Dam funding approved “in principle’

PHUKET: Rapid development of Phuket in the past few years has resulted in the island’s current water supply problems, Irrigation Project Director Watchara Arepornsiri said today. Deputy Interior Minister Pracha Maleenond and his team were in Phuket on Friday to meet with Provincial Waterworks Authority (PWA) governor Wanchai Kuprasert and officials of the Phuket Provincial Irrigation Office to discuss ways to solve the island’s water shortage problem. K. Pracha was quoted as saying that the Cabinet has approved “in principle” funding for two new reservoirs: 145 million baht for one at at Bang Neaw Dum and 250 million for another at Klong Kratha. Plans to seek 3.5 billion baht in long-term funding for a pipeline from Ratchaprapa dam in Surat Thani, via Krabi province, were also confirmed. “At the meeting, K. Pracha ordered the PWA and the Irrigation Department to conduct studies and present the government with a budget proposal within 30 days,” K. Watchara said.