Integrated Management and Diplomacy Development of the Chao Phraya River Basin
| Geolocation: | 13° 45' 9.8088", 100° 31' 29.6484" |
|---|---|
| Total Population | 2525,000,000 millionmillion |
| Total Area | 157925157,925 km² 60,974.843 mi² km2 |
| Climate Descriptors | Monsoon, Dry-summer |
| Predominent Land Use Descriptors | agricultural- cropland and pasture, agricultural- confined livestock operations, industrial use, urban, urban- high density |
| Important Uses of Water | Agriculture or Irrigation, Domestic/Urban Supply, Hydropower Generation, Industry - consumptive use, Industry - non-consumptive use |
Contents
Summary
The Chao Phraya River Basin (“the basin”) is the largest river basin of the Kingdom of Thailand and plays a significant role in terms of agricultural, industrial and economic development. In recent years, there has been a series of extreme drought and flooding that increasingly challenge the management of the entire basin. For example, the major flood in 2011 has set a new precedent in terms of scale and scope of the issues at hand. As a consequence, one should wonder if and how the current assumptions and implications underlying the current practice should be reassessed. Considering the Water Diplomacy Framework, the management of the basin could be assessed and improved in a number of following ways.
- First, it is vital to recognize growing uncertainty of the water resources in the basin, particularly under the ongoing climate-change circumstance. This concern applies not only to the precipitation and runoff prediction, but also to the definition of zones of complexity of shared interests, particularly in the middle basin and the delta.
- Second, the resolution addressing the current conflict would have a chance to succeed once all parties participate in the joint fact-finding process, engage in a value-creation process and commit to the consequent agreements.
- Third, even after an agreement, the management must continually learn and adapt to emerging incidents and situations, and set priorities toward cumulative benefit not only for one specific party or group of interest, but rather for the entire basin.
As a consequence, the policy and politics of the Chao Phraya River Basin management should operate on a nonpartisan, impartial and fact-based platform. The management should also consider the dynamics and limited predictability of the resources, diverse interests of people and the communities, and the interdependence of economic, societal, policy and political dimensions of the commitments and consequences from prior and current decisions. The discussion comprises nine sections.
The case first outlines the importance of the basin and implications in natural/environmental, policy and political terms (Section 2). A brief description of the basin history (Section 3) and stakeholders (Section 4) renders a discussion basis of the integrated management and challenges in two senses: a conventional view encompassing seasonal challenges such as drought and flood control (Section 5) and an emerging view with extreme conditions since 2011 (Section 6). Focusing on the latter circumstance, the depth of the discussion is extended to emerging challenges as a consequence of the increasing extremity likelihood (Section 7). Resolutions in response consist of the Master Plan (Section 8) and a complementary analysis in the sense of the Water Diplomacy Framework (Section 9).
Natural, Historic, Economic, Regional, and Political Framework
The Chao Phraya River, together with the Mekong River, is the most important river in Thailand, as the entire river stretches across a significant amount of area: from the upper basin via its tributaries in the northern part of Thailand, to the middle basin where the confluence of Ping and Nan Rivers, the two major tributaries, is located, and flows southward to the delta into the Gulf of Thailand. The entire area is denoted as the Chao Phraya River Basin.
Significance of the Chao Phraya River Basin
Issues and Stakeholders
NSPD: Water Quantity, Water Quality, Ecosystems, Governance, Assets, Values and Norms
Stakeholder Types: Federated state/territorial/provincial government, Local Government, Development/humanitarian interest, Environmental interest, Industry/Corporate Interest, Community or organized citizens
- Royal Irrigation Department (“RID”): a state department with responsibilities to provide all water supplies for irrigation throughout the year. Agriculture is the major concern. See Exhibits 5a and 5b for a description of the organizational strategic responsibilities.
- Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (“EGAT”): a state enterprise that manages the majority of Thailand's electricity generation capacity. In this case, it operates dams to generate and stabilize the hydropower as a base load. However, owing to a broader and stronger energy mix in the recent decades, it becomes less dependent on the basin resources.
- Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (“BMA”): manages the urban city and maintains the integrity of water supply and flood protection in the Bangkok Metropolitan Area, together with the Metropolitan Waterworks Authority (“MWA”).
- Government of Thailand : the executive administration under the constitutional monarchy of the Kingdom of Thailand. It is responsible for the overall management of the water supply (i.e., manage, control and promote efficient use of water for agricultural, industrial, power generation and urban uses toward self-sufficiency). It established the Flood Relief Operation Center (“FROC”) during the major flooding in 2011.
- Provincial Waterworks Authority (“PWA”): a state department that provides water services in the Kingdom of Thailand, except for the Bangkok Metropolitan Area.
- Thailand Board of Investment (“BOI”): a governmental agency that promotes investment in Thailand and maintains contacts and relationship with foreign investors in Thailand.
- National Economic and Social Development Board (“NESDB”): a special governmental agency with responsibilities to formulate and develop national strategies that alleviate poverty and income distribution, enhance competitiveness, and promote social capital development and sustainable development.
Analysis, Synthesis, and Insight
Individuals may add their own Analysis, Synthesis, and Insight (ASI) to a case. ASI sub-articles are protected, so that each contributor retains authorship and control of their own content. Edit the case to add your own ASI.
Learn moreASI:Discussion: Ongoing Challenges After the Major Flooding in 2011
As a result, the basin needs to cope with additional dimensions of the challenges:
- City management to mitigate risks of extreme events, eg, severe flooding, salinity incursion
- Balance of upstream and downstream resources, considering technical, societal & political aspects
- Industrial area protection to minimise risks from direct impact and manage investor’s confidence
- Trust in the management of the administration(read the full article... )
Contributed by: Siripong (Pong) Treetasanatavorn (last edit: 11 May 2014)
ASI:Water Diplomacy Development in the Chao Phraya River Basin
Diplomacy Development Cornerstones:
- Define long-term engagement objectives: people
- Recognise the challenges: management of uncertainties
- Focus on consensus building & adaptive learning
- Strike a balance between preserving natural resources and managing the short-term practicality(read the full article... )
Contributed by: Siripong (Pong) Treetasanatavorn (last edit: 11 May 2014)
