PM suggests farmers build water wells

[Lite Beer]

PM suggests farmers build water wells

BANGKOK, 10 May 2015 (NNT) - Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has suggested that farmers should start to dredge water courses and dig wells to store rainwater during the rainy season.

Deputy Government Spokesman Maj.Gen. Sansern Kaeokamnerd said the rain started to fall in many areas of the country which meant that the rainy season was soon to begin in Thailand. The PM said the government was building a lot of water wells nationwide and encouraged farmers to store rainwater for use, the deputy government spokesman added.

During the dry season this year, the Department of Land Development built 16,470 wells and the Department of Ground Water Resources constructed groundwater wells in more than 1,200 villages.

The government was urgently helping farmers, the deputy government spokesman added. He stated further that their cooperation in building new water sources would help ensure sufficient water supply for future use.

-- NNT 2015-05-10

[toybits]

Oh this is going to be just great. Temporarily solve one problem by creating another one.. such as land subsidence. Pumping out ground water will cause land to sink. Just look at the crossover bridges in bkk or buildings where they had to add more steps as the sidewalks have sunk a couple of feet.

[trogers]

Oh this is going to be just great. Temporarily solve one problem by creating another one.. such as land subsidence. Pumping out ground water will cause land to sink. Just look at the crossover bridges in bkk or buildings where they had to add more steps as the sidewalks have sunk a couple of feet.

Not many farms left in the outskirts of Bangkok. Most artesian wells now are those dug decades ago supplying water to Turkish baths.

[dcutman]

Promoting boring ground water wells to irrigate crops? What a terrible Idea!

[AGareth2]

bank loans?

[Robby nz]

Fortunately farmers already know this and have been doing it for many years however this is an extraordinary year and many large ponds and wells that have always been reliable water sources have dried up, such as this pond which the farmers tell me has never been dry before, it is over 100m long and over 50 wide and normally has 6 to 8m depth of water :

There are other even larger pond areas around here that have dried this year, hopefully there will be enough rain soon to fill them.

Some farmers have put down bores such as this :

And no they do not cause land slumping or earthquakes or any other problems.

[trogers]

Fortunately farmers already know this and have been doing it for many years however this is an extraordinary year and many large ponds and wells that have always been reliable water sources have dried up, such as this pond which the farmers tell me has never been dry before, it is over 100m long and over 50 wide and normally has 6 to 8m depth of water :

empty dam.JPG

There are other even larger pond areas around here that have dried this year, hopefully there will be enough rain soon to fill them.

Some farmers have put down bores such as this : bore irrigation.JPG

And no they do not cause land slumping or earthquakes or any other problems.

Bore wells might be the cause of ponds drying up this season by lowering water tables.

[halloween]

Fortunately farmers already know this and have been doing it for many years however this is an extraordinary year and many large ponds and wells that have always been reliable water sources have dried up, such as this pond which the farmers tell me has never been dry before, it is over 100m long and over 50 wide and normally has 6 to 8m depth of water :

empty dam.JPG

There are other even larger pond areas around here that have dried this year, hopefully there will be enough rain soon to fill them.

Some farmers have put down bores such as this : bore irrigation.JPG

And no they do not cause land slumping or earthquakes or any other problems.

Bore wells might be the cause of ponds drying up this season by lowering water tables.

Storage ponds (aka dams) are sealed (where I come from).

BTW as a rule of thumb, if the water in a dam/pond is muddy, it is sealed well. Clear water indicates it is leaking.

[dcutman]

Fortunately farmers already know this and have been doing it for many years however this is an extraordinary year and many large ponds and wells that have always been reliable water sources have dried up, such as this pond which the farmers tell me has never been dry before, it is over 100m long and over 50 wide and normally has 6 to 8m depth of water :

empty dam.JPG

There are other even larger pond areas around here that have dried this year, hopefully there will be enough rain soon to fill them.

Some farmers have put down bores such as this : bore irrigation.JPG

And no they do not cause land slumping or earthquakes or any other problems.

Just curious on these ground water pumps not causing any problems. If this drought extends 2 more years and these pumps totally deplete the water table in that time? Then this drought goes into a another year, what do people do for household water if the area is completely void of any other water source? Would that not become a major problem then?

Edited May 10, 2015 by dcutman

[trogers]

Fortunately farmers already know this and have been doing it for many years however this is an extraordinary year and many large ponds and wells that have always been reliable water sources have dried up, such as this pond which the farmers tell me has never been dry before, it is over 100m long and over 50 wide and normally has 6 to 8m depth of water :

empty dam.JPG

There are other even larger pond areas around here that have dried this year, hopefully there will be enough rain soon to fill them.

