The Mae Wong Dam - Government Ignores It's Own Words At Tiger Conferences

[cowslip]

It would be nice if TV cared enough to have an environmental forum, failing that I've put it in the "general" one instead.

It is with some dismay I read about the “go-ahead” for the Mae Wong Dam. This is much more than a thin end of the wedge. ........

Apart from presenting a threat to the hard fought for conservation policies concerning Western Forest Complex, which is meant to be the jewel in the crown of Thailand’s natural resources, I find 2 aspects particularly disturbing.

My fist concern is the way the “benefits” of the dam are presented: By only one government department without any proper research and the assertion that “locals” were “for” the dam - the reasons given that it would control (“eliminate”) flooding and alleviate drought are far from a proven fact. There are even doubts expressed to the very existence of the government committee that came to this conclusion in the face of decades of research to the contrary.

Who are these “locals”? There are in fact very few true “locals” who live in this virtually pristine environment. (and technically even they shouldn’t be there.)

In fact this isn’t the only potential site either - it has been admitted that the RID wanted to build the dam in the forest because it did not want to encounter problems with “local residents” who might have to be evacuated to pave the way for the dam's construction. Presumably these are the “locals” cited in the article - not those in the immediate areas of the proposed dam?

So who are these so-called “locals”? If we mean the business owners - farming and otherwise in Nakon Sawan etc., we are talking about businesses who in order to increase profits in an area where flooding has existed for decades or even centuries have decided to encroach on a National

Park; an area of significant natural beauty and ecological importance.

Furthermore it sounds to me that they have been conned. As regards the “benefits”.........

The project they say is aimed at solving flood and water shortage problems in the Sakae Krang river basin that covers Uthai Thani, Nakhon Sawan, Chai Nat, and Kamphaeng Phet. Yet the committee that has come to this conclusion appears not even to have met!!! Let alone carried out any real research or consultation.

For instance, the project's environmental-impact study has failed to merit approval at the National Environment Board.

As these areas receives water from several other rivers it defies logic to suggest that this dam on one river will “eliminate” or even control subsequent flooding.

Bear in mind too that a lot of flooding in Thailand has been caused or contributed to by massive unregulated deforestation. Tropical forests are a great way to regulate the flow of water into the lands below.

Royal Irrigation Department (RID) insists that building a dam will benefit them by eliminating annual floods and drought. I would suggest that few dams have ever done this. The inhabitants of Brisbane will vouch for this, as similar assumptions were made about a dam on the Brisbane river..... (see Brisbane Floods 2010 to 2011)

People who live in these areas do so in the face of an on-going environment with a long established history.... (or at least from when de-foresting helped the situation to worsen). Unfortunately such things as government subsidies for rice growing etc. encourage more and more people to invest in farming in ever more unsuitable areas - and the businesses and banks then demand more government aid in the form of irrigation and regulation of water supplies to protect their ill-advised investments.

What the people who live on or off the river itself think of this seems to have been ignored. The rivers of Thailand have always been a source of livelihood to thousands of people.

Who will REALLY benefit from this project? To the cynical it looks as if this decision has been taken using the national concerns after last years flooding as a cover for an un-researched decision motivated by personal profit of a few people “in the know”....... a project that successive governments have shelved due to serious environmental and practical objections.

As usual in Thailand it is a small number of wealthy and influential individuals in or around the corridors of power who will benefit most......

What hasn’t been talked about much is that he dam will also be used to generate electricity.............this won’t benefit locals in particular it will go to the national grid, benefitting only the suppliers, whoever they may be.

Another influencing factor with the government is the possibility that some individuals stand to make substantial personal fortunes out of this dam. For example - if the project starts, the fist and most obvious thing will be the awarding of the various construction contracts.

Another factor maybe less obvious is that it will open the area to logging. As a pristine forest the timber in there is worth megabucks - anyone who gets their hands on that will make a fortune.

So much for the social and political aspects...................

