Water at major dams "critically low"
Published: 4/06/2010 at 02:01 PM
Online news: Local News
Water levels at many major dams are now critically low and water is available only for consumption, not for agriculture, Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) governor Suthas Pattamasiriwat said on Friday.
Mr Suthas said the dams where water levels are crtically low are Pasak Jolasid in Lop Buri, Ubonrat in Khon Khaen, Bhumibol in Tak, and Sirikit in Uttaradit.
He said the water stored in Bhumibol and Sirikit dam reservoirs totalled only about 1,000 million cubic metres.
The water levels in these dams is at the same level as 1992, when the supply dropped dropped to record low levels, he said.
Water can now be released only for consumption and is no longer available for agriculture.
With so little water left, there may problems with availability this year for consumption and agriculture, Mr Suthas said.
The governor said the low quantity of water at Pasak Jolasid dam has affected Egat's electricity production because a power plant at Wang Noy relies on water from the dam for the cooling system.
He hoped rainfall during this period would help increase water in the dams.
Mr Suthas said that over the past five months the consumption of electricity in the industrial sector was 15 per cent higher than the same period last year because of a higher demand for exports.
The higher consumption of power, if continued, would affect the country's power production capacity in two or three years, he said.
Meanwhile, the government has set up a working committee chaired by Agriculture Minister Theera Wongsamut to closely monitor the water supply.
The Agriculture Ministry has advised farmers to delay rice planting until mid July when more rain is expected.
The ministry will speed up construction of reservoirs under the Thai Khem Khaeng economic restoration project and make a new study of the construction of the long-delayed Kaeng Sua Ten dam across the Yom river in Phrae province
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