Even worse Thai flood crisis this year unless govt is decisive

The Nation/Asia News Network AsiaOne 26 Jan 12;

Water experts yesterday urged the government to be decisive about flood-prevention measures in order to prevent a repeat of last year's severe flooding, as the La Nina phenomenon is expected to bring early rains and more storms this year.

They expressed concern that a lack of clear decisions from the government would leave the flood-prevention efforts in disarray.

Seree Supharatid, director of Rangsit University's Centre on Climate Change and Disaster, warned that due to the La Nina climatic phenomenon, early rainfalls were expected between March and May, which would force dams to release water from their reservoirs.

He said major dams such as Bhumibol and Sirikit were holding water at 90 per cent of their capacity.

Although there would be fewer rains between September and November, storms were likely towards the latter part of the year, given the statistics over the past five decades.

"There will also be many storms this year," Seree said.

"If this year's water volume is as much as last year's, I believe floods will be inevitable. We cannot implement flood-prevention measures in the short term. The negotiation over floodways has hit snags," he said, referring to opposition to a plan to designate certain farming areas as floodways.

Pramote Maiklad, former director-general of the Royal Irrigation Department, said yesterday there had been no clear guidelines on how to deal with future flooding in Bangkok and the surrounding provinces, and the government had yet to come up with a water resources management proposal.

He called on the government to follow His Majesty the King's suggestions, made as early as 1980, about designating floodways and green belts to prevent flooding in the capital and its surrounding provinces.

He added that the royal advice had been largely ignored by previous administrations.

Pramote said floodways - or even water tunnels - were needed as a sustainable measure to prevent severe flooding in the lower parts of the Chao Phraya River basin.

Seree and Pramote were speaking at a panel discussion on "Mega-projects against Floods: Are they well thought, rightly thought, and carefully thought?", at Chulalongkorn University.

The event was organised by the university's Asia Studies Institute and King Prajadhipok's Institute, an independent academic organisation under the Parliament.

Both are members of the government's Strategic Committee for Water Resources Management, which was set up late last year following the floods in many Central plains provinces, including Bangkok.

Seree, who is also director of the Sirindhorn International Environmental Park's Energy and Environment Centre, noted that out of the country's 77 provinces, only four announced their city plans.

"Without the city plans being enforced, there are problems" in preventing floods, he said.

Borwornsak Uwanno, secretary-general of King Prajadhipok's Institute, said at yesterday's seminar that without good preparation and management plans, this year's flood problems would be worse than last year's.

Meanwhile, in a petition filed with the Central Administrative Court yesterday, the Stop Global Warming Association (SGWA) demanded that the government award the same amount in compensation to those affected by floods as it will be giving to victims of political unrest.

"The government should not resort to preferential treatment," SGWA president Srisuwan Janya said.

According to the Cabinet's resolution on January 10, the family of every person killed during political unrest in recent years shall be entitled to about Bt7.75 million (S$310,835) in compensation. Critics have slammed the resolution, suggesting that the government is favouring its red-shirt supporters.

"If the government compensates flood victims in the same manner, it will win even more love from the people," Srisuwan said yesterday, adding that the government should be fair to those affected by its own mismanagement of the flood crisis.

Thailand Remains At Risk Of Floods Until 2014
Bernama 31 Jan 12;

BANGKOK, Jan 31 (Bernama) -- An expert has cautioned that Thailand remains at risk of repeated floods over the next three years, Thai News Agency reported Tuesday.

However, the lessons learned from a worst flooding crisis late last year, should attribute to authorities' improved solutions to flood-related problems this year, said Pramote Maiklad, a member of the Thai government's Strategic Committee for Water Resources Management (SCWRM) and a former Royal Irrigation Department Director-General.

Pramote voiced his support for the Royal Irrigation Department's water management policy on reserving 80-85 per cent of water at upstream areas of dams for farmers' use during the upcoming dry season.

Explaining further, he said that a gradual release of water from the dams for local farming until May is foreseen to timely welcome the rainy season, as water levels at the dams will be then lower to cater new seasonal downpours.

According to him, it is impossible to now release all water from the dams to be prepared for this year's rainy season, as reserved water is needed for power production, marine transport and agricultural use, as well as for ecological conservation.

He also denied reports that he has quit the SCWRM, suggesting, however, that the SCWRM hold regular meetings to quickly work out Thailand's short-term and long-term flood prevention strategies, and that a single agency be mainly tasked with the government's water management plans for the sake of unified work and implementations for effective solutions.

-- BERNAMA