The chairman of a forest conservation NGO said on Friday the loss of a vital tiger habitat is not worth the construction of the Mae Wong Dam in Nakhon Sawan province when there are other options.
Environmental activists from the Seub Nakhasathien Foundation hold an activity to oppose the Nakhon Sawan-based Mae Wong Dam project at the Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning on Friday. (Photo by Apichart Jinakul)
Speaking at the Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning (Onep) yesterday, Sasin Chalermlarp, chairman of the Seub Nakhasathien Foundation, told experts conducting the environment and health impact assessment (EHIA) that building a dam inside Mae Wong National Park in Nakhon Sawan is not worth the investment as it has a very low water storage capacity of around 200 million cubic metres.
Normally, a big dam can store one billion cu/m of water. Mr Sasin said if the government insists on building the dam in the national park, the tigers living in the adjoining Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary — the largest tiger habitat in Southeast Asia — will lose their home.
Mr Sasin, who in September two years ago spearheaded an anti-Mae Wong Dam campaign by walking 354km from Mae Wong district to Bangkok to enlist public support, was invited yesterday to present his views at Onep, along with representatives from the Department of Royal Irrigation.
Mr Sasin said the foundation had earlier proposed an alternative type of water management, suggesting locals living in water-insecure locations dig household ponds to store water during the dry season.
There is no need to lose a fertile forest complex when ponds can hold over 250 million cu/m of water and are six times cheaper to build, he said, adding the value of the investment could exceed 13 billion baht. “I told the experts we oppose the Mae Wong Dam construction project. The strong efforts we have made to rehabilitate the forest in the national park in the past 20 years will mean nothing if the dam is constructed,” he said.
It was the second time the experts have reviewed the EHIA study since Mr Sasin's protest walk two years ago. Somkiat Prajamwong, the director of the Project Management Office with the Royal Irrigation Department, admitted approving the EHIA will take a long time as much of the report needs to be amended.
According to the EHIA, if the dam construction is successful, 102 villages in Mae Wong, Lat Yao and Muang districts of Nakhon Sawan province, Khanu Woralaksaburi district of Kamphaeng Phet, and Sawang Arom district of Uthai Thani will receive enough water to irrigate an estimated 291,900 rai of farmland in the rainy season and 116,545 rai in the dry season, respectively.