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Samut Sakhon province
Province of Thailand From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Samut Sakhon (Thai: สมุทรสาคร, pronounced [sā.mùt sǎː.kʰɔ̄ːn]) is one of the central provinces (changwat) of Thailand, located along the coast of the Gulf of Thailand. In 2024, it had a population of 590,867,[2] and an area of 866 km²,[1] making it the 43rd most populated province whilst being the 4th smallest.
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Toponymy
The word samut originates from the Sanskrit word samudra meaning 'ocean', and the word sakhon from Sanskrit sagara meaning 'lake'.
Geography
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Neighboring provinces are (from the southwest clockwise) Samut Songkhram, Ratchaburi, Nakhon Pathom, and Bangkok. Samut Sakhon is part of the Bangkok Metropolitan Region.
Samut Sakhon is at the mouth of the Tha Chin River, a distributary of the Chao Phraya River, to the Gulf of Thailand. At the coast are many salt pans used for harvesting sea salt.[5] The total forest area is 42 km2 (16 sq mi) or 4.9 percent of provincial area.[1]
Climate
Samut Sakhon province has a tropical savanna climate (Köppen climate classification category Aw). Winters are dry and warm. Temperatures rise until May. The monsoon season runs from May through October, with heavy rain and somewhat cooler temperatures during the day, although nights remain warm. Climatological data for the period 1981–2010: Maximum temperature is 39.7 °C (103.5 °F) in April and May and the lowest temperature is 12.0 °C (53.6 °F) in December. The highest average temperature is 35.4 °C (95.7 °F) in April and the minimum average temperature is 22.0 °C (71.6 °F) in December. Mean annual rainfall is 1648 millimeters. The maximum daily rainfall is 248 millimeters in May. Mean rainy days average 130 days per year.[6]
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History
The oldest name of the area is Tha Chin ('Chinese pier'), probably referring to the fact that it was a trading port where Chinese junks arrived.[7] In 1548 the city Sakhon Buri was established, and was renamed Mahachai in 1704 after the Khlong Mahachai which was dug then and connected with the Tha Chin River near the town. King Mongkut gave it its current name, but the old name Mahachai is still sometimes used by locals.[8] It was established by the Act Establishing Changwat Samut Prakan, Changwat Nonthaburi, Changwat Samut Sakhon, and Changwat Nakhon Nayok, Buddhist Era 2489 (1946), which came into force on 9 May 1946.[9]
Economy and environment
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Formerly an agricultural- and fisheries-based province, Samut Sakhon in 2020 has more than 6,000 factories, most of them small, employing fewer than 50 workers, and too small to warrant much attention from Thailand's Pollution Control Department (PCD). Small firms lack the budgets to install the environmental gear that would help protect the environment. As a result, Samut Sakhon is one of the most polluted provinces in the nation.[10]
Soil and water samples from the industrial area of Mueang District were found to be contaminated with high levels of arsenic, lead, cadmium, chromium, zinc, copper, and nickel. High levels of persistent organic pollutants (POPS), byproducts of industrial processes, were present in eggs from free-range chickens. An egg tested by researchers was found to have 84 nanograms per kilogram of dioxins and furans, a level 33 times higher than the safety limit observed by the European Union.[10]
The most polluted air in Thailand in 2018 was found to be in Samut Sakhon province.[11] According to the PCD, the level of PM2.5 in the provincial atmosphere in 2019 was unusually high, measuring as high as 195 micrograms per cubic metre (μg/m3). During the air pollution "season" of 2018–2019, PM2.5 levels exceeded the PCD's safe threshold of 50 μg/m3 for 41 days.[10]
Samut Sakhon is a leading sea salt producer. According to a survey in 2011, 12,572 rai of salt pans were managed by 242 families in Samut Sakhon.[5]
The number of factories in 2022 was 6,458 with a workforce of 372,282 people.[12]
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Health
Hospitals
Samut Sakhon Hospital with 600 beds, is the main hospital of Samut Sakhon province, operated by the Ministry of Public Health.
In Mueang district there are also: Ekachai Hospital with 142 beds, Mahachai 3 Hospital with 180 beds, Jesada Vechakarn Hospital with 10 beds and Metropolitan Hospital Tha Chalom.
In Krathum Baen district operates the ministry a general hospital, Krathum Baen Hospital with 300 beds.
Ban Phaeo district is served by Ban Phaeo General Hospital with 323 beds, the only hospital public organisation in Thailand.
Health promoting hospitals
There are total fifty-four health-promoting hospitals in the province, of which; twenty-three in Mueang district, twelve in Krathum Baen district and nineteen in Ban Phaeo district.[13]
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Education
Anno 2024, there are total 146 primary/secondary schools in the province, of which:[14]
- Mueang district - 78 schools
- Krathum Baen district - 32 schools
- Ban Phaeo district - 36 schools
Demographics
Population
Population history of Samut Sakhon province is as follows:[15][16]
| 1947 | 1960 | 1970 | 1980 | 1990 | 2000 | 2011 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 111,479 | 166,000 | 158,000 | 265,464 | 358,155 | 466,281 | 499,098 | 586,199 |
Religion
There are one hundred sixteen Theravada Buddhist temples in the province.
