Govt places flood battle before crops

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Govt places flood battle before crops

Preventing repeat crisis leads water strategy

Published: 4/02/2012 at 04:18 AM
Newspaper section: News

Flood prevention will take priority over crop irrigation in setting water management strategies for this year, the government announced yesterday.

Water levels in the country's main dams in the upper North will be reduced sharply over the coming months to ensure discharges during the rainy season will be as low as possible.

Last year's devastating floods were worsened in part by huge water discharges from the country's largest dams to relieve excess capacity in September and October following a series of late-season tropical storms.

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About the author

: Writer: Chatrudee Theparat; Position: Business Reporter

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johninbkk
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Discussion 11 : 05/02/2012 at 12:10 AM11
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oldexp D10 - According to the Hydro and Agro Informatics Institute website, approximately 0.3% of water in the dams is being released per day. This is the fastest water release rate ever recorded for Thailand. At this rate, they will be approximately ~46% full by May 1st, when flood season begins. (note that each dam has slightly different rates, I'm just averaging)

The claim that water isn't being released properly is just anti-PTP propaganda. They assume no one will actually look up the data themselves.
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oldexp
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Discussion 10 : 04/02/2012 at 08:10 PM10
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I seem not to understand.
The levels will be slashed to 45% and 41% respectively by May 1.
The levels are:
the Bhumibol Dam was at 82% of total capacity as of yesterday, compared with 55% this time last year.
the Sirikit Dam, the water level stands at 80% of capacity, compared with 69% last year.
When will they let the water go?
Is 3 month enough? Won't there be flooding if so much water comes? Do they want to test their new anti-flooding-measures?
Someone can teach me pls.
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drsmith
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Discussion 9 : 04/02/2012 at 05:26 PM9
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"Bangkok would be spared flooding this year if the various water management projects are implemented on schedule" Bangkok wasn't flooded in 2011. How much flooding is Nonthaburi, Ayuthaya and Pathumthani going to be spared with these projects? I see 24 large flood pumps at Rangsit Klong 12 that were instrumental in keeping that area dry in 2011 have all been removed??????
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jacksprat
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Discussion 8 : 04/02/2012 at 04:54 PM8
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Thai rice is by no means the most expensive in the world. Where do people get that idea? But go to a market and look at the unbelievable varieties and qualities of Thai rice. What one is looking at in overseas markets is the highest quality of Thai rice. Most people here settle for a cheaper variety.
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khunbj
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Discussion 7 : 04/02/2012 at 02:17 PM7
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Had the opportunity to work in many locations also in Asia, there is no doubt to me that Thai rice by far is the best and it was usually not the cheapest option...I can see that for some, then Thai rice was/is too expensive and then it is good that there is a choice for these people too, so that they can buy cheaper rice from other countries .... but no need to worry about Thai rice, there will still be a large market for this product, many countries still cannot feed themselves .
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johninbkk
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Discussion 6 : 04/02/2012 at 11:51 AM6
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Renaissance D3 - Rice exports are posed to decrease by 25-35%, not just because of the badly thought out rice scheme, but also due to massive flood damage of rice fields during 2011, India exporting rice for the first time in 3 years, and many other countries such as Vietnam and Burma dramatically increasing rice exports. And don't confuse export profits with export weight.
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dao
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Discussion 5 : 04/02/2012 at 10:32 AM5
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The rains are here and its going to be a heavy rain year .Why are you waiting till June when it will be impossible to release water fast enough to compensate for the rain .If you try to play with market prices for rice and mother nature by hording water you will get burnt .
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hillfarang
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Discussion 4 : 04/02/2012 at 10:17 AM4
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D @3 Renaissance wrote: Thai rice has become the most expensive in the world..."

When I lived in the Middle East in 2010, I went to buy rice... Thai rice was much more expensive than the rest. The cheapest was rice from India. It was sad, but we could not afford the home-grown variety.
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Renaissance
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Discussion 3 : 04/02/2012 at 08:48 AM3
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Thai rice has become the most expensive in the world, so I wouldn't worry about having water to grow rice. The Thai Rice Farmers Association expects rice exports to drop 25% - 40% this year. Good job, Thaksin! Keep it up!
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nosurprise
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Discussion 2 : 04/02/2012 at 08:46 AM2
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2 committees and then 1 why not start with 1? There's bound to be conflict with 2 committees. Nothing will get done as one committe says one thing and the other something defferent, so as usual one will blame the other and nothng wil be achieved.
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