Tap water services to parts of Bangkok to be suspended

[donnybay]

Simple answer, the drought this year is not just in northern and northeastern provinces, these retention ponds hold 3 million liters do they?

We have not had any decent rain in Eastern Seaboard for months, except one freak day, to fill these ponds

[thaihome]

Simple answer, the drought this year is not just in northern and northeastern provinces, these retention ponds hold 3 million liters do they?

We have not had any decent rain in Eastern Seaboard for months, except one freak day, to fill these ponds

I could have sworn I have seen numerous articles about the drought impacting 17 northern and northeastern provinces. Can't recall seeing Chonburi or Rayong mentioned. I also note that rainfall in January was well above average for almost all of Thailand. This is good news after it being below normal for most of last year due to the El Nino condition that is forecasted to continue to weaken and go away later

this year.

Last year's low rainfall is what is causing the low levels in the reservoirs now which is biggest impact being reported. This is mainly due the excessive lowering of the reservoirs after the 2011 floods when the irrigation dept was heavily critized for keeping them too full before the rainy season. The El Nino that appeared last tear was a bit unexpected and was stronger then forecasted once it was recognized, hence the irrigation dept was caught out by mother nature again.

TH

[donnybay]

Simple answer, the drought this year is not just in northern and northeastern provinces, these retention ponds hold 3 million liters do they?

We have not had any decent rain in Eastern Seaboard for months, except one freak day, to fill these ponds

I could have sworn I have seen numerous articles about the drought impacting 17 northern and northeastern provinces. Can't recall seeing Chonburi or Rayong mentioned. I also note that rainfall in January was well above average for almost all of Thailand. This is good news after it being below normal for most of last year due to the El Nino condition that is forecasted to continue to weaken and go away later

this year.

Last year's low rainfall is what is causing the low levels in the reservoirs now which is biggest impact being reported. This is mainly due the excessive lowering of the reservoirs after the 2011 floods when the irrigation dept was heavily critized for keeping them too full before the rainy season. The El Nino that appeared last tear was a bit unexpected and was stronger then forecasted once it was recognized, hence the irrigation dept was caught out by mother nature again.

TH

http://www.bangkokpost.com/photo/photo/405377/thailand-faces-severe-drought

Edited March 24, 2016 by donnybay

[Scouse Twoccer]

Ok, let's go with facts but let's make them relevant, eh?

Regarding the question that you side-stepped, which golf course that you have evidence of is currently using water from the dwindling public supply to irrigate with? How much is that course actually using? If you don't know which courses are using water, and in what quantities, your guesses at consumption are meaningless.

Just because a golf course could consume 2.3m litres per day doesn't mean that any or all of them are doing that, does it? Unless you're an alarmist, of course.

You may also like to have a think about whether every golf course in Thailand waters it's greens to saturation 365 days of the year. Here's the answer, they don't.

The UNESCO figures that you quote comparing golf courses potential consumption to that of rural villagers is also meaningless unless the water consumption of those individual villagers is referenced.

"your guesses at consumption are meaningless"

There not my guesses at consumption, they are UNESCO, and they actually mention Thai courses in particular. I have no reason to doubt them, and seen nothing from you to suggest otherwise

They say, if you read it again "an eighteen-hole golf course can consume MORE than 2.3 million litres a day" it does not say a month, week or every other day, its a day

More, so it would seem they are being cautious

There are web site after web site with facts about golf course water usage and its impact on the environment not just in Thailand but around the world, I have seen no facts to say "we don't use that amount for an 18 hole course"

That report uses the word "can", not "does", in relation to water consumption. That is the point I was making and that's where your argument collapses. Not every course in Thailand uses that amount.

Any progress yet with identifying just one golf course in Thailand that is using these massive amount of water from the public supply on a daily basis, 365 days a year? No? Didn't think so. Actual evidence as opposed to theoretical reports is much more convincing.

[thaihome]

...these retention ponds hold 3 million liters do they?

...

