http://waikato.researchgateway.ac.nz/ Research Commons at the University of Waikato Copyright Statement: The digital copy of this thesis is protected by the Copyright Act 1994 (New Zealand). The thesis may be consulted by you, provided you comply with the provisions of the Act and the following conditions of use: Any use you make of these documents or images must be for research or private study purposes only, and you may not make them available to any other person. Authors control the copyright of their thesis. You will recognise the author’s right to be identified as the author of the thesis, and due acknowledgement will be made to the author where appropriate. You will obtain the author’s permission before publishing any material from the thesis. Vulnerability and Resilience of the Bang Luang Community to Flooding from the Chao Phraya River by THANAHATHAI SENAVATTANAGUL Department of Geography, Tourism and Environmental Planning Being a Thesis Submitted to the University of Waikato In Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Masters of Social Sciences The University of Waikato 2008 _______________________________________________ ABSTRACT Flooding is a natural phenomenon and in the past Thai people have adapted to flood events. However over the years land degradation, deforestation and bad urban practices have exacerbated the impact of flood disasters. This study of flood management in Thailand shows how human activities and interventions have impacted on the river basin system. This research focuses on the vulnerability to flood hazard of the people living or working near the Chao Phraya River. The case study is of the community living or working in the proximity of Wat Bang Luang (Bang Luang Temple) of the Pathum Thani Province, Thailand. This research explores the capacity of communities to live with or cope with floods. Their adaptations to changes in flood regimes will depend on several factors: political (especially when Thailand has a long history of preoccupation with engineering and technological solutions as the main approach to disaster response), economic, ecological (human modification to flood plains), social (kin-based networks) and cultural factors. The data collected from the target community showed a power struggle between Thai culture and the dominant hazard management paradigm. This research put a human face on natural disaster and looked at the issue of flooding from the experiences of ordinary people. The findings showed that some members of the community are resilient while others are passive and are more vulnerable to floods. However, it is important not to label any individual or group as either vulnerable or resilient as people can be both at the same time and policy makers need to build on the strengths, rather than focus on the weaknesses and on offering emergency relief. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My utmost thanks and gratitude go to my parents. You have tirelessly supported and encouraged me throughout my years of education. Thank you for the financial and moral support and for the sacrifices you have made in order that I may continue to pursue my studies. To my sisters and brothers-in-laws, thank you so much for all your help during the busy year, through many phone calls and emails, you have made all the follow ups after the data collection possible. Thank you to the people who participated in this research. All of you have provided me with a wealth of both wonderful and poignant stories that have made this thesis possible. To my supervisor, John Campbell who has encouraged me through out my studies. Thank you for believing in me and for giving me direction in the writing up of this thesis. Thank you for setting aside the time in your hectic schedule to oversee my work. Thank you so much for your humour, friendship and academic support. Thank you to the staff and students of the Geography, Tourism and Environmental Planning Department at the University of Waikato. To Max Oulton, who created wonderful maps for this thesis, heartfelt thanks. To Diana Porteous, thank you for your continued support and encouragement throughout my university years. To Brenda Hall, thanks for always being there to solve my problems. To all my friends both in Thailand and New Zealand: your encouragement, friendly letters, emails and conversations have made a huge difference during difficult times. A deepest thank to my wonderful friend Louise Fisk who always be there for me. Thank you for your moral support throughout my years in New Zealand and for proofreading my thesis. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS FRONTISPIECE i ABSTRACT ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii TABLE OF CONTENTS iv LIST OF FIGURES vii LIST OF TABLES ix THAI GLOSSARY x Chapter 1 Introduction 1 Introduction 1 Thesis Aims and Objectives 6 Key Research Questions 7 Outline of Chapters 9 Chapter 2 Background Information 10 Introduction 10 Thailand and Flooding 11 The 2006 Flood Event 12 Pathum Thani and Flooding 12 History of settlement 13 Changes in Land Use 13 Conclusion 17 Chapter 3 Theory 18 Introduction 18 Paradigms of Hazard 18 Behavioural Approach 20 Political Economy Approach 21 Vulnerability Theory and its Evolution 22 The Progression of vulnerability Model 26 Resilience 34 Progression of Safety 34 iv Experience of Disasters: Individuals and Community 36 Conclusion 37 Chapter 4 Methodology 38 Introduction 38 Subjectivity in my Research 39 Choosing my Field Site 39 Semi-structured Interviews 40 Focus Groups 41 Constraints in Gathering Data 42 Research Participants 45 Analysing the Data 52 Conclusion 53 Chapter 5 Findings 54 Introduction 54 Bang Luang Community: Description of the Landscape 54 The Flood of 2006 and its Impacts on the Bang Luang Community 56 Ranges of Response Strategies/Coping mechanisms 67 Flood Management of Tambon Bang Luang Administration 75 Summary of 2006 Government’s Flood Assistance 79 Conclusion 79 Chapter 6 Discussion 81 Introduction 81 Bang Luang Community - A Vulnerable Community? 83 The Underlying Causes: Origins of the Problem 83 Dynamic Pressures 84 Unsafe Conditions 86 Governance Implications of Vulnerability 89 Resilient Community 97 Conclusion 105 Chapter 7 Conclusions 108 Disasters, Land Use Changes and Vulnerability 108 Resilient Community 109 Experience of Disasters: Individuals and Community 109 v From the Grassroots Level 110 Conclusion 111 References 112 Appendices 120 Appendix One: Ethical Consideration 120 Appendix Two: Information Sheet 127 Appendix Three: Consent Form 1 129 Appendix Four: Consent Form 2 130 Appendix Five: Topic Questions 132 vi LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 Map of Thailand .............................................................................................2 Figure 2 Map of Pathum Thani.....................................................................................3 Figure 3 Bang Luang Community.................................................................................4 Figure 4 Map of Bang Luang community showing buildings and locations of interviews ......................................................................................................................5 Figure 5 Flooded street ..............................................................................................16 Figure 6 The local people use boats as means of transport.........................................17 Figure 7 Interaction of People, Hazards and their Environment................................20 Figure 8 Traditions in vulnerability research and their evolution..............................23 Figure 9 The Progression of Vulnerability.................................................................25 Figure 10 The Social Causation of Disasters ............................................................30 Figure 11 The Access Model Outline ........................................................................31 Figure 12 The Progression of Safety to flooding of the Bang Luang Community, Pathum Thani, Thailand..............................................................................................35 Figure 13 A sketch of the stopbank boundary showing the “protected” and “unprotected” areas (not drawn to scale). ...................................................................56 Figure 14 Inside the watergate...................................................................................58 Figure 15 Concrete wall built by the homeowner (Washaree), .................................59 Figure 16 Two level homes on posts .........................................................................61 Figure 17 Flooded local school..................................................................................63 Figure 18 Flooded Early Childhood Development Centre (November 2006), and after clean up and rehabilitation (May 2007)..............................................................64 Figure 19 Local eating place submerged under water ...............................................66 Figure 20 Going to work............................................................................................67 Figure 21 Varying levels of walkway (timber and concrete) for different flood levels .....................................................................................................................................70 Figure 22 Sandbags preparation.................................................................................71 Figure 23 A local woman doing her washing ............................................................72 Figure 24 Mode of transport during floods................................................................74