Phuket's new Chalong reservoir to serve 100,000 residents

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Phuket's new Chalong reservoir to serve 100,000 residents 

Shela Riva

 

The Chalong dam is expected to be completed by July. Photo: Pichet Pakkasat

 

After more than a decade in planning and construction, the long-awaited Khlong Katha Reservoir in Chalong is expected to be complete in July, and to start collecting heaven-sent rainwater when the rainy season begins drenching Phuket in the coming weeks.

 

Also locally called the “Chalong Dam”, the B480-million project is located near Srisupharam temple among the foothills at the end of Chao Fa West Rd Soi 69 and funded by the Royal Irrigation Department (RID).

 

The reservoir will be used to supply tap water to homes in Chalong, Rawai, Kata and Karon, and Pichet Pakkasat, Director of the RID’s Construction Division’s regional office, confirmed to The Phuket News this week.

 

“It will take not more than one year to fill up the reservoir and use it to begin supplying water,” Mr Pichet confirmed.

 

“Currently, it is 87% complete.”

 

The reservoir is up to 927 metres long and in parts up to 23m deep, with a maximum water storage capacity of 4.3 million cubic metres, Mr Pichet explained.

 

When ready for use, the reservoir water will be treated by the Phuket Provincial Waterworks Authority (PPWA), which supplies and distributes 70% of water in Phuket, he added.

 

“Water to be distributed will be treated by filtration installed alongside the reservoir and managed by the PPWA, and then the water will be distributed from there to the target areas, by PPWA pipelines,” Mr Pichet said.

 

“The filtration system is already installed at the same site, right beside the reservoir.”

 

In case of any danger of water levels breaching the dam wall, overflow will be drained into an emergency spillway and reserve, which will store a further 200,000 cubic metres of water.

 

“The highest water capacity is 4.5 million cubic metres with emergency storage,” Mr Pichet explained.

 

The Chalong Dam capacity is nearly 3 million cubic metres less than that of Bang Wad Dam, Phuket’s main reservoir supplying tap water, which holds about 7.3 million cubic metres.

Full story: http://www.thephuketnews.com/phuket-new-chalong-reservoir-to-serve-100-000-residents-61882.php#aPDSFOOyze8K8lbp.97

 

 

 

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