*****

My second concern is the environmental issues; The implication is that the impact on the environment and ecology of the reason will be minimal.

Science and Technology Minister Plodprasop Suraswadi has insisted that the construction of Mae Wong Dam will not cause environmental impact. In short this is just hogwash.

The West Forest Complex of which Mae Wong is part has been put forward as part of a huge international project aimed at preserving wildlife in particular Tigers through various national borders.

2010 was the “Year of the Tiger” - and several international conferences were held to discuss and find solutions to the Tigers’ plight. Thailand even hosted a conference and of course made all the right noises. Now it seems far from taking action to help the tigers and their ecosystems, Thailand is actively engaged in making the situation worse.

As apex predators, tigers cannot be seen as a single issue - the existence of a healthy wild tiger population indicates a healthy eco-system in general. A healthy eco-system can generate basic human needs - oxygen, clean water and income. No matter how much we struggle we are still an integral part of the planet’s ecology.

The WWF have said in the last few days that the dam “represents a "significant new threat" to the kingdom's tigers”. - "Years of successful conservation efforts will be washed away if the dam construction goes ahead,"

To make matters even more exasperating - a tigress and her cabs have recently been videoed near the site for the proposed dam - the dam will wipe out the prey they rely on.

Talk of “tourism” is also a red herring here.

There is a difference between eco-tourism and dozens of restaurants around a lake; an influx of unregulated crowds into what used to be a pristine environment, bringing with them sewerage and litter pollution. This does nothing to contribute to the Asian eco-systems.

Eco-tourism is designed to preserve the environment and ring employment to local populations - not newcomers who come in to establish new businesses that in turn damage the environment.

Reforestation: These vague promises about planting trees would quite frankly be just risible if it wasn’t for the apparently deliberate misinformation and the huge potential here for corruption and abuse.

A viable tropical rain forest is not simply a group of unspecified trees - it is a complex system - of which there are usually 5 layers - the emergent layer, canopy, under-storey layer, shrub layer and forest floor.

With planted forests these layers complete with wildlife can take decades even centuries to establish.

What is most likely to happen - and this is not without precedent in Thailand - is that some land will be given over with government grants for teak or palm oil plantations and it will be claimed, quite falsely, that this is “re-forestation”. It will of course be totally unsuitable for the kind of wildlife displaced or destroyed by the inundation of the dam. The only ones to profit will be the owners of land that otherwise could not have been developed. It hasn’t even been affirmed that the areas are suitable for rainforests and will connect to the existing WFC.

Tigers can live in a wide range of environments, but they rely on a sufficient supply of suitable prey. The lake formed by the dam will destroy an area of streams and forest that was particularly suited to tigers - a large lake will not work the same way.....especially if it is developed as a tourist attraction. ...and the effects on the tiger population (e.g. - influx of people , depletion of breeding areas of prey animals etc.) will have ramifications far beyond the immediate vicinity of the dam.

So to sum up, it seems to me that what we are seeing here is not so much an open and rational debate about the Dam or Thailand’s care for its natural resources but a hurried rush for a few to make political or financial gain by playing on the current national concerns about flooding.

PS - to those who want to use the expression “tree-hugger” - may I suggest that this is a facile stereotype; the use of which is more a reflection on your lack of understanding of environmental issues and your own ability to put forward a rational argument on the subject.

[travelmann]

Sorry fell asleep after the first hour of reading.......... I know me bad

[cowslip]

Sorry fell asleep after the first hour of reading.......... I know me bad

Aaaah never mind, you must be a VERY slow reader!

[cowslip]

Despite several decades of research that points out the damage this dam will do, the fact that no significant research has been done by this government, Science and Technology Minister Plodprasop Surasawadi has said that said floods have continued to ravage provinces in various river basins because of the people's opposition to the planned construction of Kaeng Sua Ten dam and Mae Wong dam. This is totally without any evidence at all in fact it flies in the face of all the reports and research done about the Mae Wong dam and dams in general.

