Students from Technical University Dortmund Visits Bangkok Metropolitan Administration

Students from Technical University Dortmund Visits Bangkok Metropolitan Administration for a Study Visit on “Bangkok’s Flood Management System and Infrastructure” and “Urban Planning to prepare for climate change”

On February 23, 2022 at Noppan Meeting Room, Drainage and Sewerage Department. Students from Technical University Dortmund and representatives from Deutsche Gesellschaft fur international Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) visited the BMA for lectures and site visits by representative from Department of Drainage and Sewerage and “Urban Planning to prepare for climate change” by representatives from City Planning and Urban Development Department.

Mrs. Sukhontha Srikaewlor, Chief of Plan Evaluation and Urban Planning Standard Section, City Planning and Urban Development Department, gave a lecture and answered questions on urban development planning for climate resilience by taking into account the National Adaption Plan and Bangkok Master Plan on Climate Change 2013-2023 supported by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Japan. The development has been integrated into the third revision of Bangkok Comprehensive Plan, effective in 2013, while the department is currently drafting the fourth revision, which covers 6 plans, consisting of Zoning Map, Open Space Map, Transportation project Map, Public utility project Map, Water Map, Natural Resources and Environment Map, and Floor Area Ratio (FAR). Mrs. Sukhontha stated that the key issue in dealing with impacts of climate change is Biotope Area Factor (BAF), which encourages planting of perennial trees and expanding green spaces on plots having been built since 2013. It was a lesson learned from Germany when the department revised the Bangkok Comprehensive Plan in 2011. It was also the year when Bangkok was hit by great floods. Additionally, FAR Bonus is a measure for providing and developing the following activities:  (1) providing housing at a lower price than the market for low-income earners or housing for former residents in the project area (2) providing an area for public use or public parks (3) providing parking spaces for the public in the area within 500 meters around the designated mass transit stations. (4) providing a rainwater retention area to prevent and solve flooding problems (5) construction of energy-saving buildings, building transit nodes for multi-modal transportation, and promoting environmental and social improvement.

Then Mr. Teeraphat Tangpraprutkul, Civil Engineer, Drainage and Sewerage Department, provided insights on Bangkok flood protection measures, which consist of structural measures and non-structural measures. For the structural measures include Flood protection system using polder system to prevent flooding and high sea levels, drainage system to prevent flooding caused by rain. There are over 6,400 km. long pipeline network, 1,682 canals, 762 pumping stations, and 7 large tunnels of over 19 km. long, water retention storage throughout Bangkok, including Bangkok Flood Control Center. For non-structural measures, the programs to promote public participation, create public awareness, provide flood warning information and indicator of the record height of the past floods, and flood rescue team. The latest major project is the sewer pipe’s capacity improvement in the main road projects. The delegation then visited the Bang Sue Canal drainage tunnel for a field study escorted by representative from Drainage and Sewerage Department.