The prospects are not good, there will be no end to the drought in parts of Thailand for the time being. Eleven provinces have already been declared a disaster area because there is almost no water.
According to Agriculture Minister Chatchai, the government is working on a plan. He is shocked after his visit yesterday to the provinces where the situation is dire.
The water level of the Chao Phraya is still critical, because the large reservoirs release less water. The reservoirs Bhumibol, Kwae Noi Bamrung Dan and Pasak are not replenished with rainwater. The Sirikit reservoir in the Nan River, which flows into the Chao Phraya, still releases rainwater. But at 11 percent, the water is at its lowest level in 47 years. Parts of the Nan River have already dried up.
The situation in the four lakes together is worrying because the amount of rain that fell this year is half the amount of rain last year, says deputy chief Narong of the RID.
The situation is also bad in other parts of Thailand. In Muang (Yasothon), farmers are facing major problems because the water level in the river Chi is dropping rapidly. In the North, farmers in Muang (Phrae) are very concerned. The harvest of 15.000 rai of agricultural land is at risk if the water shortage continues for another two weeks.
Source: Bangkok Post
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Known as Khun Peter (62), lives alternately in Apeldoorn and Pattaya. In a relationship with Kanchana for 14 years. Not yet retired, have my own company, something with insurance. Crazy about animals, especially dogs and music.
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We are working on a plan now!!!! That plan should have been ready years ago and - now that it has - could be pulled out of the closet. But yes, that planning / looking ahead and that is something that does not happen in Thailand. We bet that if 4 wet years have passed and then suddenly another very dry year comes, people will give the same reaction? If the problem does not occur in any year, then it does not exist. I am thinking of the floods in recent years: as soon as the sun starts to shine again, the problem of flooding disappears and nothing needs to be done to prepare for/prevent the risk of flooding in the new rainy season.
Nonsense. The Thai farmers are very good at planning. They have been doing this for centuries and Thailand is an important export country for agricultural products such as rice, cassava, sugar, rubber and more. They feed large parts of the world.
But the farmers depend on the world market and the weather gods. No planning can fully cope with a season with 50 percent more rain or 50 percent less rain than average and if you think you have a complete 'solution' for that then you are a genius. The Dutch water management experts confirm that a real solution that solves every problem every year is not possible. In these kinds of extreme weather conditions you can only take emergency measures and grit your teeth.
Much has been done in recent years to combat problems caused by excessive rainfall. There is construction and dredging everywhere. Hundreds of billions of baht have been allocated for this. I predict that it will reduce the problems but cannot solve them completely.
Agree. In Isaan you depend on the weather and the water that is directed from the reservoir (if there is enough), the farmers plan plowing and sowing in such a way that there is a chance of harvest. The reservoirs can only help by building up the reserve and using it at the right time. You have to admire them for making it through.
For years I have experienced massive flooding in the province of Roi-Et. Then the help of countries such as the US and the United Kingdom is called in. Countries that have to deal with flooding themselves and have no understanding of such matters at all. Those countries therefore call in the only right country to do something about water management and that is the Netherlands. The people in the North in the Isan are kept sweet by providing a kilo of salt (!) one or two bottles of oil, a bag of (old) rice and to my surprise you don't hear anyone complaining. Now the weather is too dry, so that the rice farmers will not be able to harvest again. But there is also a lack of cooperation between farmers in the North to do something about water management themselves. For example: the water in the river Chi could be "drained" through mutual cooperation, but then you sometimes have to give up a number of square meters in order to achieve this. But hardly anyone is willing to do so, as I hear from various Thai people in the province of Roi-Et. So the problem will probably never be solved. My family in Roi-Et is also suffering from drought again and it seems that they can count on a failed harvest again this year.
I would have liked to know which provinces have been affected. Interesting to know.