the lake is normally thronged with tourists from many corners of the country during the sumer months. but today it is a victim of the worst dry spell the country has experienced in decades.
precious rain which has accompanied freak storns in recent days has fallen across many areas of the upper north,giving residents some long-awaited respits. but it far from sufficent to revers the effects of the drought.
the vastness of Kwan Phayao translates into a huge volume of water for residents who rely heavily on the lake for their livelihood.
though Kean Phayao,covering more than 12,000 rai in Muang district,has been battered by drought many time,locals say the current dry speell is the worst they have encountered in three decades.
water suppliies in the lake are now sufficient for producing tap water only.a sign has been erected to rallyresidents in a campaign to use water sparingly.
the sign-featuring agauge of the lake's total water volume and what isleft of usable supplies,aswell as how many days that amount for consumption will last-is prominently display display around the lake.
the water levelhas dropped so dramatically that innow exposesthe concrete basesof twin naga statues and a golden pagodo that were once submerged.the structures are built 100 metres from shore and are recognised as landmarks of Kwan Phayao.
the drought has only reduced tap water to a trickle, but also also diminished the revenue stream for vendors aroung the lake.
a som tam hawker said heeker said her incime has slumped dramatically as visitors dwindle.the locals's plight is compounded by the blanketing haze from slash-and-burn farming which has choked the north for months.
"normally,Kwan Phayao is busting with both thai and foreign visitors during the songkran holiday any wanter left here," she said.ratchanok jaisaard a worker at the pier for wat tilok tilok aram - an ancient temple that is normally mostly submerged in the lake - but which is now in full view - said visitors are few and far between.
visitors need to board a ferry their respects to the revered Buddha imagew, call Luang Poh sila, enshrined among the temple's ruins in the middle of the lake.the nimber of tourists to the attraction has declined by up to 70%
the ferry is designed to handle a maximum of 20 people.However, the seriously shallow water across much of the lake has for the boat to take no more than 10 passengers to prevent the vessel from running aground.
"Dredging could be a long-terrn solution to thedrought problem at the lake because it will make the lake deeper, increasinge its water-retention capacity," Ms. Ratchanok suggested.
as for local fishing, Somesak Theptun,president of the Kwan Phayao Lake Fishery Network, said although the lake is hit by a dry speel every year,this year's situation is by far one of the worst in recent memory.
mony fishermen stay home these days as venturing out into the sallow water risks damage to their boats.
not only is the lake's plight concern to the local fishing industry, but it alsothreatens to wipe out certain species of indigenous fish.
mr. saomsak has voiced concern that the droght couuld destroy some stains of fish in the lake, spelling doom for the local fishing industry in the future.
"i haven't seen a more severe drought than this. fishing boats have to dock because the water level is so low that they have no choice but stayput," a fisherman said.
as anemergency measure, villagers have sought help from the local administration organisation to dredge the lake to allow ferries and fishing boats to operte.
they are also taking the opportunity to clean up the bed of the lake as the receding water allows them to collect garbage.
techaphan Manowong, a committee member of the ing river baisin council,said water levels in dams and other cathment areas across the province are also dropping repidly.
vast swaths of farmland along the river basin are being devastated.
in Mr. Techaphan's view, the severity of the deo drought is exacerbated by failed water mannagement. despite the scarcity of water in catchments,watershed forests along the Ing River basin remain fertille and could provide water for the province during the dry seson.
he said water reserved in catchment areas along the river basin is available for farming once a year. however, an increase in off-season rice and cash crops is encouraging farmers to divert more water to their farmland, sometimes up to four times a year.
worse,local authorities and villagers never make plans to replenish water sup-plies in storage areas.
in ban san ton phueng in tambon MaeIng, villagers last month buit a weir along the Rong Phai River, a small branch of the Ing River, to preserve water supplies for wetseason rice farming
the lake is normally thronged with tourists from many corners of the country during the sumer months. but today it is a victim of the worst dry spell the country has experienced in decades.precious rain which has accompanied freak storns in recent days has fallen across many areas of the upper north,giving residents some long-awaited respits. but it far from sufficent to revers the effects of the drought.the vastness of Kwan Phayao translates into a huge volume of water for residents who rely heavily on the lake for their livelihood.though Kean Phayao,covering more than 12,000 rai in Muang district,has been battered by drought many time,locals say the current dry speell is the worst they have encountered in three decades.water suppliies in the lake are now sufficient for producing tap water only.a sign has been erected to rallyresidents in a campaign to use water sparingly.the sign-featuring agauge of the lake's total water volume and what isleft of usable supplies,aswell as how many days that amount for consumption will last-is prominently display display around the lake.the water levelhas dropped so dramatically that innow exposesthe concrete basesof twin naga statues and a golden pagodo that were once submerged.the structures are built 100 metres from shore and are recognised as landmarks of Kwan Phayao.the drought has only reduced tap water to a trickle, but also also diminished the revenue stream for vendors aroung the lake.a som tam hawker said heeker said her incime has slumped dramatically as visitors dwindle.the locals's plight is compounded by the blanketing haze from slash-and-burn farming which has choked the north for months."normally,Kwan Phayao is busting with both thai and foreign visitors during the songkran holiday any wanter left here," she said.ratchanok jaisaard a worker at the pier for wat tilok tilok aram - an ancient temple that is normally mostly submerged in the lake - but which is now in full view - said visitors are few and far between.visitors need to board a ferry their respects to the revered Buddha imagew, call Luang Poh sila, enshrined among the temple's ruins in the middle of the lake.the nimber of tourists to the attraction has declined by up to 70%the ferry is designed to handle a maximum of 20 people.However, the seriously shallow water across much of the lake has for the boat to take no more than 10 passengers to prevent the vessel from running aground."Dredging could be a long-terrn solution to thedrought problem at the lake because it will make the lake deeper, increasinge its water-retention capacity," Ms. Ratchanok suggested.as for local fishing, Somesak Theptun,president of the Kwan Phayao Lake Fishery Network, said although the lake is hit by a dry speel every year,this year's situation is by far one of the worst in recent memory.mony fishermen stay home these days as venturing out into the sallow water risks damage to their boats.not only is the lake's plight concern to the local fishing industry, but it alsothreatens to wipe out certain species of indigenous fish.mr. saomsak has voiced concern that the droght couuld destroy some stains of fish in the lake, spelling doom for the local fishing industry in the future."i haven't seen a more severe drought than this. fishing boats have to dock because the water level is so low that they have no choice but stayput," a fisherman said.as anemergency measure, villagers have sought help from the local administration organisation to dredge the lake to allow ferries and fishing boats to operte.they are also taking the opportunity to clean up the bed of the lake as the receding water allows them to collect garbage.techaphan Manowong, a committee member of the ing river baisin council,said water levels in dams and other cathment areas across the province are also dropping repidly.vast swaths of farmland along the river basin are being devastated.in Mr. Techaphan's view, the severity of the deo drought is exacerbated by failed water mannagement. despite the scarcity of water in catchments,watershed forests along the Ing River basin remain fertille and could provide water for the province during the dry seson.he said water reserved in catchment areas along the river basin is available for farming once a year. however, an increase in off-season rice and cash crops is encouraging farmers to divert more water to their farmland, sometimes up to four times a year.worse,local authorities and villagers never make plans to replenish water sup-plies in storage areas.
in ban san ton phueng in tambon MaeIng, villagers last month buit a weir along the Rong Phai River, a small branch of the Ing River, to preserve water supplies for wetseason rice farming
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