Northern Thailand: Residents say 'no' to large dams
Residents in the north of the country who live in the basin of a river are not in favor of large dams and they want more say in measures against floods and droughts.
This emerged during consultations held by the Water Management and Policy Committee (WMPC) from Monday to Friday last week. The aim was to collect opinions from residents in the basin of the Ping, Wang, Yom and Nan rivers. The majority spoke out against large-scale dam projects, said Suwattana Jittadalakorn, an advisor to the committee and an advisor to the Engineering Institute of Thailand.
According to Suwattana, a number of regions in the North suffer from structural problems: the dikes are too weak and the drainage systems are inefficient. These problems can be solved by dyke reinforcement and the construction of drainage stations, which disperse excess water. In the long term, he believes that XNUMX new water storage areas should be set up in areas prone to flooding.
Suwattana thinks this year's floods will be less severe than in 2011. Potential droughts are now a greater concern as the rainy season is coming to an end and most major reservoirs are only 30 percent full.
The results of the consultations are submitted to the WMPC. Suwattana expects dams or reservoirs to be built in some areas, but those projects will all be on a small scale. The WPMC decides what comes next.
The WPMC was set up by the junta and is tasked with creating a roadmap for the development and management of water resources. The committee is also working on prevention and relief plans in the event of droughts and floods.
Rayong
In eastern Thailand, water reservoirs are 58 percent full, said Paijaen Maksuwan, deputy director general of the Royal Irrigation Department (RID). He said this at a seminar on water problems in Rayong.
Paijaen assured the petrochemical industry that measures have been taken to prevent a repeat of 2005. Then the sector was duped by water shortages. The RID will now direct water from neighboring provinces to reservoirs in Rayong.
Ayutthaya
Flooding in Ayutthaya has significantly decreased in severity. After inspecting two districts, the Agriculture Minister said the impact on residents is minimal. Although the river Noi and two canals were flooded, the water did not damage agricultural land. Like Suwattana, the minister is more concerned about the impending drought. Only when it rains heavily in the coming weeks, the water reservoirs will be replenished.
This week, the Meteorological Department expects storms on Wednesday and Thursday. True, does not mention the message or may not be known yet.
(Source: bangkok mail, September 14, 2014)