Authorities have warned 31 provinces to prepare for severe drought this year.
The Provincial Waterworks Authority (PWA) said that drought might affect 61 water production facilities covering 82 districts of 31 provinces — 15 in the Northeast, nine in the North, six in the South and one in the East.
The facilities have already begun digging wells to tap underground water as an alternative source, according to the PWA.
The Royal Irrigation Department (RID) is assisting efforts to dig 524 wells across Thailand's 32 outer provinces. The digs are jointly coordinated by the Armed Forces Development Command, Royal Thai Army and Department of Groundwater Resources.
In addition, the Department of Local Administration has discovered 232 surface water sources which can be used to help meet water demands in the outer provinces.
Separately, the Hydro-Informatics Institute, under the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation, is warning of severe saltwater intrusion into the Chao Phraya River between January and March, which will affect tap water production.
Prinya Yamasamit, governor of the Metropolitan Waterworks Authority, said the MWA and the RID are experimenting with hydraulic pressure to create pressure "shocks" or surges along the Chao Phraya to drive salt water back out to sea, in their Chao Phraya River Flow Operation.
Mr Prinya said that while seawater intrusion has increased the salinity of the water the MWA pumps out into homes it services, the water is still safe for human consumption.
To complement the state's measures to reduce water consumption, MWA has asked for the cooperation of local communities to reduce their in-home water use — not just during the drought but also for the long run.