One has to question the motives of a government that ignores so much scientific information and simply carries on with a pointless exercise that will bring relief to no-one and damage the environment too.

Are they simply focused on feathering their own nests or trying to garner populist votes?

[Soutpeel]

Sorry fell asleep after the first hour of reading.......... I know me bad

Think this diatribe would be better in "new's" the average "general" forum reader only has an attention span of about 30 seconds and this topic is rather heavy...

But to answer your question...who benefits ? easy to answer...big constuction projects like this give plenty of opportunities for little (or large) envelopes...and this will be the sole reason, the little piggy wiggies have their snouts in the trough again

[cowslip]

Ask the mods to move it.....

[cowslip]

THis dam is specifically against the spirit of Thailand's own "Tiger Action Plan" that states......

"Challenge: large development projects (e.g. highways dams)are under development and with new proposals often suggested."

......

"Expected Outcome: Tiger habitats in priority landscapes are intact and connectivity is maintained."

THis dam is in direct conflict with this objective.

who signed this plan?

K. Abisit Vejjajiva - Then PM

Suwit Khunkitti - Then minister of Natural resources and the Environment (NRE)

Chote Trachu - Permanent Secretary NRE

Sunan Arunnopparat - Dept National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation

did any of these people come forward and raise an objection???????

or do we hae to assume that they no longer give a dam? - pardon the pun.

[cowslip]

THailand continues to ignore it's responsibilities and commitments to conservation - is this their attitude to international agreements?Quote from a conservationist......

"Despite the opposition from governments, environmentalists and villagers, it looks like the Xayaburi dam project will go ahead.

What hope is there now that the Thai government will relent on the proposed Mae Wong dam? Online petitions, pressure from conservation groups, and even legal action, have not yet forced a cancellation of the proposed dam.

This year the World Wildlife Fund has photo-trapped 11 tigers in Mae Wong National Park, including two cubs. This may make Mae Wong the only place on the planet where tiger numbers are increasing.

Given the commitment Thailand made in 2010 to double its tiger numbers, you would think Mae Wong would be afforded the highest protection possible instead of being placed on the ''to be inundated by useless reservoir'' list.

Now there are rumours that Unesco might step into the fray with a letter to the Thai government warning them about possible impacts on the neighbouring Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary, which is part of a Unesco World Heritage Site, for which Mae Wong is a buffer zone. Perhaps the loss of face internationally if World Heritage status were to be withdrawn from Huai Kha Khaeng, might achieve what reason, scientific evidence and impassioned pleas have failed to do so far."

[BigJohnnyBKK]

Yes the planet is going to go to hell in a handbasket, but in places like this only the locals can help slow the process down. The Thai PTB certainly don't mind activist visitors to the Kingdom as long as they pursue tactics as effective as posting to unrelated online forums.

However IMO if you were to engage in activities that actually had some chance of success, your position here would become quite tenuous. Don't mess with rice-bowl issues here, particularly affecting powerful people.

[robblok]

Yes the planet is going to go to hell in a handbasket, but in places like this only the locals can help slow the process down. The Thai PTB certainly don't mind activist visitors to the Kingdom as long as they pursue tactics as effective as posting to unrelated online forums.

However IMO if you were to engage in activities that actually had some chance of success, your position here would become quite tenuous. Don't mess with rice-bowl issues here, particularly affecting powerful people.

True words unfortunately, i actually like conservationism but not the NGO's and stuff that make money off it. Guys living it large here with donations from other countries.

It all has to come from the locals, and they are not interested sadly. And as you say his postings here are not making any change. We as foreigners cant even vote, and if we had power the more powerful would have taken us out.

[BigJohnnyBKK]

It all has to come from the locals, and they are not interested sadly.

Actually not true, there are many very effective grassroots organisations campaigning for green issues.

They just have to operate in the same way that those fighting for greater democracy did in the Soviet Union, but in Thailand's case their opposition doesn't fight as fair.

Same with labor organizing, as effective leaders are identified they tend to disappear.