The El Nino weather phenomenon looks likely to delay the onset of the rains this year, but the Royal Irrigation Department says there is little it can do under present conditions to increase the amount of water captured in the country each year to get consumers and farmers through the dry months.

Director-General Chalit Damrong-sak admitted that Thailand is in a difficult situation, primarily because of the limited national capacity to store rainwater for the dry season. Though rainfall volume has not changed much over recent years, demand for water is increasing, encouraged by attractive farm prices. Storage capacity has increased only slightly.

During the 2009 rainy season, rainfall amounted to 732,000 million cubic metres, which is 900 million cubic metres below the 2008 level. The more than 400 dams and dykes nationwide can hold up to 76,000 million. When the dry season began in November, they were left with 51,000 million cubic metres of water. However, as not all water could be released from the reservoirs, only 35,000 million is left for three purposes - consumption, ecological preservation and agricultural promotion. Right now, as farmers are ploughing their land for the second rice crop plantation, Thailand is left with only 27,500 million cubic metres of water, and the department is doing what it can to ensure that the supply is sufficient until the next rain comes.

"It is apparent that El Nino may delay the rain from May to July. Many crops that are normally grown then would have no water. That's why we told farmers not to start their second rice crop plantation," Chalit said. "They could take a risk, but we know we are barely capable of helping them."

Of the total water supply, 13,716 million cubic metres is reserved for agricultural plantation, against 5,539 million cubic metres for ecological preservation - including the release of water to diffuse pollution from industrial wastewater; 1,835 million cubic metres for consumption and 169 million cubic metres for industrial use. The agricultural sector tends to consume more water than it is allocated.

Chalit admitted farm prices are attractive, though, and farmers could take risks. It is estimated that the second crop plantation would span 9.5 million rai of land - 2 million rai of it outside of the irrigated area. He said that farmers in some northeastern provinces like Nakhon Ratchasima have agreed to stop their plans.

The situation would be better if Thailand could capture more water, he noted. But it has been difficult to implement irrigation plans as some watersheds are in forest areas while some locations are on private land. Meanwhile, some old wells are being ignored as more tapwater reaches villages. Rivers and canals have become shallower as road transportation is now more popular.

"The expansion rate has been slowing, against higher consumption rates," he said. "Yes, flooding is more frequent due to the absence of space to slow down the tide. But when the rain stops, we suffer from drought."

Moreover, due to the limited budget, which this year is Bt30 billion as part of the national budget and another Bt30 billion under the government's Thai Khemkhaeng stimulus budget, the department is being forced to channel the budget to the areas with least public resistance to its projects.

Chalit acknowledged that the stricter environmental rules could delay investment plans, as dykes and dams could be subjected to health impact assessments (HIAs). As such, though the irrigated areas cover 24 million rai, only 11.95 million is properly irrigated. He said end-users' attitudes must change. People in general should cut down consumption, while industrial plants must be more responsible in discharging wastewater. He hoped that the situation would improve slightly when a new law is passed to allow an increase in raw water prices.

"Now, as a short-term solution, we are asking for cooperation from farmers. Eventually, if that does not work, we may make an official announcement that in some areas, some crops cannot be planted."

Source: The Nation