Download Habitat: Flooded Forest

Group 1: Tonle Sap
Location: Roberto
1. Mr. Carl Middleton
2. Mr. Chea Chan Tou
Facilitators:
3. Mr. Eric Guerin
4. Mr. Ganesh Pangare
1. Terry Hills
5. Mr. Hiek Sopheap
2. Radhika Dave
6. Mr. Hourt Khieu
7. Mr. Kaviphone Phouthavongs
8. Ms. Sarah Turner
9. Mr. SyVann Leng
10.Mr. Suppakorn Chinvanno
Tonle Sap – Core Values (1a)
• Ecosystem Services:
– Fisheries Productivity, Nutrient Flow/Deposition
on Floodplains, Regulation of Flood Pulse
• Habitats:
– Fish Sanctuaries, Flooded Forest, Dry Season
Ponds, Floodplain
• Species:
– Many vulnerable and endangered species – eg.
Mekong Giant Catfish
Tonle Sap - Development Trends (1b)
• Fishing:
– Increasing use of nets, brushwood as catch-per-unit
effort increases, raising introduced species, seasonal
migration from uplands for fishing during dry season
• Agriculture:
– Clearing of the flooded forest, increase use of
pesticides, increased fertilizer use
• Tourism:
– Increased tourism, but benefits are not shared with
local communities in Tonle Sap, increased pressure on
natural resources, increased waste generation
• Hydropower:
– Larger systems cannot mitigate against migration
problems, but well-designed smaller systems may
Climate Change vs Core Values (2)
Looked at set of exposures:
• Temp increase
• Summer length increase
• Increased intensity and variability of precipitation during the
wet season
• Reduced precipitation and increased length of dry season
• Increased maximum monthly flows
• Reduced minimum monthly flows
Climate Change vs Core Values (2)
Looked at set of exposures:
• Temp increase
• Summer length increase
• Increased intensity and variability of precipitation during the
wet season
• Reduced precipitation and increased length of dry season
• Increased maximum monthly flows
• Reduced minimum monthly flows
…but, need to understand the seasonal hydrology:
Water Level
Jan
Jun
Rainy Season
Dec
Climate Change vs Core Values (2)
• Ecosystem Service: Fisheries Productivity:
– Increased productivity likely if higher flow during wet season
and lower flow during dry season, but decreased productivity if
low flow during wet season and higher flow during dry season.
– Increased temp: algal blooms, more fishfood, fish mortality at
lower water level
• Habitat: Dry Season Pools: vulnerable to changes in temperature
and summer length
• Habitat: Floodplain: Increased Temp : reduced rice productivity,
change in pest vectors
• Habitat: Flooded Forest: resilient to water level changes, forest
fire vulnerability, surface area available for flooded forest growth
will change depending on new hydrological regime.
• Fish Species: Increased temperature leads to higher O2 and food
intake demands: increased uptake of pollutants, increased flows
may hamper upstream spawning migrations, erode spawning beds
or sweep away juveniles and eggs, changes to flow timing may
affect spawning behavior.
Tonle Sap – Resilience and
Adaptation
Principles: Resilience to future change for
communities and biodiversity
1. Reduce non climate pressures on natural
ecosystems to maintain ecosystem services
and build climate resilience for ecosystems
2. Maintain existing habitats and prevent spread
of invasive species
3. Mainstream climate change knowledge into all
gov’t agencies – at local level, sub national,
etc…(also, need awareness of consequences
of hydropower dams)
Actions: Resilience to future change for
communities and biodiversity
1. Alternative income and livelihoods option:
– Floating Villages: ecotourism, handicraft
– Uplands/floodplain – alternative livelihoods to reduce
pressure on lake
2. Maintain existing habitats for fish and other
species + reforestation programs to provide
longer-term food security
3. Balance of Education, Livelihood Options,
Community Engagement and Enforcement.
(use of appropriate fishing gear, awareness of
values, monitoring, linkages and rules).
Actions (Cont’d)
• Review and revise zoning of the Tonle Sap
based upon modeled analysis and
validation
• Identify different cultivars of rice and fruit
varieties that are more flood / drought
tolerant
• Improve early warning system – provide
seasonal forecast information to
communities
Next Steps – Information Needs
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Baseline ecological information on current status of
species and habitats (fish, reptiles, birds, mammals)
and how these will respond to climate change.
Understand the functional ecology of flooded forests
Assess feasibility of alternate livelihood options,
water filters, alternative fish cooking units
Improved modeling and analysis of climate change
and hydropower consequences to the Tonle Sap
system and communities
Observed climate data lacking – Expand weather
station network