Dam Water To Be Released From May: Thailand

[webfact]

ANTI-FLOOD MEASURES

Dam water to be released from May

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Among major policies issued yesterday after yestesday's meeting of a central government committee is that water is drained from all major dams as earlier as late May - to prevent the dams' over-capacity during the peak of rainwater volume which resulted in panic releases of water and subsequently massive flooding in the plains south of the dams, said PM's Office Minister Nivatthamrong Boonsongpaisal, a panel member.

As part of the government’s preparation for water and flood management this year, a tour to survey major waterways across the country will be conducted on February 13-17, Interior and Deputy Prime Minister Yongyuth Vichaidith said yesterday.

The Tour of Happiness will be conducted in all key river basins covering provinces and areas which are origins and ends of rivers and waterways, which would inspect restoration plans in place, measures implemented under a central government committee and flood and evacuation plans in provinces involved in addition to a contingency plan in Lop Buri, Yongyuth added.

The committee, the Strategic Committee for Water Resources Management (SCWRM), estimated that the water situation would be better than last year, if the rainwater volume was the same or not much more than last year. The SCWRM has worked with the Royal Irrigation Department to directly deal with dam operators to make sure the release of water would be done on a daily basis starting from late May - before the wet season’s peak in June or July.

During the Tour, business people and members of the industrial sector would be invited to take part in sessions scheduled in Ayutthaya, home to several industrial estates which were heavily inundated last year. The Tour comprises two sectors - tours led by the prime minister and inspection visits made by relevant agencies, before information achieved would be jointly used and assessed for overal analyses afterwards, Nivatthamrong said.

Asked about comments by flood expert Pramote Maiklad that the government was full of projects and still lacking implemenations, Yongyuth said what would be learned during the Tour of Happiness would be materialsed and put into action.

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, speaking during a meeting yesterday with Yongyuth present, had instructed all relevant government agencies and ministers involved in flood and water management to submit their progress reports and possible suggestions to her by February 8.

She would give details about the progress and the Tour in her radio address on February 11, before commencing the trek two days later.

Areas in four eastern Bangkok will not be expropriated and used as floodways, as feared by the public and speculated by the media, because homes were built before a law became effective, said MR Premsiri Kasemsant, director Department of City Planning

Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA).

What the DCP could do now was to control construction of buildings or slums by canals or rivers into the water while dealing with existing structures in violation of law. A revised city planning policy will instead turn non-residential areas in the four districts - Khlong Sam Wa, Nong Chok, Min Buri and Lat Krabang - into suburban parks, said deputy director Amornrat Krityanwat.

The BMA has begun dredging underground drains and walkway sewerage to cope with rainwater volume in preparation for flood prevention this year. Prisoners are now hired to do the job on 277 road in Bangkok, completing the work in 13 roads totalling in 41,096 metres of the drains, or 4.26 per cent of a total distance covering metres.

Speaking during a inspection of the work yesterday, Bangkok governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra said the work must be done by May, jointly by city workers doing the job in soi while the prisoners were in charge of the dredging on main Bangkok roads. He said the budget for the dredging was the BMA’s and welcomed funding from the government.

He said negotiations with owners of homes built into canals and rivers would be soon begin. He said they numbered in several thousands after illegally building their homes into the water for decades.

The Interior Ministry called on the public to take easy on the Bt5,000 government pay for each owner of flooded home, saying that they money would be ready and given to all of those registered and deemed qualified.

Deputy permanent secretary Pracha Terat said the pay was expected to be all handed out in the next 45 days, and pleaded with the public for understanding for the time-consuming process. He said those who had not submitted the request to do so, and the ministry welcomed feedbacks and queries through its 1567 call centre service.

-- The Nation 2012-02-04

[ResX]

They are relaesing water by now under the Bussiness As Usual (BAU) approach. What they mean could be and should be "If by end of Feb the draw down plan connot be achieved the desired objectives usiang BAU approach then forced draw down will be implemented". I think it is a standard procedure. I have little to complaint. How about you?

[wxyz]

PM clone has it all under control, famous last word.

Edited February 4, 2012 by wxyz

[blazes]

Quite honestly, I haven't the faintest idea what this article is saying. It would be easier to read it in Arabic or Mandarin.

Tour of Happiness? Is this a bicycle race? If so, good for tourism, maybe.

Tour de force it certainly isn't.

Edited February 4, 2012 by blazes

[MAN2SIN2BKK]

Well after last night's storm the Nam Turm is already back in Rangsit Khlong Sam, our development has about 20cm of standing water............. the pump has broken down and what the hell is stuck in the drains???? what the hell's going to happen when the rains in May?

[USNret]

Regarding the headline "Dam water to be released from May"

I know you're upset, but there's no need to swear.

[BigJohnnyBKK]

> The committee estimated that the water situation would be better than last year, if the rainwater volume was the same or not much more than last year.

That's not such a rousing endorsement, flooding only a little "better than last year" could still mean another epic disaster.

Of course the committe is stuck between a rock and a hard place, I don't envy their position: public perception of being responsible without any actual authority to do what it knows will actually prevent future disasters, plus the inability to actually tell the public the truth.

I guess we all just pray for less rain for the next fifty years. . .

[anterian]

Well after last night's storm the Nam Turm is already back in Rangsit Khlong Sam, our development has about 20cm of standing water............. the pump has broken down and what the hell is stuck in the drains???? what the hell's going to happen when the rains in May?

after last night's downpour I expected the same, was surprised to see a dry road this morning.

