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Sustainable Mekong:

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Bed degradation is likely to occur in the Mekong River system due to increasing sand mining. ... on fisheries by blocking migration and spawning areas, ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Sustainable Mekong:


1
Sustainable Mekong
  • Tonle Sap Monograph Summary
  • Mak Sithirith/Matthew Chadwick

2
Overview of The Tonle Sap Lake
  • a unique place
  • the centre of Cambodia.
  • the heart of the country,
  • the centre of its ancient culture,
  • the pre-eminent economic resource,
  • a source of sustenance for the poor, and
  • a most complex and fascinating ecosystem.

3
Overview of Chapter
  • Fish trade
  • Fishing lot versus community fisheries
  • Hydrological change and the fisheries impacts
  • Sedimentation in the Tonle Sap Lake
  • Agriculture Around the Lake
  • Migration within the Tonle Sap Lake

4
1. Fish Trade in the Tonle Sap
  • Explores the issues around fish production and
    the fishing trade.
  • Inland fisheries production 290,000-400,000 tons,
    with a 50-60 coming from Tonle Sap (ADB, 2004).
  • A minimum of 50,000 tons and up to 100,000 tons
    are exported each year to ThailandThis is
    unreliable estimate due to under-reporting
    especially of the small traders.
  • The Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF)
    collects a 10 export tax on all fish exports.
  • Fish for export must be sold to or through
    KAMFIMEX, a state owned enterprise managed by
    Ministry of Forest and Fisheries.

5
  • Findings Summary
  • There remains a high level of uncertainty over
    the extent of the trade in fish due to limited
    knowledge of the size of the informal trading
    system.
  • Relatively little post harvest processing and
    therefore value addition takes place in Cambodia.
  • The fish trading system is tied intimately to the
    credit system. This has the benefit of providing
    a high level of stability to the system but
    limits the systems ability to act as a means of
    poverty alleviation especially for the fisher
    folk.
  • The formal and informal taxation system accounts
    for a high portion of profits and is complex and
    extensive and again stifles the ability of the
    trade to meet its potential for reducing poverty.
    The system needs to be clarified, simplified and
    may more transparent.

6
  • Research Recommendations
  • Many of the issues identified relate to fish
    trade from the Lao PDR also and there is a
    complex interchange taking place between
    Thailand, Lao PDR and Cambodia. The role and
    extent of the informal trading sector needs to be
    better understood
  • The credit and taxation system (formal and
    informal) greatly reduces the profitability of
    the trade for those most at need. Potential
    modes for overhauling the system need to be
    investigated.

7
2. Entitlement and Community fisheries in Tonle
Sap Lake
  • Fishing lot in Cambodia has existed over hundred
    years.
  • Some studies in the late 90s --The "fishing lot"
    remains a government's main instruments for
    fisheries managementthe fishing lot areas were
    enlarged .
  • Fishing conflict between fishing lot and
    community.
  • Fishing lot areas were reduced, estimated 56 and
    47 in the Tonle Sap Lake.

8
  • Key Findings
  • The fishing areas cut for local people uses were
    the former areas used by local people.
  • The research fishing lot was established in 1997
  • In 2000, the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC)
    announced to return all research fishing lots
    into the auctioned fishing lots.
  • In 2002-2003, 37 fishing lots out of 38 were
    converted into the research fishing lots.
  • The community management of the fishing lot was
    impossible. But the community management of
    areas cut from the fishing lot is now under the
    community fisheries schemes.

9
  • Research Recommendations
  • Interrogate the disconnect between the
    historically and culturally rooted power
    structures and social relationships at the
    community level and the assumptions of top-down
    and expert led design of co-management programs
    and institutions in Tonle Sap.
  • Review the factors which have contributed to the
    success or failure of co-management initiatives
    in other parts of the world, and compared this
    with the institutional framework and cultural
    context of Cambodia. Review meta-analysis of
    design principles for CPR co-management and
    attempt to apply them to the Cambodian context.

10
3. Changing Hydrology and Fisheries Impacts
  • In Tonle Sap Lake, in 1962-63water volume was
    68 million m3 (MRC, 1963),
  • But in late 90s, the water volume was 50 million
    m3 (CNMC and Nedeco, 1998 FAO, ADB, DoF, 2003)
  • This is suggesting a change in hydrology.

11
  • The higher the flood and the longer the flood
    duration the greater quantity of fish
  • The freshwater fish production remained stable
    during the last ten years but catch composition
    in terms of size and species were critically
    changed (Tana and Todd, 2002).

12
Key findings
  • The lake functions as a natural floodwater
    reservoir for the Mekong and reducing salty water
    intrusion through release of water from the lake.
  • The flood duration and flooded area of the
    floodplain are important for the fisheries
    productivity
  • Fish and other aquatic species in Tonle Sap are
    affected by the water level variation, and
    sedimentation blockage. The feeding, spawning and
    nursery grounds would be disturbed and lead to
    declining biodiversity and productivity.

