Drought or ample rain? Water chiefs disagree on late year forecasts

Most major dams currently hold about 46 per cent of their water capacity. Pasak Cholasit Dam has the lowest level at only 12 per cent, the department said.
Previously Hydro and Agro Informatics Institute (HAII) director Royol Chitradorn predicted the rainy season would come early with a large amount of higher than average rainfall.
Now the RID office of water management and hydrology head Dr Thongplew Kongchan has  provided contrary information.
Thongplew said the department’s committee to follow-up and analyse the water situation had found that this year’s overall rainfall would be about the same as 2012’s average rainfall.
Later this year would see more periods of no-rain while there would be only one storm in August-September and one storm in October-November.
He said the country’s dams currently held 32,551 million cubic metres -- or 46 per cent of capacity. They would be able to support rainwater of another 37,000 million cubic metres.
Thongplew said that Tak’s Bhumiphol Dam now holds water at 34 per cent of capacity and could take another 8,900 million cubic metres. Uttaradit’s Sirikit Dam stands at 35 per cent of capacity and could store another 6,000 million cubic metres; while Pasak Cholasit Dam stands at12 per cent of capacity and could take another 680 million cubic metres.
The Chao Phraya river basin’s rice-growing area – covering 500,000 rai in Lop Buri, Saraburi, Angthong, Chainat and Pathum Thani – would use rainwater and be promoted to use water pumps, he said. This year’s drought would remain if there was no heavy rainfall in August-September, he said -- in line with the Thai Meteorological Department’s information that forecast the low amount of rainfall – which contradicted Royol’s information. He said RID believed the Thai Meteorological Department was prepared to see that the seasonal rice-growing got sufficient water and then would decide in September-October whether the off-season rice growing scheme for 2013-2014 was doable or not.
Meanwhile RID deputy chief Paijen Maksuwan said the department, to mark its 111-year anniversary, aimed to expand irrigation areas to 63.6 million rai from the current 29.6 million rai. However, there was still a limitation on funding because the department received only Bt30 billion-Bt40 billion per year to develop water sources while also facing objections from local residents in dam construction areas. As a result, the department planned to expand its irrigation areas by only 200,000 rai so far, he said.
To achieve the goal, the department had various projects including 2,363 reservoirs (of 26 major reservoirs, most of which were under the Water and Flood Management Commission’s plan) as well as 1,877 weirs, 549 sluice gates/barrages, 1,676 water pump stations, 1,471 water retention area projects, and 37 waterway network development projects.
If things went as planned the country’s irrigation area would expand by 34 million rai, he said. Thailand’s water demand stands currently at 162,150 million cubic metres per year.