From: ssg9328@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (Samart Srijumnong)
Subject: Dam Construction controversy (fwd)
Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana
Date: Tue, 24 Nov 1992 03:17:13 GMT
Keywords: Thailand


From kamol@ipied.tu.ac.th Mon Nov 23 20:59:13 1992
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From: Kamol Hengkietisak <kamol@ipied.tu.ac.th>
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To: post-thai@ipied.tu.ac.th
Subject: Bangkok Post Nov 24: Dam construction controversy
Cc: trin@ipied.tu.ac.th
Status: R


A NORTHERN politician has defended the Mae Wong Dam project, 
saying it will give electriticy and protect some areas in Nakhon 
Sawan and Uthai Thani from periodic floodings -- an idea 
ecologists find unacceptable.
 
"Every two to three years, certain areas in Nakhon Sawan and Uthai 
Thani are flooded and the dam, if constructed, will ease the 
trouble of the people there, Sawat Khamprakob, Chart 
Pattana-Nakhon Sawan said.
 
Apart from preventing flooding and providing water for irrigation, 
the dam, which will be located in Lat Yao District of Nakhon 
Sawan, will have a power generator to provide electricity at low 
cost.
 
"The cost will be as low as the electricity produced by the Mae 
Moh lignite plants and Bhumibhol and Sirikit dams,." he added
 
The project has sparked an outcry from environmentalists as more 
than 10,000 rai of lush teak forest will be inundated and 
destroyed.
 
Chief of the Mae Wong National Park Chainarong Chantarasaratoon 
denied that Mae Wong is a degraded national park as claimed by 
some officials. "It was once a consessioned area and only recently 
it started recovering itself."
 
Nikhom Puttha of Wildlife Fund Thailand said there should be no 
more dams in the the face of the looming ecological crisis. "We 
can't afford to lose more forests for the sake of dams."
 
Politicians and government officials who favour the project have 
been quick to point out that dams are multi-purpose --  they 
provide electricity and water at low costs -- without giving due 
consideration to the so-called problem of ecological balance which 
include other living creatures in the area, he argued.
 
In calculating the cost of a dam, the government officials only 
consider how many rai of land will be flooded and how many trees 
will be lost, he said.
 
"The never know the real value of forests which work as part of 
the ecological system. Not to mention that when a dam is built, 
certain groups of people will gain enormous benefits: big budget 
for some state agencies and timber for politicians."
 
A watershed in the Mae Wong National Park is known for its 
biological diversity Nikhom said.
 
"There are rare golden teaks and abundant wildlife such as 
peacocks, deer and antelopes."
 
Mae Wong also serves as a "buffer zone" for the Huay Khakhaeng 
Sanctuary which has been listed as a world heritage, he said. "In 
other words, it is the fence protecting Huay Khakhaeng, preventing 
it from being encroached upon and destroyed."
 
More importantly, it is the same forest as Huay Khakhaeng, 
stretching from Umphamg in Tak, Thung Yai, Huay Khakaheng, Klong 
Lan and Khao Sanam Priang, he added.
 
To provide water for farmers, the Government should build 
reservoirs, dig wells, enlarge the existing canals and streams 
which are abundant in the North.
 
"We don't need to destroy our diminishing forests in order to 
develop more water resources. It is always claimed that dams will 
benefit the farmers but the Government must find out who is the 
biggest consumer: the household, industry, or golf courses.
 
"Government officials always blame villagers for deforestation but 
it's the state's policies that pose the greatest danger to forests 
and the ecological system."