Thai water management: Forums on dams, flood scheme start in 2 weeks

[webfact]

WATER MANAGEMENT
Forums on dams, flood scheme start in 2 weeks
Jeerapong Prasertpolkrung
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Meeting in Lamphun will be first in 36 provinces affected by water projects under govt mega-scheme; residents in 41 other provinces to get a chance to voice opinions via Suan Dusit Survey

Large-scale public forums will be held to sound out opinions and get approval from residents living in 36 provinces affected by dams and projects in the government's Bt350-billion flood and water-management scheme.

The meetings will begin in two weeks - on October 15 - and a survey conducted to get opinions of Thais living in 41 other provinces. Both steps are compulsory under a Central Administrative Court order before various projects under the scheme can commence.

The first forum will be held in Lamphun, at Jakkhamkhanathorn School, and this step would end by December 6, Natural Resources and Environment Ministry deputy permanent secretary Suphot Tovichakchaikul said yesterday.

The survey of opinions would be conducted via pollster Suan Dusit, after a public education campaign to explain the scheme to the public, via television programmes, ads in major papers and documents, he said.

The survey has been chosen as a means under PM's Office Ministry regulations to seek public opinions. Both the forums and the survey will be conducted with a Bt184-milllion budget approved by the Cabinet for this. The survey questionnaire will be published after the "orientation process" is completed, he said, and distributed through schools, local administrative bodies and provincial offices of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation.

On the outcome of the survey, Suphot said: "It is not that if the results are against the water scheme in a large percentage, it will not commence. The disapproval reflected must have good reasons going with it. We will utilise these reasons to adapt the projects, to [minimise] the impacts on them." He did not elaborate.

"After the completion of both the public forums and the survey, deals could be signed with four contractors by late January next year, or early February, before the nine project modules commence," said Suphot, acting director-general of the Office of the National Water and Flood Management Policy.

Suphot said the prospective format of the questionnaire would not require people to say "Yes" or "No", but include questions on what respondents think about the entire scheme. "There will be boxes for respondents to check their approval ratings, such as 'totally agree', 'partly agree' or 'totally disagree'."

There would also be details on nine individual project modules so respondents can give approval ratings in the questionnaire, which would contain about two to three sheets, Suphot said. Suan Dusit Poll would take around 15 days, after December 6, to process raw data from the questionnaire and announce it by December 22 at the latest, he said.

Committees would be set up in charge of each of the nine modules to compare positive and negative outcomes from the questionnaire about the project modules. The panels would consider further outcomes using the opinions to finalise what extra measures need to be adopted to lessen impacts on local people, he said.

Mandatory under the Constitution

Forums with local people affected by the projects and an assessment of public opinion is mandatory under the Constitution and required under a Central Administrative Court ruling. The court ruled in favour of a network of environmentalist groups who lodged a complaint to order the government and relevant agencies to comply with these compulsory steps.

Suphot said the current heavy flooding in Prachin Buri was a situation occurring under different factors and would require separate solutions not included in the entire scheme. "But areas in the Chao Phraya basin, and near Angthong province, will not be flooded anymore [after the scheme is complete]."

Asked about the five years it will take to complete the scheme, Suphot said not all projects would take that long. "For example, the communal database for forecasts and warnings could be done in one year, and the building of small-sized dams or dredging of canals and waterways could take as short [a time].

Speaking on the current flood situation, Suphot the floodwater volume was one third of that during the massive flood in 2011. But the public was worried as a result of negative comments by academics and news coverage showing images of high-level inundation.

He said water from the North and the Central regions could have reached Rangsit if there were no preventive measures using the Bt120 billion budget made available.


-- The Nation 2013-10-01

[tominbkk]

Shouldn't this have happened a little less than two years ago?

[lee b]

why not put this water through a water pureification process, and tier it through carbon filters, pre carbon filters, sediment filters, UV the water and use RO. Pure water will come out as the final step.. This can be done with any kind of contaminated water and its a fact. Sorry about any spelling mistakes but i'm very tierd.

