Yeun Wongfun, from Tambon Sunphakwhan in Hang Dong district, said villagers were worried that the trees and plants in the 470-rai exposition are sucking up water, which might cause them problems in this dry season.

Yeun, as a representative of villagers who used water from the irrigation canal for their crops, said the villagers were never told how the water resources, which are often limited in the dry season, would be shared between the farmers and the expo.

Located in Muang district, the horticultural exhibition is consuming water from the canal which was built decades ago to provide water to farmers in Maetaeng, Maerim, Muang, Hang Dong and Sunpatong districts during the dry season.

Yeun said he was afraid that the expo might use a high volume of water over the next three months so that there would not be enough to irrigate areas downstream in Hang Dong and Sunpathong districts.

Besides the flora expo, the Night Safari is another big user of water from the Maetaeng system.

Villagers in the Maetaeng irrigation area usually grow rice in the wet season and soybean in the dry season.

The areas to grow soybean depend on the volume of water in the canal during the dry season and farmers say they are afraid of conflict breaking out.

Inthorn Tipkhamma, of Tambon Baanwhaen in Hang Dong district, said he was afraid that the expo would spark a war for water with farmers.

While admitting that the expo was consuming about 2,000 cubic metres of water a day from the Maetaeng irrigation system, Wittaya Saengkaewmanee, the director of the Maetaeng Irrigation Project, said it should not be causing problems for the farmers.

"Unlike the large resorts, the expo has two big ponds to retain water from the wet season for the dry season. The expo doesn't directly consume water from the canal," he said, adding that the two big ponds located near the expo site have a total capacity of 400,000 cubic metres.

About a month ago, he said, the expo consumed only 20 per cent of the retained water and that he was certain there would be enough water to nourish the trees and plants at the expo until the next rainy season.

Wittaya said he realises that the Maetaeng canal did not have enough water for farmers in the dry season.

It was designed to provide water for some 140,000 rai of farmland, he said, but during the dry season it can only provide water for 30,000 rai of farmland.

Meanwhile, Suan Nong Nooch, a gardening firm responsible for taking care of the trees and landscape at the expo, had another argument.

Sunun Phanthurat, of Suan Nong Nooch, said the site of the expo had a big volume of underground water so that the trees did not need to be watered with extra water.

The villagers said they accepted that at this point the problem was more of a concern and had not become a reality yet. However, they wanted the government and the expo organisers to talk to them and promise to solve the problem together if it happened.

"If the problem arises and nobody helps us, we will help ourselves by mob rule," said Inthorn.

Pennapa Hongthong

The Nation

CHIANG MAI