Farmers urged to postpone cultivation as Pasak Dam has low water
As extreme drought has left Pa Sak Jolasid Dam in Lopburi province with little water, the Royal Irrigation Department has urged farmers in the province in upper central Thailand to postpone cultivation of crops that require large amounts of water until the rainy season arrives.
The dam, which has the biggest reservoir in central Thailand, currently has around 148.4 million cubic metres of water left, or about 15% of its full capacity, Chuphong Itsarat, director of the Pa Sak Jolasid Irrigation and Maintenance Project, said on Saturday.
He said that until the Thai Meteorological Department officially announces that the country has entered the rainy season, farmers in Lopburi’s Phatthana Nikhom district and nearby areas should save on water usage by postponing their cultivation, or switch to growing crops that require less water.
Thailand’s rainy season usually starts around mid-May and lasts until mid-October.
Chuphong added that from next week the dam will lower its water discharging rate from 3.4 million cubic metres to 1.3 million cubic metres per day, under the department’s plan to make sure that communities under the dam will have enough water for farming, consumption, and industrial activities for three to four months.
He said that during the rainy season of last year, the dam had stored 1.01 billion cubic metres of water, or 106% of its capacity. The amount was estimated to be adequate for at least six months (November 1 to April 30).
“So far about 800 million cubic metres of this amount have been discharged, but high temperatures have caused the remaining water to be lower than expected,” he said.
Chuphong added that if the rains are delayed more than expected, the department will coordinate with the Department of Royal Rainmaking and Agricultural Aviation to create artificial rains above the dam to increase its water reserve.
Pasak Jolasid is Thailand’s longest earthen dam, built at the initiative of the late King Bhumibol to reduce flooding in the Pasak and Chao Phraya river basins. It crosses the Pasak River at Nong Bua subdistrict, in Phatthana Nikom district, Lopburi province, offering gorgeous views of the landscape. The railroad on the dam has become a famous tourist destination known as “floating train” route.
Construction of the mighty barrier began on December 2, 1994, and was completed on September 30, 1999.
