Chiang Mai votes: Goose or no goose?

Chiang Mai residents are voting today, not to elect a political representative, but to determine whether the ten geese deployed by the city’s administration, on a 7-day trial basis to get rid of duckweed in the city moat, have passed the test.

Last week, the city’s mayor, Assange Buranupakorn, said that the project to use geese was intended to improve the water quality in the moat and to beautify the landscape of the city’s Lana historical landmark.

He confirmed that the geese have been vaccinated, are being cared for by a team of veterinarians and have been monitored by guards during the 7-day trial, to assess their efficacy.

He said the city administration also plans to release about 40,000 tilapia fish into the moat, as he appealed to city dwellers to refrain from feeding or disturbing the geese and from littering the moat.

The presence of the geese in the past week has attracted tourists and residents, making the usually quite landmark somewhat livelier.

On the first day of the trial, a commotion was reported on the road running parallel to the moat, when some of the geese panicked at the noise of the traffic, with some of them running onto the road and causing traffic congestion. It took city officials a few hours to herd all the geese into a bamboo cage as a temporary shelter.

Chakkhubaan Thananchai, chief architect of the city administration, said that it took the geese 3-5 days to get used to the new environment. He added that the birds now swim and feed freely in the moat, without venturing onto the road.

He claimed that the water quality in the moat has slightly improved since the arrival of the geese.

Public reactions on the social media to the project have become more positive, as more people visit the site to relax.

Some residents have, however, complained that some motorists stop their cars beside the moat to take pictures with the geese, causing unnecessary congestion.

Others have complained about the loud noises made by the geese, as they express concern that, if the number of geese is to be increased to 200, as planned by the city administration, their loud noise could become unbearable and that there is the prospect of traffic mayhem.