Drought In Isaan

[Tilapia]

My wife lives in Jangwat, Sesaket, it has been raining there for the last 5-6 days, cell phone no good during storms, she told me yesterday, when I finally got a call through that it has rained so much that the pond overflowed and the fish we stocked it with are now in the Rice field, oh well, what can I say 500 baht 2000 fish, no big deal, just wish it would slack off a little bit, so I can get a call through.

Hi Nitehawk

Quite a few people have problems with that now, it is sad to feed the fish for 4-6 month and see them escape from the pond.

Cheers

Tilapia.

[Martin]

Great relief. Since Sunday evening it has rained nicely and steadily for three quarters of that time.

The ground is well soaked, ponds have filled, and the rice that had been planted is looking healthy again.

People are rushing to plant out what should have been done some weeks ago, and others are foraging for fish, frogs and so forth.

[Lickey]

Here in Namsom, 100ks NW of Udon Thani, we have had good rains for 6 weeks or so now, Namsom is surrounded by mountains and when we have a storm here it just seems to stay here, Monday i counted 4 different storms at the same time, Lighting struck the True Move mobile phone tower and destroyed all the antenna, this was quickly replaced!!

Paddy fields are doing well and a foot high or so already, The only thing i wished i had done was have a lagoon dug on our hillside farm, 2 rai by 4 mtrs deep, im sure it would have been full now, as it is the water goes to our neighbours farm and they used to sell it back to us, but we have a borehole now, and these good rains will keep the water table up, so hopefully no drought worries.

Cheers Lickey..

[Martin]

There has been a wonderful change around here over the past ten days.

All the rice has been planted. That which had been planted has perked up, lost its 'struggling yellowy' tinge and is a lush green. That which has gone in in the last week is looking to be off to a good start.

People are now gathering mushrooms and other NTFP (non-timber forest produce). 60 bahts of diesel in the tank of a walking tractor and fifteen people can crowd onto its trailer and go off for a profitable and 'sanook' day.

This morning, at our newly-established one-monk wat pha, the little group of grandparents who are its active, every day supporters all went home with some mushrooms gathered from within its precincts.

And all the lakes and ponds are up to their right levels again.

It appears that we are a beneficiary of climate change on this occasion and that this period of rain was from a monsoonal low-pressure pattern that usually has gone to Northern Thailand, but this year came to the Northeast.

If climate change is going to have fickle effects, there may be a case for a high-capacity water grid for the Northeast. A decade ago, England had droughts in some areas that were so bad that drinking water ran out; yet there was ample water up in Northumberland where there was an enormous reservoir that had been prepared in order to serve an expansion of heavy industry that never came. They got started on the construction of a water grid pdq.