Smith warns of dam peril

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Fears grow of another massive flood disaster

Published: 11/01/2012 at 02:37 AM
Newspaper section: News

Experts fear that the high water levels in some of the country's major dams could lead to disaster.

Disaster prevention and water management experts are worried that the delay in discharging water from the dams could lead to a repeat of last year's catastrophic floods.

"This is definitely a worrying sign," National Disaster Warning Council chairman Smith Dharmasaroja told the Bangkok Post in a phone interview yesterday. "Agencies in charge of dam operations must urgently release water from the dams to make sure there is enough room to receive new inflows during the approaching rainy season."

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Writer: Kultida Samabuddhi & Apinya Wipatayotin

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banmebkk
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Discussion 32 : 12/01/2012 at 04:48 PM32
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Its going to flood again this year. Great promise the PTP had during their campaign..."No more floods". People seem to forget quick or for those who can't read Thai, that was one of their campaign points to counter the DEMs who mishandled the flooding in 2010 as well.
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onlyme
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Discussion 31 : 11/01/2012 at 08:02 PM31
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Not to worry as I am sure that the government has cleared out the condominiums and golf courses that were built illegally on the natural canals. They have also, I'm sure, repaired all of the broken or inoperable sluice gates and have cleaned the garbage and vegetation as they were dredging the canals. There should be no problem.
What me worry?
Alfred R. Neuman
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dao
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Discussion 30 : 11/01/2012 at 05:40 PM30
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These dams should be left alone .Politicians shouldn't be allowed to control anything about them . We observed a few months ago the result of selfish greed trying to horde water so farmers could grow another rice crop .
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spiceman
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Discussion 29 : 11/01/2012 at 04:30 PM29
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Khun Bern #19, Bhumibol Dam and Sirikit Dam have been operating since 1970 and 1972 respectively. That's more than 40 years ago, so do you think it was by sheer luck or by design that a flooding catastrophe had yet befallen Thailand until last year? If you bother to look at the data at Bhumibol Dam, you will see both the maximum and minimum limits throughout the year, where the water level was supposed to be, in order to prevent neither drought nor flooding. Don't you know where those upper and lower limits came from? They were formulation based on 40+ years of the accumulative data, which had been collected since the dams became operational. Last year, the water level in October was allowed to exceed the upper limit for the first time, and when the late monsoon arrived, all hells broke loose. AG Minister, himself, later said he was the one who ordered to have the water at the dams withheld for the farmers. And I am anxious to hear what would be his excuse this year for keeping the water level above the upper limit for January?
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samut
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Discussion 28 : 11/01/2012 at 02:17 PM28
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Khun Smith gave a stern warning ahead of the Tsunami but it was ignored by the people in charge – under the Thai Rak Thai Government by the way Discussion 1 – and we all know what happened. Can only hope that this time someone in power will listen? But I doubt they will do so!
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soltair
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Discussion 27 : 11/01/2012 at 01:40 PM27
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Can someone in the PTP government inform the insurance companies in Thailand that the flooding was NOT a natural disaster but a man-made one. All insurance companies are now removing things such as "wind storm damage" out of the home user policies but are keeping aircraft damage in, as if that will ever happen.
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mr.meldrew
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Discussion 26 : 11/01/2012 at 01:39 PM26
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drsmith D20 Re' floods intentional to create huge budget? the same thoughts have gone through my mind
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soltair
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Discussion 25 : 11/01/2012 at 01:38 PM25
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Can someone in the PTP government inform the insurance companies in Thailand that the flooding was NOT a natural disaster but a man-made one. All insurance companies are now removing things such as "wind storm damage" out of the home user policies but are keeping aircraft damage in, as if that will ever happen.
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soltair
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Discussion 24 : 11/01/2012 at 01:38 PM24
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Can someone in the PTP government inform the insurance companies in Thailand that the flooding was NOT a natural disaster but a man-made one. All insurance companies are now removing things such as "wind storm damage" out of the home user policies but are keeping aircraft damage in, as if that will ever happen.
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whatajoke
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Discussion 23 : 11/01/2012 at 01:37 PM23
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It's worth noting; last year was the result of a drought so comparing them is inaccurate. Presently there is alot of paddy under cultivation for a winter crop due to excess water, paddy that is normally harvested once a year. This year's raining season is expected to come early as Smith pointed out in another article due to El Nina/El Nino (not sure which). Last dry season we had rains in every month of the year which is also unusual. And yes, Plodprasod is a plodder, a track record of mismanagement (Night Safari, Koh Chang eco island). I'd imagine that letting any water out right now would be a PR nightmare of the govt, given that there's still vast tracts of land in Ayuthaya etc, still draining out.
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