Govt urged to scrap big irrigation projects and opt for small-scale local initiatives

[rooster59]

Govt urged to scrap big irrigation projects and opt for small-scale local initiatives

By PRATCH RUJIVANAROM 
THE SUNDAY NATION

 

THE Royal Irrigation Department has said that it would activate many irrigation projects this year amid warnings from experts that large-scale irrigation projects often result in conflict while urging the government to invest in small-scale local reservoirs instead.

 

Water has been a problematic issue for Thailand in recent years, with the country facing its biggest flooding crisis in decades in 2011 followed by severe droughts in 2015 and 2016.

 

Full story: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/news/national/30303249

 

 

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2017-01-01

[Srikcir]

8 hours ago, rooster59 said:

invest in small-scale local reservoirs instead

How about a couple thousand more wells! And triple the size of the Rainmaking Air Force. Things that have instant results and promote good feelings.

Doing large-scale irrigation projects just takes too much science to plan and implement a comprehensive nationally coordinated program that may take years to mature.

[debate101]

I bet they will listen.

[Brer Fox]

".......small-scale local reservoirs instead".

More opportunity for the local boys to skim off the funding. 

 

 

[plachon]

2 hours ago, Brer Fox said:

".......small-scale local reservoirs instead".

More opportunity for the local boys to skim off the funding. 

 

 

Whatever size the project, there is bound to be skimming going on. The dispute seems to be whether it is better to let lots of lower level phu yais skim on the local projects at provincial, district and tambon level, or concentrate the skimming opportunities at the central level amongst the top elites. Nobody seems to be considering the possibility that maybe Thailand has more than enough irrigation projects already, and perhaps it is time to look at which existing ones are working, which ones aren't (and why) and maybe the money could be better spent on maintaining existing infrastructure and removing the ones that don't work, thus freeing up water and land in the process. Learn the lesson of Yai Hai in Ubon, for instance, who lost her land to an irrigation reservoir that was useless, fought for 30 years to get it back and eventually won. In reality, there are tens of thousands of Yai Hais in Thailand who would benefit from irrigation system removal. 

[kannot]

7 hours ago, Brer Fox said:

".......small-scale local reservoirs instead".

More opportunity for the local boys to skim off the funding. 

 

 

u  mean  like the  2   million  baht  useless piece  of  shiiiiite  they  "built" by  me  which  has NO water in after a  quite  wet wet season..........done  with no  planning, they found out " too many stone"  in the ground, it sits there now..useless but at least everyone involved got paid. 

Combine this with the network of extremely badly "maintained" existing concrete  water channels whereby once every 3-4 years they get a makro to scrape the weeds  off breaking up the concrete sides in many places and "bingo" it  all falls into place......or into the hole where water should be

Edited January 1, 2017 by kannot