| Author | Ingyin Myint Swe |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no.EV-22-19 |
| Subject(s) | Acid deposition--Economic aspects--Thailand--Chao Phraya River Basin
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| Note | A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Environmental Engineering and Management |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | Acid deposition occurs when atmospheric emissions of acidic gases undergo complex chemical reactions in the atmosphere and fall to the earth in the form of wet deposition and/or dry deposition. The accumulation of acidic compounds has major consequences for both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems and it is important to understand their tolerance limits to acid deposition to be able to identify the resources at risk. This study estimated the critical loads (CL) of acid deposition (total Sulphur and Nitrogen) of the ecosystems in the Chao Phraya River Basin by applying the Simple Mass Balance Method (SMB). The results of CL were compared with the simulated wet and dry acid depositions fluxes over the basin by WRF-CAMx model for 2018 with the resolution of 2x2 km (Ha Chi, 2020) to assess potential risks of acid deposition on the ecosystems. This study also conducted a survey to comprehend the perception of the local communities on the impacts of acid deposition on their livelihood. Sulphur CL (S) was first calculated which then was used for the estimation of the the CL of Nitrogen, CL(N) considering the denitrification fraction. CL (S) in BMR was from 588 to 1600eqS/ha-year with the highest values occuring in the center of domain and the lowest value was the western part, i.e., the Nakhon Prathom province had CL(s) of 588-700 eq/ha year. The CL(N) ranged between 856 and 5500 eqN/ha-year with the maximum values occurring around the domain center and the lowest values also seen in the western part of Nakhon Prathom province, similar to CL(S). The results of this study on CL are lower than the previous study for BMR (Milindalekha et al., 2001). Mapping of the exceedance of total Sulphur deposition over the CL (S) was observed only in the 0.47 percent of the total BMR area. The exceedance of Nitrogen deposition was more serious, i.e. more than 50% of BMR area, with the higher exceedance seen in Nakhon Prathom, Nonthaburi and Pathum Thani provinces affecting large agricultural land area. . The community face to face survey was conducted to in 3 communes in Pathumthani with 99 respondents (51.5% male and 48.5% female) who were the agricultural farmers (56), aquacultural farmers (18), fisherman (1), officers (9), and others. It was revealed that about 91 percent of the respondents aware of the relation between air pollution, water pollution and climate change. Based on the personal assessment, the majority of agricultural farmers strongly disagree the presence of water pollution incident in Chao Phraya river while most aquaculture farmers and fishermen agreed on that fact. Further studies should focus on the detail properties of the soil and vegetables in the domain to improve the CL results. More, the calculation of exceedances by critical load functions is recommended to be carried out via a suite of Python scripts developed and written to automate the spatial processes involved (within a GIS framework). |
| Year | 2022 |
| Type | Thesis |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development (SERD) |
| Department | Department of Energy and Climate Change (Former title: Department of Energy, Environment, and Climate Change (DEECC)) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Environmental Engineering and Management (EV) |
| Chairperson(s) | Ekbordin Winijkul;Nguyen Thi Kim Oanh (Co-Chairperson); |
| Examination Committee(s) | Xue, Wenchao;Ho Huu Loc; |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Loom Nam Khong Pijai (Greater Mekong Subregion) Scholarships; |
| Degree | Thesis (M. Sc.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2022 |