Some farmers have put down bores such as this : bore irrigation.JPG

And no they do not cause land slumping or earthquakes or any other problems.

Bore wells might be the cause of ponds drying up this season by lowering water tables.

Storage ponds (aka dams) are sealed (where I come from).

BTW as a rule of thumb, if the water in a dam/pond is muddy, it is sealed well. Clear water indicates it is leaking.

When a pond is dug, we can tell if it is permeable to ground water table. If it is, water would gradually fill the hole just dug.

When the hole remains dry, it means either the hole is still above the water table, or the sides and bottom are not permeable.

[halloween]

Fortunately farmers already know this and have been doing it for many years however this is an extraordinary year and many large ponds and wells that have always been reliable water sources have dried up, such as this pond which the farmers tell me has never been dry before, it is over 100m long and over 50 wide and normally has 6 to 8m depth of water :

empty dam.JPG

There are other even larger pond areas around here that have dried this year, hopefully there will be enough rain soon to fill them.

Some farmers have put down bores such as this : bore irrigation.JPG

And no they do not cause land slumping or earthquakes or any other problems.

Bore wells might be the cause of ponds drying up this season by lowering water tables.

Storage ponds (aka dams) are sealed (where I come from).

BTW as a rule of thumb, if the water in a dam/pond is muddy, it is sealed well. Clear water indicates it is leaking.

When a pond is dug, we can tell if it is permeable to ground water table. If it is, water would gradually fill the hole just dug.

When the hole remains dry, it means either the hole is still above the water table, or the sides and bottom are not permeable.

A hole in the ground permeable to water is a well. A dam/storage pond is not permeable by definition.

[trogers]

Fortunately farmers already know this and have been doing it for many years however this is an extraordinary year and many large ponds and wells that have always been reliable water sources have dried up, such as this pond which the farmers tell me has never been dry before, it is over 100m long and over 50 wide and normally has 6 to 8m depth of water :

empty dam.JPG

There are other even larger pond areas around here that have dried this year, hopefully there will be enough rain soon to fill them.

Some farmers have put down bores such as this : bore irrigation.JPG

And no they do not cause land slumping or earthquakes or any other problems.

Bore wells might be the cause of ponds drying up this season by lowering water tables.

Storage ponds (aka dams) are sealed (where I come from).

BTW as a rule of thumb, if the water in a dam/pond is muddy, it is sealed well. Clear water indicates it is leaking.

When a pond is dug, we can tell if it is permeable to ground water table. If it is, water would gradually fill the hole just dug.

When the hole remains dry, it means either the hole is still above the water table, or the sides and bottom are not permeable.

A hole in the ground permeable to water is a well. A dam/storage pond is not permeable by definition.

I dug a pond 40x40x2m which is permeable to ground water. It's water level as of end of last week was "knee deep".

It is full during the rainy season, with a pipe (under the earth bund surrounding the pond) letting water from the field to flow into it.

Edited May 10, 2015 by trogers

[khwaibah]

Driving about today in my neck of the woods, Kap Choeng, I spotted 6 new 2 inch wells that were set up for a portable pump. This area has seen NO rain if any from November last year. This is in southern Surin about 5km from the Cambodian border. We have put a second well in just recently. Its not looking good.

Edited May 10, 2015 by khwaibah

[Pib]

I expect the farmers stand ready to build wells just as soon as the govt gives them the money or money starts growing on palm trees.

[Robby nz]

Fortunately farmers already know this and have been doing it for many years however this is an extraordinary year and many large ponds and wells that have always been reliable water sources have dried up, such as this pond which the farmers tell me has never been dry before, it is over 100m long and over 50 wide and normally has 6 to 8m depth of water :

empty dam.JPG

There are other even larger pond areas around here that have dried this year, hopefully there will be enough rain soon to fill them.

Some farmers have put down bores such as this : bore irrigation.JPG

And no they do not cause land slumping or earthquakes or any other problems.

Just curious on these ground water pumps not causing any problems. If this drought extends 2 more years and these pumps totally deplete the water table in that time? Then this drought goes into a another year, what do people do for household water if the area is completely void of any other water source? Would that not become a major problem then?

In a previous life before I came to TL one of the things I did was put down bores for household water.

These normally tap into an aquifer or underground stream or river so not everywhere is a suitable place to put down a bore, in some cases it was impossible to find water so no bore water. In some places the water that was there was deep and in others quite shallow.

You have probably heard of water divining which some scoff at as witchcraft but while it doesn't work for me I have seen those who can do it and have used it in finding the best place to put a bore.

With a bore its not like pumping out of a pond but more like out of a river where the water is flowing past and these underground streams will be the last to dry up after the surface rivers.