13
Research gaps
  • Study of the water balance calculations in Tonle
    Sap Lake to reflect the hydrological changes,
    such as the estimations of extreme situations
  • The basic hydrological and limnological
    processes, such as sediment transport and
    dissolved oxygen levels, are now adequately
    documented, but the status and dynamics of
    biological productivity within the lake have not
    been well studied.
  • Until the mid-1990s, catch statistics by the DoF
    were based on planned production rather than
    effective catches. Annual fish catch from the
    Tonle Sap ecosystem has in 2002 been reduced to
    235 000 tonnes, without explanation how this
    figure was obtained. Fish catch statistics should
    be improved to (a) reflect the biotic or abiotic
    state of the environment (b) reveal evidence
    for the impacts of hydrological change (c)
    indicate the diversity of other species, taxa or
    communities within an area.

14
  • An unrestricted flow of information between the
    countries of the lower and Upper Mekong Basin is
    urgently needed, to enable more quantitative
    estimations of possible development-related
    impacts on hydrology and fisheries.
  • Zoning based on topography, flood characteristics
    and fisheries can increase remarkably the
    understanding of the interconnections between
    hydrological change, fish production and
    socio-economic issues.
  • Policy advice on dam construction, irrigation
    schemes, and other development activities from
    insights into the hydrological changes for
    sustainable aquatic resources.
  • More studies are required on the impact of
    climate change on hydrology of the Mekong River
    and Tonle Sap that will have significant effects
    on fisheries of the Tonle Sap.

15
4. Sedimentation in Tonle Sap
  • The current rate of sediment accumulation is low
    and not accelerated with respect to the long-term
    sediment dynamics of the system.
  • However, there are many local problems associated
    with high sedimentation and erosion rates in the
    area and so calls for further investigations.
  • .

16
  • No reliable calculations or source data on
    sediment bed-load exist. This may result in a
    tendency to underestimate the magnitude of
    sedimentation.
  • However, a number of experts believe that the
    lake bottom is cohesive material, which basically
    happens no bed load but all the sediment
    transport is suspended load. This is subject to
    further investigation

17
Findings Summary
  • Current state of primary data on sediment in
    Mekong Basin and TLS does not provide for
    accurate quantification of the sediment load.
  • Estimates of the rates of sedimentation of the
    TSL Lake vary wildly from an extreme of 40 mm/yr
    to lower than 0.2 mm/yr. Based on the scientific
    evidence, net sediment rate over the TLS Lake is
    low.
  • Evidence points to the fact that sedimentation
    does not cover the lake evenly, but instead it is
    concentrated around the inflow points and as over
    bank sedimentation.
  • Two locations on both ends of the TLS River are
    considered to be problematic from the
    morphological changes point of view, namely the
    Chhnoc Trou and at Chaktomuk areas.
  • Dams upstream would sharply reduce the net inputs
    of sediment in TLS and consequently, the supply
    of sediment bound nutrients to its.
  • Bed degradation is likely to occur in the Mekong
    River system due to increasing sand mining. If
    sand extraction is allowed to increase
    uncontrolled, it may be a very severe problem
    that will migrate in downstream direction and
    threaten the long term stability of the Lower
    Mekong and Bassac Rivers.

18
Recommendation
  • Development of methods for generating timely data
    and/or information on sedimentation trends and
    other related changes of environmental conditions
    of the Mekong River Basin.
  • Examination, determining and redefining the
    causes and the problems related to the erosion
    and the disequilibrium of the morphological
    stability due to extensive sand mining.
  • Determination of the nutrient inputs from Lake
    and surrounding sediments for fish production and
    model fish production which incorporates impacts
    of changed sediment inputs and Lake flooding.
  • Development and visualisation of indices of
    historical channel migration, and classify
    factors influencing erosion and sedimentation at
    key local sites of TLS basin
  • Quantitative assessment and understanding of the
    influence of built structures on fisheries by
    blocking migration and spawning areas, altering
    water quality and quantity, changing the temporal
    and spatial relationship and nature of the flood
    cycle, and degrading or fragmenting aquatic
    habitats of TLS.
  • Assessment of importance of sediment (fish food
    chain, farm natural fertilizers)

19
5. Agricultural Development and Intensification
in Tonle Sap - An Opportunity for Poverty
Alleviation?
  • Low agricultural productivity due to low soil
    fertility, limited access to agricultural inputs,
    variability is rainfall that includes frequent
    droughts and floods, weak agricultural extension
    services that limit the transfer of improved
    production practices to farmers, poor
    infrastructure, limit access to markets, increase
    the cost associated with transport and limits
    access to credit and low commodity prices.
  • Further agricultural development in surrounding
    watersheds threatens development in the basin as
    a whole.

20
Research Recommendations Summary
  • The groundwater potential of the Tonle Sap with a
    focus on assessing its potential role in small
    scale on farm irrigation.
  • The potential of integrated farming systems as a
    means of enhancing livelihoods and food security
    in the Mekong Basin. This may include an analysis
    of the extent and adoption of integrated farming
    systems from a regional basis

21
6. A Moving Target - Migration to and from Tonle
Sap and its Impact on Rural Livelihoods
  • Will be presented in the next session

22
Tonle Sap Database
  • We have developed a Tonle Sap Database
    www.sumernet.org/tonlesap/eng
  • Eg. FACT

23
  • THANK YOU
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