Estimating Nonpoint source pollutant load impact on water quality of Inle Lake, Myanmar using N-SPECT model | |
| Author | Kyawt Kyawt Khaing |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no.WM-12-18 |
| Subject(s) | Water quality--Myanmar--Inle Lake Nonpoint source pollution--Myanmar--Inle Lake |
| Note | A research study submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Engineering in Water Engineering and Management, School of Engineering and Technology |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | The water quality of lakes is directly related to the quality of water draining into these water bodies or water resources via their nearby surrounding watersheds. The more increasing pressure from development activities and poor management practices around lakes have raised, the more decrease in water quality is expected and there is no doubt that it will pose more negative effects to the whole ecosystem of lake and its watershed area. Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution and land use change are considered primary threats to freshwater ecosystems. In this study, N-SPECT model, which stands for Nonpoint Source Pollution and Erosion Comparison Tool, was applied to simulate the nonpoint source pollutant load oflnle Lake, Myanmar using land cover, soils, topography, and precipitation data. The Inle Watershed is located between 20° 50'- 21°15'N and 96°45'-97°05'E. It covers an area of 5618.5km2 . The watershed owes its landform to tectonic activities and comprises a series of structurally controlled North-South striking ridges and alternate valleys. The ridges reach altitudes of 1600-1800 m a.s. l.and the altitude of the valleys is around 1300-1350m a.s. l.with the exception of the valley in which the Inle and Mobye Lakes are situated and which are much lower, with an altitude of 900 m a.s. l . In this study, model sensitivity focused only on rainfall data of 2010 and 2004. The final accumulated runoff was simulated with amounts of 2.47 x 108 m3 and 2.67 x 108 m3 for 2010 and 2004, respectively. The accumulated pollutant grids ofNitrogen and Phosphorus for 2010 were 608.223 and 117.228 in metric tons and for 2004, Nitrogen and Phosphorus load were 656.557 and 126.310 metric tons respectively. Model simulations of runoff and nutrient yields (mainly focus on Nitrogen and Phosphorus) for 2010 were comparable to the output results simulation for 2004. According to the simulation results by N-SPECT model and comparing with published water quality data in 2004, Inle lake and its watershed were over the water quality standard by WH0.(1992) with respect to water quality standard of Nitrogen and Phosphorus. All of output values of Inle watershed were higher in the downstream area than the upstream part and one of the mostly affected by accumulated runoff and accumulated pollutant loading was sub watershed-9. This was because it was affected by direct transport from upstream area of the whole watershed. For Inle Lake, the most important cause of lake water quality was major contribution of Namlet creek flowing from North. The estimated results of nonpoint source pollutant load to Inle Lake by N-SPECT shows poor water quality and it is under eutrophication impact of nonpoint source pollutant nutrients such as Nitrogen and Phosphorous. Although, there was limitation on locally derived pollutant coefficient data for this study area, the model can estimate and compare nutrient loads into local watersheds or catchments well using published data from other sources. |
| Year | 2012 |
| Type | Thesis |
| School | School of Engineering and Technology (SET) |
| Department | Department of Civil and Infrastucture Engineering (DCIE) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Water Engineering and Management (WM) |
| Chairperson(s) | Clemente, Roberto S. |
| Examination Committee(s) | Sutat Weesakul ; Perret, Sylvain ;Shrestha, Sangam |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | SIDA (Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency) |
| Degree | Thesis (M. Eng.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2012 |