Background
The Ministry of Environment has implemented a national campaign, labelled “Clean Water” (ផ្ទៃទឹកស្អាត), to reduce industrial wastewater pollution through legal measures, monitoring and company-level controls. The ministry reported that 19,685,085 cubic meters of industrial and commercial wastewater discharge were prevented between January and September 2026.
Ministry figures show more than 2.22 million cubic meters of wastewater were blocked from entering natural water bodies in September 2026 alone. Seventy-two companies and factories had installed automatic real-time wastewater quality monitoring systems by September 2026, up from 56 monitored sites at the end of 2025.
Scope of Application
The campaign and its associated measures were applied to factories, enterprises and companies discharging industrial wastewater to natural water bodies across Cambodia. Measures promoted by the ministry target entities with potential wastewater discharges that can affect environmental quality and public health.
Key Provisions or Decisions
The ministry has actively promoted legal and technical measures requiring or encouraging installation of automatic wastewater quality monitoring and associated data-management systems at industrial discharge points. Ministry statements indicate that the campaign has expanded the number of monitored sites and that ministry operations prevented an estimated 700,000 cubic meters of wastewater from entering natural water bodies on a daily basis during the campaign period.
Implications for Investors, Businesses, or Compliance
Businesses operating wastewater-producing activities are expected to adopt continuous monitoring equipment and integrate data-management systems to meet ministry expectations and environmental standards. Installation of automatic, real-time monitoring systems enables companies to observe discharge quality remotely and support compliance reporting to regulatory authorities.
Official Source
Ministry of Environment Facebook post, 30 September 2026: source.
