Ministers row over flood projects
At a Cabinet meeting yesterday, the two ministers in charge of flood prevention appeared to have several differences over the urgency of certain projects. They were arguing about the lack of time and the need to conduct mandatory assessments, before Prime
Natural Resources and Environment Minister Preecha Rengsomboonsuk said water-catchment areas in many provinces needed an initial environmental examination (IEE) and a subsequent environmental impact assessment (EIA), which would take at least six months or even a year to complete. Science Minister Plodprasob Surassawadee, on the other hand, said that this process would consume too much time and make the entire mechanism fail if floods occurred in coming months.
He suggested that Preecha readjust the IEE and EIA regulations so they are completed in time and that other projects under a government flood-and-water management committee were already in place, making Preecha’s proposal for the EIA-mandated projects redundant. Yingluck later ordered the ministers to discuss the issue privately and find a way to implement them without violating the IEE or EIA requirements.
Plodprasob, meanwhile, defending a key condition welcoming foreign companies in a term of reference invitation for bidding on an overall flood-management project, said advanced technology brought by companies from outside Thailand would make anti-flood operations most reliable.
He said there were a few foreign firms that have tendered their bids, while 20 local companies were also showing an interest.
He said other foreign companies might be awaiting verification documents from their embassies – a requirement in the bidding. There are a large number of foreign companies from 26 countries that have shown interest in the Bt300-billion project. The bidding for this project began on Monday and will run until July 23.
Also yesterday, the Cabinet approved an additional Bt500-million for flood prevention and the money will be spent on water pumps, water drainage and other tools needed in directing water to the sea. Some of the funds are also earmarked for evacuation and other relevant emergency drills.
