PROJECT PERMANENCE

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Value of the Bucket

The lack of means for transporting and storing goods has led to an increase in waste throughout the camp. The same bucket is often used to transport water and gather food, along with many other fundamental activities.

Water Supply

Currently there is enough water supply for 75% of the camp's population

Population + Farmland

The current farmland (dark green) is approximately 14 acres (5.6 hectare) with roughly 50 acres (20 hectare) of deforested area (light green).  In order to support a population of 50,000 refugees, the camp needs approximately 252 acres (102 hectare) of farmland (dark green).

Diagram showing the population density throughout the camp.

Overpopulated and undersupplied

The two main issues of Mae La are that it is over-populated and there is a lack of food supply.  The camp is no longer growing from immigration, but it’s increasingly growing from within.  The population is growing from within because a larger family gets larger rations. In other words, a child gets the same ration as an adult, meaning that families with many children are getting more rations and eating better. Thus, having 6-8 children has become the norm.

With an increase in food supply, having large families would no longer be ideal because everyone would be given an appropriate amount of food. This would halt the population growth and allow the camp to focus on issues other than food source and over-population. Ultimately, allowing the camp to self-sustain.

The average farm area per person in Thailand has long been constant at around 1.5 acres (.61 ha), but 50,000 refugees in Mae La are farming from a measly 14 acres (5.6 ha).  That’s the equivalent of 3,570 people per acre (.4 ha) of farmland. Fortunately, TBBC also provides food supply to the camp, but the goal is for the camp to live autonomously.

Mae La  population : farmland  ratio

Thailand is divided in four farming regions, with the overall average farm size being 11 acres (4.51 ha). Farm size in the Central region (5.45 ha or 13.5 acres) is the largest of the four regions. The Northeastern region averages 11 acres (4.51 ha), the Southern with 10.5 acres (4.24 ha) and the Northern with 10 acres (3.97 ha). 

Farmland within the different regions varies according to land fertility and the type of crop grown. Less fertile soil requires more farmland in order to maintain a minimum supply level, but more fertile land will have an increase in supply per acre.  Mae La is located in the Northern region where land is more fertile, thus they don’t need as much area to produce a lot of supply. The fertile soil also means they can produce up to three crops per year.

Thailand produces four major crops: rice, maize, cassava and soybean in the four different regions. Land fertility has some effect on the type of crop grown. Maize and cassava are grown on the least fertile land (the eastern provinces of the Central and Northeastern regions) and are usually produced on fairly large farms. Farmland in the Northern and Southern regions are much smaller, but offset by greater fertility.

It is common, in rainfed areas, to diversify crop production to maintain greater fertility and reduce the risk of a poor growing season. For the same reason, multiple cropping and integrated farming systems were promoted in irrigated areas. A popular integrated farming system is fish culture and poultry raising, combined with field and tree crops.

The Mae La refugee camp does not have the knowledge nor the ability to irrigate an increased area of farmland, but the high levels of rain make for good rainfed production during the rainy season. Irrigation could be a future addition to allow year-round production. For now, we will focus on increasing farmland to improve rainfed production during the rainy seasons.

The second largest component of agriculture is livestock production. Thailand farmers are increasing production in broiler chickens, cows, and pigs whenever crop production has slowed. This is also known as “integrating crop-livestock farming”; which could be valuable in a rainfed area such as Mae La where they are unable to produce crops during dry seasons. Thus livestock could be maintained in “dead” areas and moved as the seasons and crops change.

Read more: Thailand - Location and size, Population, Political parties, Revenues http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Asia-and-the-Pacific/Thailand.html#ixzz26gopANmA 

Also look at: FFTC: Food & Fertilizer Technology Center

 

Mae La Housing Strategies

Houses are built with steeper roofs to allow quicker water run-off, and create a stack effect that allows heat to rise and escape

It’s common to build separate roofs for each room of a unit.

 

This image shows the structure for a basic roof of a smaller sized house.  Larger houses require more supports and beams.

 

The ground floors of houses are elevated to avoid the humid ground conditions.  The floors are made with hardwood (2cm-thick, 6 x 25 cm pieces). They are typically installed with fresh tar, sanded and then protected with an oil finish.

 

For partitions, thin pieces of wood are woven together and tied or nailed to support posts.

 

The roofing material is made up of thatch pieces (usually dried leaves) that are tied to rafters.