Farther, pumping water for growing rice is not a continues thing but periodic and is only done 3 or 4 times in each crop.

Briefly. After the dry paddy is disked it is then flooded and harrowed or alternately rotary hoed then if the seed is to be broadcast it is drained with the water being pumped into a holding area so it can be reused, the seed is then broadcast on to the mud that remains.

Once the rice has grown to about 10 or 15 cm the paddy is flooded to a depth of 3 or 4 cm with what remains of the stored water and toped from a water source

as needed. It is then left and only topped up again as needed till the rice is getting close to harvest when the paddy is allowed to dry, often pumped out.

This is only from my observations over several seasons not from personal experience as a rice farmer but I carry a camera and have photos of the whole process through to harvest.

It is very unlikely that even with a series of bores in an area that it would have a detrimental effect on the ground water available for the underground aquifers would likely be the first to be replenished in the rainy season.

[thesetat2013]

Given the expense of digging wells deep enough to find a good steady supply of water one would think the PM would be telling this to the proper ministry instead of the farmers who are already deeply in debt and barely able to pay the bills and loans they already have. It is not cheap to dig wells in Thailand and the deeper you have to go the more it costs.

[Lunchbob]

Stop the water from rapidly moving across fields. Slow it down, give it time to sink.

[djjamie]

I do a lot of work in Sudan with drill rigs that are based out of Thailand. PAT Drill rigs to be precise. They sell a complete package for $120 000usd. That includes, drill rig, compressor, mud pump, tooling etc.

So yes, to drill holes to tap into the water table is not cheap if you want a good return on investment of $120 000. Obviously there are home made sets that are cheaper. In KK I believe a government permit is required if you want to drill holes to irrigate your property…Maybe this does not apply in the centers outside urban areas.

Either way the Pm should direct this proposal to appropriate government departments and not farmers and it could be incorporated into the sustainable reform package that is being developed.

Remember 1 trillion baht was wasted on the farmers under a certain government. How many irrigation problems could have been solved for that amount of cash?

[Artisi]

Looks like this thread will bring out a good number of armchair experts on groundwater aquifers and their ability to solve the ongoing water shortage in parts of Thailand, considering the expertise in Thailand from what I have observed seems to run dry (excuse the deliberate pun) at about 80 metres below ground level (BGL) in soft alluvial material, whereas in many parts of the world ground water is extracted from many hundreds of metres BGL and in some places wells are drilled into rock / fractured rock.

[NCC1701A]

Fortunately farmers already know this and have been doing it for many years however this is an extraordinary year and many large ponds and wells that have always been reliable water sources have dried up, such as this pond which the farmers tell me has never been dry before, it is over 100m long and over 50 wide and normally has 6 to 8m depth of water :

empty dam.JPG

There are other even larger pond areas around here that have dried this year, hopefully there will be enough rain soon to fill them.

Some farmers have put down bores such as this : bore irrigation.JPG

And no they do not cause land slumping or earthquakes or any other problems.

Just curious on these ground water pumps not causing any problems. If this drought extends 2 more years and these pumps totally deplete the water table in that time? Then this drought goes into a another year, what do people do for household water if the area is completely void of any other water source? Would that not become a major problem then?

In a previous life before I came to TL one of the things I did was put down bores for household water.

These normally tap into an aquifer or underground stream or river so not everywhere is a suitable place to put down a bore, in some cases it was impossible to find water so no bore water. In some places the water that was there was deep and in others quite shallow.

You have probably heard of water divining which some scoff at as witchcraft but while it doesn't work for me I have seen those who can do it and have used it in finding the best place to put a bore.

With a bore its not like pumping out of a pond but more like out of a river where the water is flowing past and these underground streams will be the last to dry up after the surface rivers.

Farther, pumping water for growing rice is not a continues thing but periodic and is only done 3 or 4 times in each crop.

Briefly. After the dry paddy is disked it is then flooded and harrowed or alternately rotary hoed then if the seed is to be broadcast it is drained with the water being pumped into a holding area so it can be reused, the seed is then broadcast on to the mud that remains.

Once the rice has grown to about 10 or 15 cm the paddy is flooded to a depth of 3 or 4 cm with what remains of the stored water and toped from a water source

as needed. It is then left and only topped up again as needed till the rice is getting close to harvest when the paddy is allowed to dry, often pumped out.

This is only from my observations over several seasons not from personal experience as a rice farmer but I carry a camera and have photos of the whole process through to harvest.

It is very unlikely that even with a series of bores in an area that it would have a detrimental effect on the ground water available for the underground aquifers would likely be the first to be replenished in the rainy season.

i have done water divining in Montana and it works. the divining rods move when you pass over water.

