Phuket’s water supply running on empty

[webfact]

ENVIRONMENT

Phuket’s water supply running on empty

By The Thaiger

 

 

PHOTO: No, it’s not the moon, it’s Bang Neow Dam this week

 

Phuket shuffles into the high season with meagre water reserves and no concrete, sustainable plans to meet the upcoming seasonal water demands. In April this year the local water authority shuffled uncomfortably about the crisis at the end of the 2018/2019 dry season, denying there was a problem whilst cutting supplies to many communities around Phuket, mostly around Chalong, Thalang and eastern suburbs of Phuket Town. Just shut off the water!

 

On a tropical island where we’re surrounded by water, and with plenty of monsoonal rain falling on the island every year, it’s hard to imagine we could possibly be facing a water shortage. Especially after the crisis in March and April this year. But here we are.

 

In a ‘would-have-been-funny-if-it-wasn’t-true’ moment in April, the Phuket Water Authority announced water restrictions for the island one day (an odds and evens water usage schedule), only to reverse their decision the day after.

 

The water restrictions would have been draconian but, in hindsight, a responsible response to the problem. The reversal of the decision, and the lack of explanation, was a high water mark (pardon the pun) of local bureaucracy gone completely insane.

 

So, here we are, more hotel rooms available than ever, more developments completed and an island poised for, hopefully, an influx of tourists for the busiest time of the year. But we will start the high season with the lowest volume of water ever, when measured against the total expected demand.

Unless it randomly just starts raining every day, for a few months, the island will not be able to rely on our dams supplying us with water for the high season.

 

Last week an order from the National Office National Water Resources was directed at Phuket’s water tzars to take urgent action to fix the island’s water-supply saga.

 

But the angry finger waving from the capital comes half a year too late when the critical problem facing Phuket for the 2019/2020 high season had already been well recognised, and admitted, by officials from the Phuket Water Authority. Their hope that this wet-season rain would fill the empty dams has fallen short of expectations. In fact the island faces up to six months, probably a lot longer, of critical water shortages, until the 2020 wet season presumably arrives.

 

Bang Wad Dam in Kathu, less than 30% capacity

 

When Phuket’s residents take to social media about their water supply being turned off, just switched off without any warning – that’s what happened in March and April this year – the blame will land firmly in the lap of the PWA.

 

When the local media is approached to stop ‘running down the island’ with stories about empty dams and expensive emergency supplies, we will direct them towards the PWA.

 

When local businesses and hotels have to order daily water deliveries at extortionate prices, send the bill to the PWA. But good luck with that!

 

The last minute directive to ‘sort things out’ is too little and too late. The local authorities’ understanding of the looming problem is well documented, in their own words, from earlier this year. It’s just that they’ve done nothing about it.

 

As the wet season winds down for 2019, the Office of National Water Resoures says that Bang Wad dam in Kathu, the island’s largest reservoir and supplier to Patong, is not even 30% full. Bang Neow Dam, servicing areas north of Heroines Monument, is visibly almost dry with an official level of 8.38% of capacity, 5% of which is unusable.

 

(Strangely, the new Blue Tree water park was able to fill up over the wet season this year, but not the nearby Bang Neow Dam)

 

All this happened under Phuket Governor Phakaphong Tavipatana’s watch. So far he’s left the water problem in the hands of the local water authority. But now the Office National Water Resources says that Governor Phakaphong will be held responsible for overseeing remedial plans so that Phuket residents and businesses don’t have to suffer prolonged months of critical water shortages.

 

Precisely what they could do, at this stage, hasn’t been explained. But expect more finger pointing and probably a few resignations. But little more.

 

The bottomline is that the local government will have to ship in water from north of the island. There is no time left for anything else. It’s too late to build more dams, or enlarge the ones we have. It’s too late to light incense and pray for rain. It’s too late to plan, budget for and build new water supply infrastructure.