 

* Refer to "The Barefoot Architect, A Handbook for Green Building" by Johan van Lengen for more information regarding simple home building strategies

 

The population of Mae La, Thailand

The 50,000+ population of Mae La is complete with 40 schools, shops, churches, water & sewage systems, but the community is defined by poverty, lack of ambition, along with alcohol and drug problems. The camp's population is mainly made up of families of farmers and low-income workers, while religions are more or less evenly divided between Buddhists and Christians. 

Although there are 40 schools, education for the massive amount of children is minimal.  Most families living in the camp have between six and eight children. With water and rice rations provided by the Thai Burma Border, having many children is considered practical. This is the main reason the population has grown rapidly and now nearly a third of all residents are under the age of twelve.

There is one college in the camp. Kawthoolei Karen Baptist Bible School and College (KKBBSC) has operated for over 25 years. They currently have over 300 students in their twenties. The students have constructed many buildings (all by hand, from bamboo, wood, metal panels, etc), including dormitories, a cafeteria, and a large church. They have also learned to install electricity and fluorescent lights as well as plumbing systems that pump in rainwater stored outside in large basins.

Housing on a steep slope

Elementary School

Dormitory

"Store" selling snacks

Farmland along the river

Church Interior

Fire in Mae La refugee camp, Thailand

see video:  http://vimeo.com/41193108

On April 28, 2012 a fire began in the Kawthoolei Karen Baptist Bible School and College (KKBBSC) compound located in Zone C.1A.  It took approximately an hour to put out the fire.  Unfortunately, it completely destroyed the school, food storage, library, teachers houses and other buildings.  As many as 1,000 people helped put out the fire with buckets of water, a hose and by dismantling dried-leaf roofs of surrounding houses to keep the fire from spreading.  Visit karennews.org for more information. 

Mae La refugee camp, Thailand

Mae La is located along Thailand’s border with Burma where it is currently the largest of nine camps that house over 140,000 people.  Mae La itself houses more than 50,000 Burmese citizens whom fled the military dictatorship to seek refuge in Thailand.

All of the buildings in the camp are constructed of wood, bamboo and leaves.  There is no official market inside the camp because the people do not have proper jobs or much money to pay for supplies, but through their creativity, members are able to gather some supplies, such as various medicines.  During the daytime many people weave cloth, sell items from their houses, teach, and/or study.  Food rations are very tight  and not much can be grown since there is little space for fields.  Checkout the TBBC website for more information regarding food in the camp. Checkpoints, controlled by the Thai Army, are located all around the camp to keep refugees from moving freely throughout Thailand.

The runs 5km (3 miles) along the main access road and is approximately 1km (.6 miles) at its widest point. This is the equivalent of approximately 1.5 square miles which is equal to 650 football fields.  The camp sits between the main access road and a steep “cliff” that rises on the other side of a river that is north of the camp.

Altitude: 730' average (650' - 814')

Climate: Tropical climate with wet and dry seasons and temperature ranging from 4C to 42C (39F to 107F) and an average temperature of 26C (79F). The rainy season last from June to October, followed by a cool season until February. The weather is hot and sunny from March until May. The average rainfall is 2100 mm (83"). More than 85% of the annual rainfall occurs during the rainy season.

Resources: Drinking water is supplied to public tap stands from the river and naturally flowing springs. 75% of the population gets their drinking water through public tap stands after passing through collection systems, pump stations, storage tanks, and distribution networks. The majority of the remaining 25% get their water from private sources. There are a couple small fields by the river at the north end of camp that provide some rice.  Other food and supplies are brought in by various organizations (see below).

Aide:
-   Aide Medicale Internationale (AMI) is currently providing health care and water supply (potable and non-potable public water supplies)
-   Shoklo Malaria Research Unit (Smru) treats and cares for patients with malaria
-   Thailand Burma Border Consortium (TBBC) provides food and supplies for shelter

17º 07’ 57” N,  98º 22’ 46” E                                                Google Earth

 

17º07’ 57” N, 98º22’ 46” E                                                   Google Earth

17º07’ 57” N, 98º22’ 46” E                                                   Google Earth

Thailand Refugee Camps

A chain of nine refugee camps stretches along the Thailand/Burma border from the far north down to one that is east of Bangkok.  The camps are primarily inhabited by refugees fleeing the Myan Military Government.

http://www.unhcr.org/pages/49e489646.html

Please visit UNHCR - Thailand  for more information