Bangkok Habitat Guide

Bangkok lies on the east bank of the Chao Phraya River, about 24km inland before the river enters the Gulf of Thailand. The city is a modern, bustling metropolis, a far cry from its origin as a hamlet on the riverbank. Bangkok is low lying and crisscrossed by a network of canals, known in local parlance as ‘klongs’. The river is the lifeline of the city; huge numbers of people live along the banks, use the it to commute, use it as a floating market with gas stations, vegetable sellers, food vendors et al; use it as a village pond and open air washroom. As a consequence, the river is polluted and clogged in places; a story that is endemic to Bangkok as a whole. Bangkok has the dubious distinction of being one of the most polluted and congested cities in the world.