reign of King Rama V, with 76 rai of land donated by a community of Chinese descendants who migrated to Bangkok during the early Rattanakosin era.

Initially, the temple had 76 rai of land around its chapel and buildings, but now most of the land has been eroded by rising sea tides, which have eroded the coast by about one kilometre over the past few decades.

(2025/07/01-00:00)