[dcutman]

Fortunately farmers already know this and have been doing it for many years however this is an extraordinary year and many large ponds and wells that have always been reliable water sources have dried up, such as this pond which the farmers tell me has never been dry before, it is over 100m long and over 50 wide and normally has 6 to 8m depth of water :

empty dam.JPG

There are other even larger pond areas around here that have dried this year, hopefully there will be enough rain soon to fill them.

Some farmers have put down bores such as this : bore irrigation.JPG

And no they do not cause land slumping or earthquakes or any other problems.

Just curious on these ground water pumps not causing any problems. If this drought extends 2 more years and these pumps totally deplete the water table in that time? Then this drought goes into a another year, what do people do for household water if the area is completely void of any other water source? Would that not become a major problem then?

In a previous life before I came to TL one of the things I did was put down bores for household water.

These normally tap into an aquifer or underground stream or river so not everywhere is a suitable place to put down a bore, in some cases it was impossible to find water so no bore water. In some places the water that was there was deep and in others quite shallow.

You have probably heard of water divining which some scoff at as witchcraft but while it doesn't work for me I have seen those who can do it and have used it in finding the best place to put a bore.

With a bore its not like pumping out of a pond but more like out of a river where the water is flowing past and these underground streams will be the last to dry up after the surface rivers.

Farther, pumping water for growing rice is not a continues thing but periodic and is only done 3 or 4 times in each crop.

Briefly. After the dry paddy is disked it is then flooded and harrowed or alternately rotary hoed then if the seed is to be broadcast it is drained with the water being pumped into a holding area so it can be reused, the seed is then broadcast on to the mud that remains.

Once the rice has grown to about 10 or 15 cm the paddy is flooded to a depth of 3 or 4 cm with what remains of the stored water and toped from a water source

as needed. It is then left and only topped up again as needed till the rice is getting close to harvest when the paddy is allowed to dry, often pumped out.

This is only from my observations over several seasons not from personal experience as a rice farmer but I carry a camera and have photos of the whole process through to harvest.

It is very unlikely that even with a series of bores in an area that it would have a detrimental effect on the ground water available for the underground aquifers would likely be the first to be replenished in the rainy season.

Thanks, interesting stuff.

But the entire country does not sit on top of an aquifer and ground water sources are finite. Some of these underground sources may take many years, some, centuries to replenish naturally.

It seems a bit dangerous to tap into these resources without serious need or thought, and to supply water to the most water intensive crop there is, just does not make sense, not with number like this The production cost rose from Bt4,835 per rai in 2004 to Bt10,685 in 2013. However, the yield stayed unchanged at 450 kg per rai http://www.nationmultimedia.com/business/High-cost-to-pull-down-Thailands-rice-exports-in-n-30243947.html. If these numbers are are even ballpark close, farmers would be loosing money at the moment and considering the country is siting on a huge stockpile of rice, its just a waste of water. Farmers need to grow something different in these times.

Liters of water per kg of grain

400l corn kg

800l soybeans kg

5000l rice kg

[trogers]

I expect the farmers stand ready to build wells just as soon as the govt gives them the money or money starts growing on palm trees.

I don't think the govt would give cash outright. Each province may engage a few contractors to excavate ponds or sink wells district by district free of charge.

[khwaibah]

I expect the farmers stand ready to build wells just as soon as the govt gives them the money or money starts growing on palm trees.

I don't think the govt would give cash outright. Each province may engage a few contractors to excavate ponds or sink wells district by district free of charge.

The wells I saw today were not done by the government but by the private farmer.

[Your Thainess]

How about this headline:

'Farmers Suggest the Military Go Back to Barracks and Clarify Job Description'

???

[elgordo38]

bank loans?

The government was urgently helping farmers with money? or encouragement which of course is free. Farmers are at the top of the food chain here producing food but unfortunately are at the bottom of the financial baht chain.

[anon4546543]

I am in the process of building a modest house just outside of Kabinburi. I have made gutters to collect rainfall from the roof and put into a 4000 litre "tank". The over flow will go into a "hole in the ground" is the best way I can describe it. It has fish in it and this year my wife said the water in it is so low. Many villagers have taken a few fish from this hole because the fish are struggling with lack of water. The fish are tilapia and snakehead. I think that is the right names. The villagers laughed at me a few years ago when I spoke about water storage, now they are asking about how to collect water for storage for the dry season. The climate is changing and making preparations for long periods of little water makes sense to me. Not drinking water, just water to keep the few coconuts, bananas and flowering plants alive in my humble abode.

[Thai at Heart]

Oh my lord.

Next he will say they can make it rain at will.....Oh of course, they do.....So why isn't it raining....