Drought Causes Water Shortage in Thailand, Affecting Crop Output

A drought crisis has caused water shortage in central and northern Thailand since this June, leaving reservoirs running low and affecting crop output in agriculture. The water volume of the Pa Sak Cholasit, one of the four largest reservoirs in Thailand, dropped to 7 percent due to the extreme weather, which is the lowest level in the past 20 years. The reservoir was seen running low, with riverbed exposed. "The drought is very severe this year. There used to be drought, but not so serious. It has been a long time since it last rained. And every time it rains, it just rains for a little while," said Vejjajiva, a local resident. Dried up and cracked farmland was seen in central Thailand's Nonthaburi Province, an important rice production base. "I think if the drought continues, the paddies will wither in ten days. Now some of them are turning yellow, just like what you see, these are withering. They will turn yellow and then die," said a farmer. Some farmers decided to lay the farmland aside to avoid making a futile effort. The statistics with the Royal Irrigation Department in Thailand shows that the rice planting area across the country reaches 640,000 hectares, and one fifth of them have been affected by the drought to varying degrees. The department is working closely with meteorological department to monitor climate changes. However, the rainfall in July is forecast to be still low. The departments are discussing further measures to cope with the severe weather. "Now the greatest concern is the meteorological factor, especially the precipitation in July. We won't worry about the drought in August or September, because we forecast the rain will come by then. But the rainfall in July may not be abundant," said Suthep Noipairoj, deputy director-general for operation and maintenance with the Royal Irrigation Department. The government has made artificial rains, asked rice farmers to postpone rice transplanting, while urging the public to conserve water in the dry season. More on: http://newscontent.cctv.com/NewJsp/news.jsp?fileId=304826 Subscribe us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmv5DbNpxH8X2eQxJBqEjKQ CCTV+ official website: http://newscontent.cctv.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cctv-news-content? Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/CCTV/756877521031964 Twitter: https://twitter.com/NewsContentPLUS