The aim of the new initiative, launched on Sunday (June 23), is to promote Phuket Town also as a prime destination for nature-based travel, said an official report of the launch.
Joining Mayor Saroj on an inaugural exploratory trip were Deputy Mayor Onpailin Pariphon, Pitchaphong Koythanand, Chairman of the Soi Ton Pho Community, as well as officers from the Tourism and Sports Division and the Social Welfare Division, and committee members from the Soi Ton Pho Community.
The group paddled along Bang Yai Canal to where the canal empties into Phuket Bay, and ventured past the mangroves along the coast.
Phuket Town officials plan to collaborate with the Soi Ton Pho community to develop and manage the new nature tourism route, said Phuket City Municipality in announcing the new nature tourism activity.
The municipality is committed to supporting the community in this initiative, aiming to provide sustainable tourism opportunities and enhance the local economy, the announcement added.
CHALLENGES
While the area where Klong Bang Yai empties into Phuket Bay provides the aesthetics of a nature tourism tour, the tours do raise some areas of concern.
The Bang Yai Canal serves as a catchment tributary, receiving heavy run-off along its course after each heavy downpour. The water flowing through the canal can form a fast, strong current after heavy rains, and officials as standard practice are on ‘flood watch’ after each heavy deluge.
So much water empties into Bang Yai that further upstream in the Soi Pha-niang area, on the north side of Phuket Town, that water was coming out of the drains, instead of flowing into them.
Phuket Town Deputy Mayor Supachoke La-ongphet led a team to investigate the problem there on Monday (June 24).
Phuket City Municipality this morning posted its ‘danger watch’ times for the canal at risk of flooding over the coming days, as more sporadic thundershowers are still forecast for the area and the fact that the canal is affected by high tides.
Klong Bang Yai is expected to reach up to 3.2 metres high from midday to 3pm tomorrow (June 27), up to 3.3m high between 1am-2am and 2pm-4pm tomorrow (June 28), before its maximum height falling to an expected 2.8m this Saturday-Sunday (June 29-30).
Phuket Town Mayor Mr Saroj also on Monday led yet another inspection of the water levels of Klong Bang Yai along the section that flows through the heart of the Phuket Old Town area, this time to assess its affect on a new retaining wall being built along the banks of the canal to help prevent further flooding. While the retaining walls are a much-welcomed move to help prevent flooding in the Phuket Old Town area, they will result in water being channeled harder and faster along the canal route.
Adding to concerns is that the Bang Yai Canal empties into Phuket Bay right beside the Phuket City Municipality solid-waste disposal facility, better known as the landfill site at Saphan Hin.
The main mountains of trash at the landfill site are just 400m from the mouth of the canal. In years past, toxic seepage from the waste landfills into the mangroves and nearby waters have been blamed for mass fish deaths.
The nature tour providers will also have to contend with the remains of sad, unfortunate, events that end up discovered in the canal.