In hot water

In just a few short months Doi Tao Lake in Chiang Mai province has changed dramatically.

The vast reservoir, where visitors packed the floating restaurants, has been replaced by thousands of rai of cracked mud after Bhumibol Dam in Tak released much of its water for droughthit farmlands further south.

Doi Tao district chief Khomkrit Trithanyapong says the lake had dried up for two or three years in a row now, causing an 80percent drop in tourist numbers. The water is seven metres lower than last year, he adds.

With floating restaurants put out of business, many locals have turned to farming, using the 5,000 rai of newly exposed land to grow rice, corn and beans and raise cows. The harvest will be collected before the water level rises again in November, when the floating restaurants will be back in business.

Porntip Kormang, who owns the Tipthara Tour raft, says the 140kilometrelong raft trip used to start from Bhumibol Dam in Tak's Sam Ngao district and end at Doi Tao Lake in Chiang Mai. But with the dam releasing a huge amount of water recently, the lake has dried up and the cruise has to end in Lamphun's Li district - half the normal distance, she says.

As most tourists want to take the full cruise to Doi Tao Lake, about half of them have cancelled their programme. Those who remained have got a discount due to the shorter trip. This has affected her business greatly, she adds.

Another business owner says the locals have had to adjust to the conditions. They normally  sell food on floating restaurants or provide accommodation on rafts for six to seven months per year and then need to look for other ways to earn a living when the lake dries up.