Edited September 30, 2013 by lee b

[NongKhaiKid]

More talk means little action but it does mean that when the hot air is finally expended the government can say they have taken all views into careful consideration and to meet the aims of all the projects and keep everyone happy they will have to borrow more money to see the master plan through.

[chooka]

Shouldn't this have happened a little less than two years ago?

It did happen and apparently the food, drinks and entertainment were great, unfortunately everyone got so pissed at the functions they forgot what they were suppose to be doing and then the budget ran out. Now that new floods have come and they get a new allocation and organise another shindig.

[The Deerhunter]

Oh good. It will start just when a former PM (or MP) said the floods will be over.

[thhMan]

Surely this should raise some questions with some of the Thais.

The fact that its apparent that FA was done about it before, the forum shouldn't be about the flooding situation, but instead be about what happened with all the allocated money.

The flood problem should be dealt with by school children who are being educated and have no hand in corruption money.

[Baerboxer]

Surely this should raise some questions with some of the Thais.

The fact that its apparent that FA was done about it before, the forum shouldn't be about the flooding situation, but instead be about what happened with all the allocated money.

The flood problem should be dealt with by school children who are being educated and have no hand in corruption money.

You're right of course, but no one will ever know where that money went - apart from the select few.

[Neilly]

Thai water management:

Well, that's an oxymoron if I ever read one

Edited October 1, 2013 by Neilly

[Pimay1]

On the outcome of the survey, Suphot said: "It is not that if the results are against the water scheme in a large percentage, it will not commence. The disapproval reflected must have good reasons going with it. We will utilise these reasons to adapt the projects, to [minimise] the impacts on them." He did not elaborate.

Translation: Screw you sheep. We are doing it whether you want it or not.

[boomerangutang]

Window dressing. They even admit they will continue with the project 'come hell or high water'

They won't want farang filling out any of those forms or going to any faux forums.

If the asked me, here's what I'd suggest:

>>> water flows downhill, always has. Learn how to use a plumb level. In my northern Thai town, construction crews built a massive underground drainage system. After the first rains, they realized it didn't drain. They tore it up and built it again. Same thing happened a 2nd time. The 3rd time, they did it right.

>>> start moving Bangkok to higher ground. Try 'satellite cities' which focus on: gov't, manufacturing, clergy/royalty, universities, etc. Thailand doesn't need one gargantuan city for all services. I recently needed some ATM video footage. Surprise: all footage has to go 1st to Bangkok. 2nd surprise: The footage I needed was lost.

>>> There's so much more which could be done, but to write it down would take a series of books bigger than the Encyclopedia Brittanica. Suffice it to say, Thaksin and his PT puppets are doing all things wrong.

[MaxLee]

Forums on dams, flood scheme start in 2 weeks as soon as the rest of Thailand is under water and corruption SCAM money has been collected

Smiley smiley thank you, see you again next year

[mayday49]

why not put this water through a water pureification process, and tier it through carbon filters, pre carbon filters, sediment filters, UV the water and use RO. Pure water will come out as the final step.. This can be done with any kind of contaminated water and its a fact. Sorry about any spelling mistakes but i'm very tierd.

troll

[boomerangutang]

why not put this water through a water pureification process, and tier it through carbon filters, pre carbon filters, sediment filters, UV the water and use RO. Pure water will come out as the final step.. This can be done with any kind of contaminated water and its a fact. Sorry about any spelling mistakes but i'm very tierd.

troll

Why not put lipstick on a donkey and tuck it in to a feather bed?

[BillyBobThai]

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ is all that matters here.

[timewilltell]

Thailand does not have the necessary expertise to deal with this. They need help from proven experts such as the Dutch and British. They will not ask for it because to them it is a loss of face. I say screw your face and save your skins.

[boomerangutang]

Thailand does not have the necessary expertise to deal with this. They need help from proven experts such as the Dutch and British. They will not ask for it because to them it is a loss of face. I say screw your face and save your skins.

The experts might tell them that water flows downhill, and to start planning on moving Bkk and suburbs to higher ground. Not what Thai officialdom wants to hear.