Seventy in Mueang district, fifteen in Krathum Baen district and thirty-one in Ban Phaeo district.[17][18]
Transportation
The province is the intersection of highway 35 eastbound (Bangkok route), highway 35 westbound (Pak Tho district, Ratchaburi province), Ekkachai road (no. 3242) (Chom Thong district, Bangkok), highway 4 eastbound (Bangkok route), south/west bound (southern Thailand).
The area is served by some fifteen bus lines.[19]
Samut Sakhon is along the Maeklong Railway, operated by the State Railway of Thailand and is served by Mahachai railway station on the east bank of the Tha Chin River and Ban Laem railway station on the west bank.
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Symbols
The provincial seal shows a Chinese junk in front of the coast, with a factory and a smoking chimney in the background. Both refer to the old trading tradition as well as the local industries.
The provincial flag is horizontally divided pink/light blue/pink (1:3:1) the provincial seal in the middle.
The provincial brand is a picture of a white factory, a fishing boat, a fish and blue water and a green leaf.
The provincial tree is commonly called blackboard tree or devil's tree (Alstonia scholaris).
The provincial aquatic animal is the short mackerel (Rastrelliger brachysoma) what with Samut Sakhon is the first province to have short mackerel fishing boat and has the largest amount of this species of fish caught in Thailand.
The provincial slogan is "Fishing city, factory town, agricultural ground, historic site".[20]
Administrative divisions
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Central government
The province is divided into three districts (amphoes). The districts are further subdivided into 40 subdistricts (tambons) and 289 villages (mubans).[2]
Local government
As of December 2024 there are: one Samut Sakhon Provincial Administrative Organization (PAO) (ongkan borihan suan changwat) and sixteen municipal (thesaban) areas in the province. The capital Samut Sakhon and Om Noi have city (thesaban nakhon) status. Three have town (thesaban mueang) status and eleven are subdistrict municipalities (thesaban tambon).[21]
| City municipalities | people | LAO code | |||||
| 1 | Om Noi | 53,914 | 03740201 | 2 | Samut Sakhon | 53,221 | 03740102 |
| Town municipalities | people | LAO code | 2 | Krathum Baen.[22] | 23,204 | 04740202 | |
| 1 | Phanthai Norasing[23] | 42,851 | 04740113 | 3 | Khlong Maduea.[24] | 22,350 | 04740205 |
| Subdistrict mun. | people | LAO code | 6 | Khok Krabue | 10,492 | 05740114 | |
| 1 | Lak Ha | 42,296 | 05740303 | 7 | Khae Rai | 9,094 | 05740206 |
| 2 | Suan Luang | 39,007 | 05740203 | 8 | Don Kai Di | 8,624 | 05740204 |
| 3 | Na Di | 28,338 | 05740105 | 9 | Bang Pla | 7,650 | 05740103 |
| 4 | Bang Ya Phraek | 26,216 | 05740104 | 10 | Kaset Phatthana | 5,221 | 005740301 |
| 5 | Tha Chin | 10,984 | 05740106 | 11 | Ban Phaeo | 2,772 | 05740302 |
City municipalities (thesaban nakhon)
Town municipalities (thesaban mueang)
Subdistrict municipalities (thesaban tambon)
The non-municipal areas are administered by 21 'Subdistrict Administrative Organizations (SAO)' (ongkan borihan suan tambon):
Mueang Samut Sakhon - 10, Krathum Baen - 4 and Ban Phaeo - 7.[21]
The communities, although not directly chosen by the local citizens, they provides advice and recommendations to the local administrative organization are:
| Municipality | Communities | Groups | |
| Samut Sakhon[25] | 32 | 3 | |
| Om Noi[26] | 28 | - | |
| Krathum Baen[27] | 9 | - | |
| Khlong Maduea[28] | 11 | - | |
| Suan Luang[29] | 14 | - |
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Human achievement index 2022
| Health | Education | Employment | Income |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| 31 | 59 | 11 | 7 |
| Housing | Family | Transport | Participation |
 |
 |
 |
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| 77 | 9 | 3 | 72 |
| Province Samut Sakhon, with an HAI 2022 value of 0.6101 is "low", occupies place 74 in the ranking. | |||
Since 2003, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Thailand has tracked progress on human development at sub-national level using the Human achievement index (HAI), a composite index covering all the eight key areas of human development. National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB) has taken over this task since 2017.[3]
| Rank | Classification |
| 1 - 13 | "high" |
| 14 - 29 | "somewhat high" |
| 30 - 45 | "average" |
| 46 - 61 | "somewhat low" |
| 62 - 77 | "low" |
| Map with provinces and HAI 2022 rankings |
 |
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References
External links
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