Climate Data Information

Climate Change Impact Part 4: Example – River Mekong Summary A component of a study of the impact of climate change in Cambodia examined how flows in the Mekong River will change in the future. Climate data on precipitation, temperature and other climate variables were used as input to a hydrological model, HYSIM, of the Mekong Basin. The model was calibrated to observed flows at six gauging stations on the main river. The calibrated hydrological model was then used with climate projections to estimate future flows in the River Mekong. Introduction The Mekong River Basin has a drainage area of 795,000 km 2 and the river is 4350 km in length. The river rises in China at an elevation 5224 m. The river, or its tributaries, also flow through Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. The river’s flow is highly seasonal, dictated by snow melt in the upper reaches and by the Monsoon in the middle and lower reaches. (At the point where the flow was simulated, Kom...

Climate Change Impact Part 3: Example – Tonle Sap Lake - Cambodia Summary This study related to the estimation of vulnerability (as a function of ‘importance’ and ‘risk’) to climate change of roads and communities surrounding Tonle Sap lake. A mathematical model of Tonle Sap lake and the channel linking it the River Mekong was developed. This model was able to accurately simulate the lake levels and hence the extent of flooding around the lake; this defined the ‘importance’. Another component of the study estimated the change in levels of the Mekong due to climate change; this identified the ‘risk’. The study drew on the simulation of the Mekong river described elsewhere. The conclusion was that events which had a rare frequency of occurrence in the past would occur more frequently in the future. Introduction Tonle Sap is the largest lake in South-East Asia, is a wetland of international importance and is recognised by the Ramsar convention. Like most wetland...