Rain-making strategy to be adjusted in April to coincide with change in weather



BANGKOK: -- The Agriculture Ministry will adjust its rain-making strategy in April by shifting its focus on drought-stricken areas and on replenishing drying dams, said Agriculture Minister Chatchai Sarikalya on Wednesday.

Citing forecast of the Meteorological Department that there is a prospect of widespread covering most of the country in April, he said that the adjusting of the rain-making strategy could have a 10-20 percent chance of cloud seeding and rains.

He said that during March 5-25, a total of 105 rain-making flights were launched resulting to rains in 21 provinces covering 6.8 million rai of land and 15.8 million cubic metres of water flowing into dams.

Meanwhile, Royal Irrigation Department chief Suthep Noypairote said that the salt level at Samlae in the Chao Phraya river in Pathum Thani which was the source of tap water for Bangkok and peripherals increased to 0.5 gramme/litre from 0.25 gramme/litre due to the invasion of sea water as a result of the southeastern wind.

The increased salt content in the water has prompted the department to discharge more water downstream from dam at a rate of 110 cubic metres/second.

The salt content has dropped to 0.25 gramme/litre as measured on Wednesday, said Mr Suthep, adding that another period of high tide is due on April 8-9 but the water in the Chao Phraya river will be safe for tap water.

Mr Lersak Riewtrakul, director-general of Rain-making and Agriculture Aviation Department, disclosed that there are only four million cubic metres of water left in the Ubonrat dam or only one percent of its full capacity.

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/content/157564


-- Thai PBS 2016-03-31

Rain making strategy, major drought, announcements of achievement. How to make a fool of oneself!

If you get a plane in the air and it rains that day you can take credit for it.

April is the time we generally get some scattered thunderstorms so they should have much more success soon.

Seems like they will claim benefit for rain making when rainy season arrives.

After more than half a century of experimentation in many countries the US National Research Council states, “there still is no convincing scientific proof of the efficacy of intentional weather modification efforts. In some instances there are strong indications of induced changes, but this evidence has not been subjected to tests of significance and reproducibility.”

Yet there are more than 100 ongoing weather modification activities in 24 countries, including Thailand. While cloud-seeding experiments have shown mixed results, many operational cloud-seeding programs continue, based on what is seen as circumstantial or indirect evidence of positive results.

In Thailand, the Agriculture Ministry's Bureau of Royal Rainmaking and Agricultural Aviation. Cloud seeding, however, will continue throughout the year.

Rainmaking operations occur every year in line with the rainmaking department's annual operations plan, the budget for which is set at about 1 billion baht ($25 million).

Yet Thailand is currently undergoing its worst drought in decades...