Thailand's Town-Planning Law To Be Amended

[webfact]

FLOOD CRISIS

Town-planning law to be amended

The Nation

Move to protect urban areas in future; proposal to be submitted to Veerapong

The town-planning law will be amended to protect urban areas from flooding in the future, a senator said yesterday.

"Flood zones must be clearly identified," said Trungjai Buranasomphop, chairman of the Senate ad hoc committee on settlements and town planning.

The proposal will be submitted to Veerapong Ramangkul, chairman of the Strategic Committee for Reconstruction and Future Development.

"We will also suggest that three subcommittees be set up to work on this," Trungjai said.

These subcommittees would study problems at settlements in restricted and risky areas; policies, laws and the structure of agencies responsible for settlements and town planning; and policies for water management and town planning.

The raging flood has submerged many towns as well as seven industrial estates.

"It's necessary to have clear-cut and strict city planning," said Senator Decha Boomkhum, deputy chairman of the committee on settlements and town planning.

Bangkok is now facing its worst flood in decades because authorities failed to enforce town-planning laws strictly, he said.

"Housing estates have gone up and blocked floodways," he said. "There's encroachment on canals, too."

A US consulting firm, Litchfield and Associates, was hired in 1960 to develop a master plan for Bangkok, he said. Although the team produced the Greater Bangkok Plan (1960-90), it was not heeded.

"The plan addressed flood-prevention mechanisms like express floodways both in western and eastern Bangkok," he said.

Suphot Tovichakchaikul, deputy permanent secretary of the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry and chief of the ministry's Flood Relief Operations Centre, said a flood solution to be urgently proposed was city planning. This was critical for Bangkok, whose natural water-retaining areas on the eastern and western sides were full of large housing estates, roads and infrastructure projects.

Even Suvarnabhumi Airport in Lat Krabang could be regarded as blocking eastern Bangkok's natural waterways, but it was impossible to demolish the structure now, he said.

The Department of Public works and Town and Country Planning has designed a city plan for the country until 2600 or in 46 years.

It includes land use, residential zoning, green areas and reservoirs - but most things did not go according to the plan.

The major flood disaster this year forced people to see the plan's necessity. If city planning was not taken seriously, such disasters would reoccur because Bangkok stood in the path of run-offs.

A helicopter inspection found that canals in eastern and western Bangkok were squeezed by roads and residences. Western Bangkok's Thawee Watthana Canal was narrow - 30 metres at its head and 5 metres at its tail - so drainage into the Tha Chin and Chao Phraya rivers was slow and depended largely on pumps.

Since 6 billion cubic metres of flood water remained in Bangkok, mostly on its western flank, it would take one month to get rid of the last vestige, Suphot said.

-- The Nation 2011-11-16

[marquess]

My bet is that it will probably need two or three years of serious flooding in Bangkok before these plans are seriously heeded if at all. If there are really serious the should start by enforcing the existing laws against encroachment by knocking down illegally built properties.

[whybother]

Bangkok is now facing its worst flood in decades because authorities failed to enforce town-planning laws strictly, he said.

What's the point of amending them if they aren't enforced anyway.

[Thaddeus]

Bangkok is now facing its worst flood in decades because authorities failed to enforce town-planning laws strictly, he said.

What's the point of amending them if they aren't enforced anyway.

It restores confidence in the business sector

[lonewolf99]

Will this planning plan stop the flooding at the Rompho Road / Soi 5 junction in Jomtien ? Every time there is shower of rain.....

I remember when Korat was totally inundated when a "Yellow Shirt" Gov were in charge of where water can be diverted or drained off the flood plains to the north of Bangkok. Not long afterwards there were riots on the streets.

"Express Flood ways" - these must be similar to Yingluks hair brained scheme when she got all the boats to face upstream and push the water out to sea by revving their engines at max power.......A bit like Superman flying round the world very fast anti clockwise to stop time...........

[esbkk]

I didn't know Thailand had a town planning law, department or whatever ...

Houses build only a few years ago are being knocked down to make room for the purple line...

[Tatsujin]

More talk, more chances for those in power to skim some cream off the top whilst nothing substantive actually gets done.

(sorry, am in a really cynical mood today lol)

[skorchio]

The country is run by muppets and mobs. Town planning? Forget it. The centre of Patong flooded again 3 nights ago after 1 hour of rain, and the one drainage channel that still exists is right now being narrowed and built on. There is zero control over who builds what where, and I am surprised business owners in the middle of town are not up in arms about this. Same scenario as what has already happened in BKK.

[anterian]

Town planning is only effective if people are educated enough to understand the benefits and support it enforcement . Thus it will not work in Thailand.