[chrisinth]

Just as an indicator, they seem to have started releasing water already. The river Nan, running through Phitsanulok is fuller than I have seen it over the last 13 years. They started this before Christmas, in pulses. I have heard that they wish to drain down the reservoirs to the 70% mark.

[whybother]

Just as an indicator, they seem to have started releasing water already. The river Nan, running through Phitsanulok is fuller than I have seen it over the last 13 years. They started this before Christmas, in pulses. I have heard that they wish to drain down the reservoirs to the 70% mark.

70% full or 70% empty (ie 30% full)? Weren't they at 60% prior to the wet season last year?

Given that they were near 100% it's not surprising that they are releasing more than they have in recent years. The question is, don't they release water for irrigation purposes at this time every year - just that this year there is more water to release?

[sirchai]

PM clone has it all under control, famous last word.

PM clown has it all NOT in control, the truth.

[Crushdepth]

The "Tour of Happiness"? Is this a satire piece?

The committee, the Strategic Committee for Water Resources Management (SCWRM), estimated that the water situation would be better than last year, if the rainwater volume was the same or not much more than last year.

Anyone out there still have confidence in government reassurances?

The SCWRM has worked with the Royal Irrigation Department to directly deal with dam operators to make sure the release of water would be done on a daily basis starting from late May - before the wet season’s peak in June or July.

*Starting* from late May? Maybe I am just totally out of my mind, but was there not a government announcement a couple of weeks ago that water level reduction was *already* underway? And that it would be *finished* in May? What happened to that?

If Thailand is spared from flooding this year it will be by good luck, not by good management.

[belg]

why the dams don't have panic channel release diverted directly to the sea...that would cost a few hundred millions of baht to construct, but could be used to release safely overcapacity on time without flooding the whole country

[h90]

PM clone has it all under control, famous last word.

isn't it spelled "clown"?

[h90]

why the dams don't have panic channel release diverted directly to the sea...that would cost a few hundred millions of baht to construct, but could be used to release safely overcapacity on time without flooding the whole country

Not only this, there is a million good ideas which would all fix the problems.

There is a decades old complete and detailed plan from the King. That parts of it that were build were the only reason that the last floods weren't much worse than they were.

Insiders tell that the Kings plans are so detailed that it was not possible to take much corruption money. Therefor they were never completed....

[Ricardo]

The "Tour of Happiness"? Is this a satire piece?

The committee, the Strategic Committee for Water Resources Management (SCWRM), estimated that the water situation would be better than last year, if the rainwater volume was the same or not much more than last year.

Anyone out there still have confidence in government reassurances?

The SCWRM has worked with the Royal Irrigation Department to directly deal with dam operators to make sure the release of water would be done on a daily basis starting from late May - before the wet season’s peak in June or July.

*Starting* from late May? Maybe I am just totally out of my mind, but was there not a government announcement a couple of weeks ago that water level reduction was *already* underway? And that it would be *finished* in May? What happened to that?

If Thailand is spared from flooding this year it will be by good luck, not by good management.

Yes, they announced that water was to be released now, happily this coincided with the usual irrigated-rice-growing season locally, what a coincidence !

But now it's supposed to start in May instead ? Methinks the left-hand & the right-hand ought to be introduced to one another ! And someone should engage-brain to operate the mouth-pieces !

[wxyz]

Dam the water, full speed ahead.

Edited February 5, 2012 by wxyz

[KKK]

Why MAY...surely the release of water is done according to the level in the dam not a particular month...If we suddenly have lots more, unexpected, rain this and next month will they still not release until May...

[exeter]

Ok you have got 3 months to find the plug..............starting from..........wait for it............................now!

[ResX]

why the dams don't have panic channel release diverted directly to the sea...that would cost a few hundred millions of baht to construct, but could be used to release safely overcapacity on time without flooding the whole country

It won't be necessary since the dams themselves can function as good as "panic channels" that you asked for

[wxyz]

They should package the water and ship it to the Sahara.

Edited February 6, 2012 by wxyz

[warfie]

My wife (May) will be pleased...

[ResX]

Here are some operating rules for the operations of series flood control dams. I have learn't these rules for the first time from United State Army Corp of Engineers (USACE). As fas as I can see Water Management Authorities in Thailand are clueless about them.

Refill- Start from upper dams

Draw down -Start from lower dams

If the competing scenario has arise, follow the right sequence could mean flood or no flood. There are more than 200 medium size dams in Thailand. Most of them are located in series along the Chao Pharaya river. It is very important for the authorities to be well verse about these rules. I provided the link for further detail.

brutZppJ_srTKwKo7FqJdWx5rLK7XvKkVzB4YrYrv6BZl1tz2GMOI4Mzo8CExm9WW25btnFBYm_wHadEwCcfh6wMZy7kgfrvkK&sig=AHIEtbSU8gO4XEAp6Idfu2Plt99o1vPqwg

Edited February 6, 2012 by ResX

[Pseudolus]

The Tour of Happiness

Seriously. The Tour of Happiness.

What are they thinking of?

"Well, if we call it The Tour of Happiness everyone will be happy when they are flooded next time"

Or, "Right guys, lots of Developers have paid us lots of money to ignore them building all over the place messing up the flow of water through Bangkok. So we'll go see them all, remind them that we have to tell them to pull down their buildings, or they could make the matter all disappear in the same way they did last time. What you say?"

"Yes - K.Somchai - we will call it the tour of Happiness. We will be happy, they will be happy so that's all that matters"