 

At the height of the crisis earlier this year the Army was brought in to help with the delivery of water to some of the worst affected communities – the sort of thing you’d expect in a third-world country after a decade of drought.

 

But this is Phuket, Thailand’s shining beacon of tourism, the Pearl of the Andaman. Whilst bleating about the lack of tourists, and still unable to admit responsibility for last year’s sinking of the Phoenix (killing 47 Chinese tourists), Phuket’s nominated officials have botched the most basic of infrastructure – a supply of water.

 

At the height of the crisis back in March and April this year the Governor never acknowledged the complexity or severity of the problem and, as far as we can see, has done SFA about a ‘plan’ when the dams run dry.

 

If the odds/evens water restrictions had been rolled out in, say, February this year, there would have been an outcry of over-stepping the mark and imposing draconian measures. In hindsight it would have been a responsible action and we’d be in a much better situation now. The water restrictions should have then been followed by urgent consultation and planning to avoid a tropical island ever having to suffer the embarrassment of turning off the water supply to its residents ever again.

 

Call it climate change or just a really bad wet season, the heavy rain simply hasn’t arrived this year to raise the levels of the island’s dams. Anything that falls in the next few weeks will be a bonus but with the winds already swinging around to the north and east a few weeks ago, the monsoon has already run out of steam.

 

The joke over recent years was that, if you wanted to start a booming business in Phuket, open a 7Eleven and put a bus stop out the front (for the Chinese tour buses). Our recommendation is, now, to buy some water trucks and start shipping in water. Because the island IS going to need it – our current reserves will not last through the high season.

 

The Thaiger was cheeky enough to ask for a list of all the private owners of water trucks on the island. We admit our request was just a thinly-veiled allegation.

 

An answer has not yet been forthcoming.

 

Source: https://thethaiger.com/news/opinion/phukets-water-supply-running-on-empty

 

 

-- © Copyright The Thaiger 2019-11-06

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[Samui Bodoh]

10 minutes ago, webfact said:

Precisely what they could do, at this stage, hasn’t been explained. But expect more finger pointing and probably a few resignations. But little more.

Resignations? Take responsibility for their actions? Seriously?

 

An otherwise good article marred by ludicrous claims that those who govern will take responsibility.

 

It will all be blamed on Brexit, the US/China trade war, global slowdown outside of Thailand's purview, foreigners, bad planning by dead people, etc.

 

However, on a positive note, we will see stories by TAT of Indians bringing their own water...

 

 

 

[happy chappie]

Try attracting more Arab tourists,they can wash and brush their teeth with sand.another one is make all the resorts remove the taps handles from the rooms and run a shuttle service to the beach for a bath..I know with my great thinking I could be in the running for the next president of Phuket water authority.

as usual nothing done to face the issue but we can expect a gang of 20 taking notes with the boss pointing at the dry dam in the news soon.then the removal of the boss as he was about to retire and then the new boss known as somchai 'aquaman' wongdong coming in and saving the day.

[wisperone]

Can't be true...I remember statements saying there will be no water shortages. 

And those in Chiang Mai can rejoice because the powers that be stated they dealt with pollution issues so the air will be clean come February-May. Hallelujah!

 

[wisperone]

I put forth a suggestion out here at least 2 or 3 times over the past year or so that would have saved Thailand hundreds of millions of gallons of water per day. I guess it went unheeded... oh well. 

[pattayadgw]

Those officials who stated there were no water problems... several times over the past 6 months, should be held accountable!!  What I don't understand is why Thai homes don't have large water tanks for catching water run-off from roofs.  This then can be passed through filtration and used in the home.  One of the long list of Thai mysteries I guess ????

[mok199]

Hopefullly that Amazing Thailand songkran festival will not be affected...that would be a real shame, A REAL SHAME THAT...

