Disaster relief with “effective micro-organism” (EM) balls

In support of QI’s CSR campaign “We Care”, a group of employees from the Thailand office participated in efforts at the Amarin Plaza shopping centre to help victims of the flood. Volunteers made “effective micro-organism (EM) balls comprising mud mixed with micro-organisms that have regenerative qualities, to help slow the decomposition of waste in the water. The balls also reduce harmful bacteria that cause the bad odour.

It was not the first time EM balls were being used; since disasters like the Kobe earthquake in 1995, the South East Asian tsunami in 2004 and Hurricane Katrina in 2005, these balls have been used to support sustainable practices in farming, disaster clean-up and waste management.