Pattaya Faces Water Shortages

[george]

Pattaya faces water shortages

CHONBURI: -- Thailand's popular tourist resort of Pattaya in the country's eastern province of Chonburi appears to be facing a water crisis which could have a devastating impact on the town's tourism industry, local officials and MPs warned today.

Chonburi Governor Phisit Ketphasuk, who today led a team of officials, including Pattaya Mayor Niran Wattanasatsatorn to view water levels in the nearby Mab Prachan Reservoir, warned that if water was released at normal levels, there would only be sufficient water to last until the end of May.

He admitted that this would deal a severe blow to Pattaya, a tourist resort with a global reputation.

According to local MP Chanyuth Engtrakul, the water shortages are not only affecting Pattaya, but encompass several surrounding administrative districts.

Unless urgent measures were taken, he warned, the tourism industry would suffer.

Also calling for medium and long-term solutions for the drought, he said that an immediate solution would be to reduce the flow of water to industrial estates and divert it into the piped water system for local residents.

He also noted the need to create artificial rain in the vicinity of all five local reservoirs, while promising to put pressure on the government to invest in long-term measures to solve the region's water crisis.

--TNA 2005-04-28

[Pattaya_Fox]

Pattaya faces water shortages 

CHONBURI: -- Thailand's popular tourist resort of Pattaya in the country's eastern province of Chonburi appears to be facing a water crisis which could have a devastating impact on the town's tourism industry, local officials and MPs warned today.

Chonburi Governor Phisit Ketphasuk, who today led a team of officials, including Pattaya Mayor Niran Wattanasatsatorn to view water levels in the nearby Mab Prachan Reservoir, warned that if water was released at normal levels, there would only be sufficient water to last until the end of May.

He admitted that this would deal a severe blow to Pattaya, a tourist resort with a global reputation.

According to local MP Chanyuth Engtrakul, the water shortages are not only affecting Pattaya, but encompass several surrounding administrative districts.

Unless urgent measures were taken, he warned, the tourism industry would suffer. 

Also calling for medium and long-term solutions for the drought, he said that an immediate solution would be to reduce the flow of water to industrial estates and divert it into the piped water system for local residents.

He also noted the need to create artificial rain in the vicinity of all five local reservoirs, while promising to put pressure on the government to invest in long-term measures to solve the region's water crisis.

--TNA 2005-04-28

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Not too long since we were looking at flooding in Pattaya...and now a drought...`which could have a devastating impact on the tourist industry`.......

If the powers that be would only get their act together and spend resources on building more reservoirs and putting in a proper water redistribution system then they wouldn`t need to reduce the flow of water to industrial estates.

...Well sod `em I`m still having water with my whisky

[Digger]

I have heard it all now. Divert water from the industrial estates served by Pattaya's resevoirs. So how many industrial estates are there served by Pattaya's resevoirs? I cant think of any.

What a great idea and this guy is elected by local people to represent their views !!!! great, lets close down a factory(which does not exist in Pattaya), make 600 people redundant and give water to the villages which is just as well as without a job they wont be able to afford any food.

[The_Eye_Of_Sauron]

Why don't they make Pattaya folk bath and shower using sea water. Bit of brine never did anyone any harm.

[astral]

I have heard it all now.  Divert water from the industrial estates served by Pattaya's resevoirs.      So how many industrial estates are there served by Pattaya's resevoirs?   I cant think of any.    

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Visit the optician and renew your prescription then

drive down the road to Chonburi and take a look at all the industry!!

Why don't they make Pattaya folk bath and shower using sea water. Bit of brine never did anyone any harm.

Salt and sewage??

[Digger]

I have heard it all now.  Divert water from the industrial estates served by Pattaya's resevoirs.      So how many industrial estates are there served by Pattaya's resevoirs?   I cant think of any.    

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Visit the optician and renew your prescription then

drive down the road to Chonburi and take a look at all the industry!!

Pattaya has 5 resevoirs supplying Pattaya City and Banglamung. The road up to Chonburi, by which you probably mean Amata City, Lam Chabang, etc even before you get into Chonburi proper are all supplied by other resevoirs. Nothing wrong with my eye sight.

[Bel Mondo]

I see water truck after water truck coming and going to the Penthouse Hotle on Pattayaland Soi 2. I have many friends who are consistently without water in the EXPENSIVE homes and condos. Property price "booming" in Pattaya!!??? Take a shower in your 40 milion baht house/condo if you can !! Great property appreciation potential--if you own a water truck!!

[Jai Dee]

Those water trucks are doing a roaring trade right now.

Anyone know where they get their water from?

[pluto_manibo]

Those water trucks are doing a roaring trade right now.

Anyone know where they get their water from?

