Thailand's National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) has launched a community-based water treatment project in Chiang Rai's Kok River region to address heavy-metal contamination from upstream mining. The initiative helps approximately 700 families across Ban Rak Kok and Ban Meung Ngieb districts with an affordable, simple filtration system that removes arsenic and other heavy metals. Communities are trained to operate and maintain the technology independently, restoring access to safe water after villagers had halted fishing and vegetable farming due to contamination fears.