The Ministry of Environment has reported that thanks to its efforts in the first eight months of the year, almost 12 million cubic meters of untreated wastewater was prevented from polluting public water sources.
Its latest data showed that 11,924,194 million cubic metres of wastewater was captured and treated from january to August, thanks to automatic monitoring and data management systems for liquid waste discharge, which are cleaned and reported monthly.
Ministry spokesperson Khvay Atitya noted that, through strengthened enforcement of the Environmental and Natural Resources Code, the ministry has been closely monitoring factories and large enterprises. Around 1.9 million cubic metres of treated wastewater was released into public sources over the eight-month period, in compliance with standards.
The ministry has been implementing the “Clean Water Surface Campaign”, which focuses on cleaning rivers and public water sources of plastic waste, strengthening water quality monitoring and drafting environmental standards and technical guidelines. These require all sources of wastewater discharge to install treatment systems and automatic monitoring equipment.
“For the prevention and reduction of water pollution from factories and enterprises, the ministry has enforced the law 100 per cent. Sources with high pollution risks must install and operate treatment systems, and also install automatic monitoring equipment,” he said.
As of August 2025, 52 factories have signed compliance agreements. Of them, 42 have already installed automatic wastewater monitoring equipment.
These achievements, the ministry said, demonstrate the commitment and cooperation of ministry officials, related institutions, capital and provincial administrations, local authorities, factory and company owners, as well as journalists and the public, in carrying out the Royal Government of Cambodia’s environmental policies and strategies. The first pillar of the Environmental Sector Strategy is “Cleanliness”.
This work also follows the recommendations of Prime Minister Hun Manet, who has placed strong emphasis on preventing and reducing public water pollution, ensuring sustainable water quality management, conserving aquatic biodiversity and protecting public health.
During the first half of 2025, 52 companies and factories were subject to legal measures, after being found to have released untreated wastewater that harmed the environment. These included fines, orders to correct violations, and in some cases, full suspension of operations.
The ministry explained that monitoring equipment and data management systems for wastewater discharge must be installed, in line with the Environmental and Natural Resources Code. This is in accordance with provisions such as Articles 178, 287, 288 and 829, concerning the discharge of waste or pollutants into the environment that do not meet standards, and Article 845, concerning failure to comply with obligations for wastewater and liquid waste management.
In addition, regulations relating to water pollution monitoring, reduction and the prevention of public water contamination are also subject to several other legal provisions.
