Desktop Study on - Regional Climate Change Adaptation ...

Assessment of Capacity Gaps and Needs of South East Asia Countries
in Addressing Impacts, Vulnerability and Adaptation to Climate Variability and Climate Change
ECHAM4 model and CCCMA’s First Generation
Couple GCM. In the socio economic sector, SEA
START report makes an evaluation of the impacts
caused by climate change based on field interviews
and group meetings; Dutta’s study, uses the surface
and river components of the IISDHM model for flood
inundation simulation and the AGENT-LUC Model
(Anthropogenically Engineered Transformations
of Land Use and Land Cover) for assessing the land
use and land cover changes as result of the human
activities.
Related to this, should be included the development
of technologies for adaptation; the use and
integration of traditional knowledge for developing
adaptation options; integration of local knowledge
and scientific knowledge for technology transfer;
and communication of vulnerability and adaptation
both to vulnerable communities and policy makers
are also essential.
Last, there is a need to build awareness about
the potential impacts of climate change amongst
potentially affected people, and make stakeholders
understand that they have to get involve in order to
implement successfully measures on climate change
adaptation. There is also a need to develop and
disseminate good quality information. Systematic
efforts are required to study the impact evaluation
of different climatic parameters (MRC, 2009).
The following is the compilation of the gaps found
in the literature reviewed for water resources,
agriculture and food security, socio economics and
risk management.
Water Sector
In water sector there is an urgent need to study
changes in the rainfall pattern in all the watershed
areas by using more than three climate change
scenarios, and to incorporate the results in the
government management plans. Besides, there are
few studies in Thailand using mathematical models
to assess physical property of water resource (water
flow conditions, element dispersion, sediment
transfer and accumulation), for instance, to plan for
water resource management; studies on biological
diversity and the impacts of climate change on
water resources and fresh water ecosystems
using mathematical models need to be included
(Boonprakrob and Hattirat, 2006).
Agriculture and Food Security Sector
There is a lack of studies about the most suitable
species and varieties to face the changes in
temperature and rainfall. The fact that different
species have a unique capacity to endure heat means
that it is essential to study individual species to find
those that can best accommodate themselves to a
changing climate (Boonprakrob and Hattirat, 2006),
and therefore, to be sure that rural households can
adapt to the changes that are already happening.
A conservation plan is needed in order to conserve
genes of wild species, as they possess characteristics
that can overcome stress and enemies. On-going
studies in Thailand on the impact of climate change
on the Mekong river basin utilize one regional
climate model incorporated with CERES crop
model to predict the yields of a single variety of
economically important crops such as rice, corn,
sugar cane and cassava. Other climate change
scenarios are necessary for such studies in order to
apply appropriate adaptation strategies to minimize
the impact of climate change.
For livestock production, it is necessary to enhance
understanding and to predict the future production
of meat and dairy products under climate change
conditions are needed.
Socio-economic Sector
In Thailand, as a developing country, the issue of
climate change has been given little attention with
a more reactive approach rather proactive one;
specifically if it is compared to the development
concerns such as poverty alleviation, economic
growth and environmental degradation. But, climate
change is strongly linked with economic activities
central in modern societies: energy production
and consumption, transportation, and so on.
Therefore, it should not be dissociated from the
fundamental concerns of human society, such as
national economic planning, public administration
and human development (Permpibul and Routray,
2009).
Also, as has been seen in the studies reviewed, the
role of community level measures has declined or
been neglected for household level and national
level (Snidvongs, 2006). Current responses to
extreme climatic events are viewed more as disaster
preparedness and mitigation opportunities rather
than as warning signals of much needed long-term
adaptation. Existing climate change models do not
provide conclusive assessments of the associated
impacts at local levels. Therefore there is a need
for a bottom-up approach to address the level of
vulnerability to the existing and future impacts
to improve adaptation alt local level in the long-
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