A fifty acre pond 5 feet deep will hold about 30 million liters. The golf courses I have played all have something like 20 to 50 acres ponds, most are 5 to 10 feet deep.

Again, have you ever been on a golf course in Thailand?

TH

[thaihome]

http://www.bangkokpost.com/photo/photo/405377/thailand-faces-severe-drought

Those photos are from April 2014, before the rainy season began in May.

Here is the meteorology dept summary for 2014:

In 2014, Thailand was not directly affected by any tropical cyclones.

However, there were several tropical cyclones which had indirect influence on the

weather in Thailand. The monthly rainfall amounts varied regionally but from

January to May and September to October were below normal especially January to

March, which was more than 50 % below normal over the whole areas. However,

rainy season started at late May and many locations in upper Thailand experienced

a succession of rain events. June to August also received plentiful rainfall and

slightly above normal by the influence of active southwest monsoon that

periodically prevailed over the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand associated

with the monsoon trough and active low pressure cell which occasionally located in

upper Thailand. Moreover, some areas of upper Thailand experienced abundant

rainfall and flash floods in late July, mid-September and late November caused by

the indirect impact of typhoon RAMMASUN (1409), typhoon KALMAEGI

(1415) and tropical storm SINLAKU(1421), respectively. By the way,

unseasonal rainfall occasionally occurred in some areas of upper Thailand during

early and late December by the influence of a rather active high pressure areas

accompanied with northeast monsoon. The 2014 heaviest daily rainfall of 407.0

mm at Amphoe Su-ngai Padi in Narathiwat province on December 17.

Edited March 25, 2016 by thaihome

[donnybay]

Even worse this year, turn off the water to the courses for six months, lets see if it helps

[thaihome]

Even worse this year, turn off the water to the courses for six months, lets see if it helps

How can you turn off something that is not connected to public water sources?

Are suggesting the golf courses not be allowed to use private water stores on their property to irrigate?

TH

[donnybay]

Even worse this year, turn off the water to the courses for six months, lets see if it helps

How can you turn off something that is not connected to public water sources?

Are suggesting the golf courses not be allowed to use private water stores on their property to irrigate?

TH

Still waiting to hear how these mega ponds are filled when it has barely rained for months anywhere in Thailand, yet they find millions of cubic gallons every day, i guess the grass coughs it all up again, and again, and again back into the pond.

God must give then private water sources, as likely as the one he walked across.

Amount of water it would take, per day, to support 4.7 billion people at the UN daily minimum: 2.5 billion gallons

Amount of water used, per day, to irrigate the world’s golf courses: 2.5 billion gallons

Golfers will never win this augment, there are just too many facts, pesticides aside that they pump into the ground, and nothing to suggest how they miraculously find water from ponds lol

[thaihome]

Even worse this year, turn off the water to the courses for six months, lets see if it helps

How can you turn off something that is not connected to public water sources?

Are suggesting the golf courses not be allowed to use private water stores on their property to irrigate?

TH

Still waiting to hear how these mega ponds are filled when it has barely rained for months anywhere in Thailand, yet they find millions of cubic gallons every day, i guess the grass coughs it all up again, and again, and again back into the pond.

God must give then private water sources, as likely as the one he walked across.

Amount of water it would take, per day, to support 4.7 billion people at the UN daily minimum: 2.5 billion gallons

Amount of water used, per day, to irrigate the worlds golf courses: 2.5 billion gallons

Golfers will never win this augment, there are just too many facts, pesticides aside that they pump into the ground, and nothing to suggest how they miraculously find water from ponds lol

Rayong has had 113 mm of rain since January 1st, 56mm over normal. Bangkok has had 72 mm of rain, 39mm over normal. That's how those rention ponds still have water in them.

I don't disagree that in some parts of the world golf courses may use public sources of water or deplete water tables to the detriment of local people. My point is that does not happen in the Bangkok or eastern seaboard areas. Stopping golf courses from irrigating, using their own sources of water storage, is not going to help the areas that are having shortages in their water storage.

TH

Edited March 31, 2016 by thaihome