Yep! They are lined up on the receding shores of Maprachan reservoir...

[yuyi]

Those water trucks are doing a roaring trade right now.

Anyone know where they get their water from?

Yep! They are lined up on the receding shores of Maprachan reservoir...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

... just next to where they wash their motorbikes and pickups

[thai_norman]

well i went to maprachan today, its nearly empty, heres a couple of pics

[Digger]

It looks truly depleted these days - certainly the worst I have seen it in the 5 years I have been coming down here.

Also a mate of mine was complaining the other day over dinner that his house at Paradise Villa has had no water for ages - he's resorted to having his own tankers deliver water every week into his underground storage tanks.

[glassdude007]

stop drinking h20 start drinking booze lol.......

pattaya has always had water shortages thats part of life in pattaya ...just keep your toilet vasses full and youll have water too poop/piss................

[daveb1]

I'm in the UK at the moment and getting a bit worried about my garden! (well its importaint to me!) So is water on and off or off all the time at the moment? Live about 10km outside of pattaya

[snoophound]

And from the Pattayamail

Residents in a village in Soi Yensabai contacted reporters concerning a broken water meter that has been left in disrepair for almost a month. The meter, located outside one of the houses in the cul-de-sac, has been gushing water since the beginning of April.

For almost a month this broken meter has been gushing water, and nothing is being done despite residents’ continuously asking the water authority to come fix it.

The house owner, Tor Arne Pedersen, told reporters that he has informed the Pattaya Water Authority on numerous occasions by telephone and in person. Still a repair crew has yet to show their face in the small village.

Residents have tried to repair the broken meter to reduce the water flow but to little avail.

The constant flow of water is causing distress in the village and disgust for the lack of responsibility and action from authorities.

“I am very unhappy about the situation,” said one resident. “We have very little water to use on a day to day basis and to see such a waste on a daily basis is terrible. We’ve all reported it to the water authority but as yet nothing has been done. We’ve even tried to fix the problem ourselves.”

Another resident quipped, “The country is in the middle of a severe drought, some people don’t have any water. Messages are all over the press about how we need to conserve water, be very careful with how we use it, and here water is just being poured down the drain. Wasted. I’d think that the mayor and city officials would be quite angry with the water authorities about this situation.”

Water officials told reporters they were aware of the problem and promised to take care of it, but to date no one from the authority has shown the slightest interest.

Under the law it is illegal for residents to tamper with public utilities such as electrical or water meters.

[penzman]

well i went to maprachan today, its nearly empty, heres a couple of pics

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Couldn't they just take advantage of the fact that these reservoirs are empty and haul out some of that soil to make the reservoirs a few meters deeper?

[Jai Dee]

Couldn't they just take advantage of the fact that  these reservoirs are empty and haul out some of that soil to make the reservoirs a few meters deeper?

No way... that'd be called planning for the future... and we all know how good that is here!

[thai_norman]

actually they could sell soil from there and get money for it, but i suppose thats to difficult a concept, making money out of an asset..

[penzman]

Some of these people must be big share holders in bottled water companies...

[Digger]

Couldn't they just take advantage of the fact that  these reservoirs are empty and haul out some of that soil to make the reservoirs a few meters deeper?

No way... that'd be called planning for the future... and we all know how good that is here!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I can just imagine the discussion now:

"Boss, why dont we scrape out the resevoir and make it bigger"

"Why would we want to do that"

"so that we can store more water"

"why - its not even a quarter full now - lets think about in the future when its full"

[doctormann]

well i went to maprachan today, its nearly empty, heres a couple of pics

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Couldn't they just take advantage of the fact that these reservoirs are empty and haul out some of that soil to make the reservoirs a few meters deeper?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I think that we'd be talking about a very major civil engineering project here.

I haven't worked out the area or capacity of Maprachan but on my Pattaya map it looks 'fairly' big. If you wanted to remove, say, one extra metre of earth from most of the area, that would be an enormous volume but I have no idea what the percentage increase in capacity would be. It would be nice if it could all be done with a few JCBs but I think we're looking at something a bit up-scale from that.

Certainly need to do something though or, with all of new the housing projects in the Pattaya area, the taps will soon be running dry.

And the water leak in Soi Khao Talo is still running merrily after three months!

[Jai Dee]

Update

We have not had running town water now for 8 consecutive days.

[Kerryd]

Update

We have not had running town water now for 8 consecutive days.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

My place (South Pattaya) has been without water for months. Landlady has the water truck fill the tanks 3 times a day (got to time your showers carefully, got caught a couple of times, half way through a shower and the water ran out !).

Wasn't there a news article a week or so ago, about a guy who drowned in that reservoir while trying to save some kids ? From the pictures shown, it hardly looks like there's enough water left to get your ankles wet.