Flat terrain slowing down drainage

 

Experts from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) yesterday suggested the Thai government find more methods to drain off floodwater. The region’s not-very-steep topography was resulting in slow water drainage, meaning the flood level would remain stable for two to three weeks.

Japanese ambassador to Thailand Seiji Kojima yesterday brought JICA experts on water management, waterworks and flood prevention in airports and subway stations to meet with Justice Minister Pracha Promnok, the Flood Relief Operations Command (FROC) director. Thai and Japanese media were excluded as the experts presented their findings about the Thai flood situation since October 20.

After the meeting, Pracha said the centre would arrange for the Thai floodwater team to consult with the JICA drainage experts. Seiji said through a translator the Japanese government was ready to help Thailand in return for the Kingdom’s kindness and aid to the Japanese people during the recent tsunami there.

JICA senior adviser for water drainage Kimio Takeya said Thailand’s economic development – such as the industrial estates in the Chao Phraya River basin, developed after the Japanese model in 1999 – had advanced faster than the water drainage system. 

He was careful, however, not to say the industrial estates were blocking waterways. He said industrial estates in Japan dug wells to retain water before it poured into the estates. 

For future flood-tackling, it was necessary for people, communities and state agencies to brainstorm for solutions, he said.

Asked if there were more ways to quickly drain water from flooded areas, Takeya said he believed the government would find an answer, although Thailand’s terrain |wasn’t steep and floodwaters would drain slowly and the flooding |condition could remain for |another two to three weeks.

An informed source reported that the JICA presentation to Pracha included comments on: flood prevention at Suvarnabhumi International Airport, which the experts saw as “good”; and flood prevention at subway stations, where they expressed concern over many flood-risk spots such as the entrances and ventilation channels. 

The experts’ recent visit to the BMCL found the company had good flood-prevention measures in place with 1m-3.2m high floodwalls. However they worried that if floodwaters rose over four metres the subway system would be affected.