The high investment required for modern farming had pushed many people to abandon their ancestral farming tradition and to take Jobs in the nearest urban center, Chiang Mai city, two hours away. The local area also suffered from bush fires and drought during the dry summer months.
The monks at Wat Doi Pha Som identified the principle cause of the many environmental and economic challenges facing the local residents to be the lack of adequate water resources in the local ecosystem. Water is a necessary ingredient for all plant growth and healthy ecosystem function. By addressing this basic need of all living organisms, the process of holistic restoration began.