[ChipButty]

18 minutes ago, pattayadgw said:

Those officials who stated there were no water problems... several times over the past 6 months, should be held accountable!!  What I don't understand is why Thai homes don't have large water tanks for catching water run-off from roofs.  This then can be passed through filtration and used in the home.  One of the long list of Thai mysteries I guess ????

They think they will always have water If I was to build a new house I would have an underground tank to collect rain water even in normal time here the city water can go off for days

[Is this real]

They know how to resolve much of the problem, but chose not to do anything.  A solution has been offer every year for the past 6 years.

That solution?

When the drought is at it's peak in the spring, and everything is dried up, dig and dredge all the reservoirs as much as possible before the rains come.  If they were all 5-15 meters deeper, would there be a shortage the next year?  How much more capacity would they have?

But, to do this would require planning and a budget. 

[stevenl]

2 hours ago, Is this real said:

They know how to resolve much of the problem, but chose not to do anything.  A solution has been offer every year for the past 6 years.

That solution?

When the drought is at it's peak in the spring, and everything is dried up, dig and dredge all the reservoirs as much as possible before the rains come.  If they were all 5-15 meters deeper, would there be a shortage the next year?  How much more capacity would they have?

But, to do this would require planning and a budget. 

How would that help since at the moment with the present capacity the reservoirs are far from full.

[steelepulse]

Desalination and a pipeline from Phang nga would solve the issue.  Desal plant was built, not sure if it ever worked, and a pipeline was/is in the proposed pipeline.  

[Psimbo]

1 hour ago, stevenl said:

How would that help since at the moment with the present capacity the reservoirs are far from full.

From what I understand from a chap that lives near by they are deliberately keeping Bang Niew low by pumping it out. This is due to them trying to get money from  Bangkok to dig it out to increase capacity for the future.

 

The lakes in Kamala feed off the same range of hills and they are all full at the moment- an indicator that this may in fact be true.

 

The exact detail above may be incorrect but there is some merit in it- watch and wait. When you look at Bang Niew there is no way it was ever dug out to the amount it should have been.

 

For the person commenting about desalination there is a plant (on the sharp hairpin bend from Patong to Karon), it is up and running but it's an extremely expensive process and the production is limited. IIRC funding has been approved to run a pipeline down from Phang Na- how long it takes will be down to envelopes I suspect.

[digger70]

11 hours ago, webfact said:

Phuket’s water supply running on empty

Someone will get his butt kicked for not Planning ahead .Planning ahead should've started Years ago Not when they run out of water . There's Two ways to do things, The Thai way or the right way. ????

[Scot123]

9 hours ago, ChipButty said:

They think they will always have water If I was to build a new house I would have an underground tank to collect rain water even in normal time here the city water can go off for days

Where I used to live in Thailand (rural) every house had several water tanks to collect run off water plus some having their own Wells. Its the big housing estates with rows and rows of tightly packed housing or apartment blocks or hotels making big demands. Just imagine if all the condos were full and all the hotels were bursting with tourists...... So lucky that is not the case. 

[natway09]

And a word of warning for the Hua Hin residents.

If we do not have a bumper rainfall this wet season it will get "critical" by about end of January

[ChrisY1]

11 hours ago, wisperone said:

I put forth a suggestion out here at least 2 or 3 times over the past year or so that would have saved Thailand hundreds of millions of gallons of water per day. I guess it went unheeded... oh well. 

TVF is not the place for credible ideas.....we're foreigners...

[worgeordie]

I have always been worried about the Water and Electric

supply,the way all these houses,condos,Malls,keep popping

up like mushrooms everywhere,Thailand is not know for

forward planning,they take the approach when it happens

we will look and try and fix it, ...when it's too late.

 

Up here in Chiang Mai, the rains arrived very late,and

I think not in the quantity required,the dry season 

lasts a very long time,but i am sure the powers that

be ,have everything in hand,and have plans to cope

with any situation.....NOT.

 

Good luck Phuket, shower with a significant other,

drink beer,not water,if it's yellow let it mellow .

regards worgeordie