Hundreds of monkeys
living in a mangrove in Bang Pakong district are facing a shortage
of drinking water because of forest encroachment.
Songsilp Lokayuth, an assistant village headman at tambon Bang
Pakong, said the water shortage forced between 600 and 700
crab-eating macaques living near the mouth of the Bang Pakong
river to drink water from jars and shrimp farms at a nearby
village.
The problem had become critical since a 12km stretch of mangrove
used as a source of water by the monkeys had been destroyed and
turned into fish ponds and shrimp farms, he said.
Mr Songsilp said villagers were willing to share water with the
monkeys but the situation was so serious that long-term measures
were needed to save the mangrove.
Thaweesak Suksri, of the Tambon Bang Pakong Administration
Organisation, said the local body would spend 30,000 baht building
a water pipeline for the monkeys and would come up with measures
to protect them from problems caused by humans.
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