Prasert”, Deputy Prime Minister, chaired the National Water Resources Committee meeting and ordered the establishment of a subcommittee to analyze and assess the water situation in 2024 to support the work of the NESDB to urgently help people through the flood crisis and approved 8 measures to support the drought.
Mr. Prasert Jantarawongthong, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Economy and Society (DE), revealed after chairing the 4/2567 National Water Resources Committee (NWRC) meeting, which was attended by Mrs. Narumon Pinyosinwat, Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Ms. Thirat Samretwanich, Deputy Minister of Interior, and Mr. Surasee Kittimondol, Secretary-General of the National Water Resources Office (ONWR), along with relevant agencies, that today’s meeting was the first time that, as the Chairman of the National Water Resources Committee, he had monitored the resolution of flooding and mudslides in the northern region in the past, which he had received an order from Ms. Paethongtar
n Shinawatra, Prime Minister, for relevant agencies to closely monitor the water situation and manage water according to the plan in order to not affect the people or to have the least impact.
Mr. Prasert said that currently, there are still 19 provinces that are experiencing flooding problems, namely Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai, Lamphun, Lampang, Tak, Phitsanulok, Nakhon Sawan, Sukhothai, Udon Thani, Kalasin, Chaiyaphum, Maha Sarakham, Ubon Ratchathani, Chainat, Sing Buri, Suphan Buri, Ang Thong, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, and Nakhon Pathom, in which the relevant agencies have urgently managed the water to return to normal, including urgently providing assistance to those affected and restoring the area to its original condition as soon as possible.
‘Because Thailand is still likely to experience overflowing rivers, flooding in vulnerable areas and areas of economic importance, the meeting resolved to appoint a subcommittee to analyze and assess the water situation in 2024 according to Section 20 of the Water Re
sources Act B.E. 2561, with the ONWR Secretary-General as the chairman of the subcommittee to perform the duties of analyzing and assessing weather conditions, rainfall situations, and water situations, supporting water resource management data for the ONWR and the Flood, Storm, and Landslide Relief Operation Center (SWOC), as well as providing opinions and suggestions on water resource management according to academic principles appropriate to the ONWR, and conducting a review of lessons learned from preparing for and dealing with water and flood situations from the influence of past storms together with relevant agencies to improve and develop operational guidelines for greater efficiency, with continuous reporting of operational results to the ONWR,’ said Mr. Prasert.
Mr. Prasert said that in addition to water management to reduce the impact on people during the rainy season, the NWRC also emphasizes preparation for the 2024/25 drought season, which will arrive on November 1, 2024. Therefore, it has resol
ved to approve the (draft) measures to support the 2024/25 drought season as proposed by ONWR, totaling 8 measures, which use the results of learning from the management of water resources in the previous drought season to improve the efficiency of operations to prevent and solve drought problems in a timely manner. It is divided into 3 aspects: Water resources, with Measure 1 predicting and preventing areas at risk of water shortages; Measure 2 creating water security for consumption and agriculture, along with effective water replenishment operations; and Water demand, with Measure 3 determining a plan, allocating water and areas for planting crops in the dry season, and managing water in accordance with the water use priority set by the river basin committee.
Measure 4: Increase water efficiency, save water and reduce water loss in all sectors. Measure 5: Monitor and correct water quality in terms of management. Measure 6: Strengthen water management in communities and water user organizations.
Measure 7
: Create public awareness and Measure 8: Monitor and evaluate the performance by assigning ONWR to inform the relevant agencies to proceed according to the NBTC resolution and submit to the Cabinet for acknowledgement.
While the ONWR Secretary-General said that the meeting approved the project to increase efficiency in water resource management to cope with the drought and intermittent rain situation in 2025 and assigned relevant agencies to expedite the preparation of the action plan to cope with the drought measures in 2024/25 and report the results of the operations to ONWR every month until the end of the dry season to ensure that the measures are implemented according to the plan and are most effective. In addition, the river basin committees will implement the drought measures in 2024/25 in conjunction with the 2024/25 water basin drought prevention and resolution plan and have agencies prepare the project plan to increase efficiency in water resource management to cope with the drought and intermitten
t rain situation in 2025 in accordance with the criteria so that problems can be solved in a timely manner, which ONWR will strictly monitor the progress of the operations of relevant agencies.
Source: Thai News Agency