CONSTRUCTION of the Yadana pipeline and
other development project in
Kanchanaburi could affect the water supply
for local villagers, a
geologist has warned.
The area through which the Pipeline to
being built _ along with many other
areas In Southeast Asia _ is composed
of limestone karst formations, which
one means it is riven with underground
channels and streams, according to
Dean Smart, a consultant with the Royal
Forestry Department.
"Karst hydrology is very fragile," Smart
said. "It's virtually impossible to
know which streams produce which springs,
so construction work _ on the
Yadana pipeline, for instance _ could
divert some channels, causing some
springs to completely dry up and new springs
to form elsewhere." Smart noted
that the environmental Impact assessment
(EIA) for the Yadana project "does
not even mention karat hydrology.
A review committee, chaired by former prime
minister Anand Panyarachun, set
up to evaluate the Yadana pipeline has
already voiced strong criticism of
the EIA for failing to provide adequate
information on the project's impacts.
Smart also warned that sediment washed
down from the construction of the
pipeline track could wash into the karst
formation and flow into streams,
again affecting water supply.
"Sedimentation could also cause the diversion of water channels," he added.
The labyrinthine nature of most limestone
formations also means that other
kinds of development projects, such as
dams and roads, can be quite
destructive. "Dams in karst areas cost
about 50 per cent more than in other
areas because there is lots of leakage
[through the subterranean channels],"
Smart said.
"For the Khao Laem Dam in Kanchanaburi,
they had to build a concrete curtain
inside the mountain to block the leaks."