Krabi Faces Water Shortage, Phi Phi Islands Sans Tap Water

[webfact]

 

A severe freshwater crisis has hit Thailand's southern province of Krabi, leaving Phi Phi Islands without tap water. In several other regions, residents receive tap water only on alternate days.

 

The escalating crisis resulted in the suspension of water services by Waterhill Company, which operates a reservoir on Phi Phi islands, as raw water levels reach critically low.

 

Despite efforts from the Royal Rainmaking Unit at Krabi Airport, which commenced twice-daily cloud seeding operations on Tuesday, April 23, the targeted areas have seen no rainfall.

 

Furthermore, even Mueang Krabi, a major urban area, is not spared, with the Provincial Waterworks Authority stating that there's an insufficient raw water supply for tap water production. 

 

Phi Phi island's reservoir, which has been dry for three days, spans five rai, while the Royal Irrigation Department's reservoir, supervised by the subdistrict administration organisation, covers three rai and is also in a similar condition.

 

Consequently, residents and small businesses without their water sources have to purchase water at escalated prices of 150-200 per cubic metre.

 

Picture: Creative Commons License via Bing

 

-- 2024-04-26

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[Geoffggi]

But there is always water to waste during Songkran .....................LOL

[ourmanflint]

Thailand truly gets what it deserves. 

[newbee2022]

More tourists, less water for everybody.

So decrease the amount of tourists.!🙏

[hotchilli]

10 hours ago, webfact said:

A severe freshwater crisis has hit Thailand's southern province of Krabi, leaving Phi Phi Islands without tap water. In several other regions, residents receive tap water only on alternate days.

Never mind the tourism numbers are surging.. sustainability and resource management mean anything to local officials.

[hotchilli]

25 minutes ago, newbee2022 said:

More tourists, less water for everybody.

So decrease the amount of tourists.!🙏

Good heavens above man are your crazy..

[hotchilli]

1 hour ago, ourmanflint said:

Thailand truly gets what it deserves. 

But seldom acknowledges it.

[newbee2022]

1 hour ago, hotchilli said:

Good heavens above man are your crazy..

Crazy?😂😂. Maybe I live too long already here?

[hotchilli]

13 hours ago, newbee2022 said:

Crazy?😂😂. Maybe I live too long already here?

Same.... maybe time for greener pastures

[Stargeezr]

I was on a tour to Phi Phi Islands and the toilets and basins used sea water for flushing, and washing hands.

  Lots of ocean water still available for these puroples. This was at one of the parks on one of the islands.

[bkk6060]

People will be showering and washing their backsides with bottled water.  Wait for it.

[Bassosa]

The pandemic should've opened some eyes and in a way it did, for a short while.

Sadly its back to business as usual. Raking in the bahts at whatever costs, but now with Sretta at the helm.

[billd766]

On 4/26/2024 at 1:27 PM, newbee2022 said:

More tourists, less water for everybody.

So decrease the amount of tourists.!🙏

But but that would mean less money and less profits, and they can NEVER allow that.

[Oliver Holzerfilled]

On 4/25/2024 at 3:43 PM, webfact said:

Despite efforts from the Royal Rainmaking Unit....the targeted areas have seen no rainfall.

 

"Despite efforts from the [insert name of any Thai bureaucracy here]....the targeted areas have seen no [insert expected result here]."

[newbee2022]

17 hours ago, billd766 said:

But but that would mean less money and less profits, and they can NEVER allow that.

Well, you nailed it. BIG dilemma 😂

[billd766]

2 hours ago, newbee2022 said:

Well, you nailed it. BIG dilemma 😂

If the TAT and the government want more money, then they need more tourists.

 

To get more tourists, they HAVE to fix the infrastructure.

 

Back to the chicken and the egg question.

[newbee2022]

1 minute ago, billd766 said:

If the TAT and the government want more money, then they need more tourists.

 

To get more tourists, they HAVE to fix the infrastructure.

 

Back to the chicken and the egg question.

That's true. At present we have the pending billions for the 10.000 Baht scheme. So no money to invest in infrastructure.

Do we have to wait for FFP? Or accept the status quo?

[billd766]

3 minutes ago, newbee2022 said:

That's true. At present we have the pending billions for the 10.000 Baht scheme. So no money to invest in infrastructure.

Do we have to wait for FFP? Or accept the status quo?

quote "Do we have to wait for FFP? Or accept the status quo?"

 

Unfortunately that is a question that I am unable to answer.

 

AFAIR the provincial government will beg the national government for more money to pay the bill. Effectively meaning all the taxpayers in the country will have to pay for something that most of them will never be able to use.

 

Possibly the best solution might be a desalination plant, but they are not cheap to build, run or maintain.

 

Where I live in rural Kamphaeng Phet most of the water supply comes down the klong from the Mae Wong national park and is rain fed. At the moment it is possible to walk across the klong in most places without even getting the soles of your shoes wet. The alternative supply comes from Klong Lan Pattana, 6 km away, and only for several hours a day.

 

The real problem is a national, if not an international problem with a lack of rainfall across SE Asia.

[newbee2022]

36 minutes ago, billd766 said:

Possibly the best solution might be a desalination plant, but they are not cheap to build, run or maintain.

That could cause the next problem. What to do with all the salt? Singapore got that problem since decades. You need energy for desalination (by solar power possible, has to established first). And the salt is pumped back to the ocean as Singapore did it over the years. Nowadays they clean the waste water to even drinkable water and create reservoirs. 

However, I doubt that Thai engineers will have a look before planning their own system.