Updated Basis Knowledge of Climate Change Summarized from the First part of Thailand’s Second Assessment Report on Climate Change

Recent evidence and key issues on climate change in Thailand have been presented in the first part of Thailand’s Second Assessment Report on Climate Change (2nd TRAC). The report highlights key findings including 1) a significant country-wide warming of 1.30 oC over the past 48 years (1970-2017); b) significant changes in rainfall patterns at smaller spatial and finer temporal scales; c) significant changes in temperature and rainfall extreme events over the last four-five decades; d) a significant decrease in frequency of tropical cyclones entering Thailand; e) significant rise in sea level in the seas around Thailand at higher rates than the global average; and f) significant projected increases in temperature and rainfall in Thailand by 2100. The first part of the 2nd TARC provides a comprehensive and updated analysis of climate change impacts in Thailand that can be used as an authoritative reference for building understanding and awareness, as well as for designing adaptation and mitigation strategies. Moreover, it can serve as a repository for scientific information to support further research related to impact, adaptation and vulnerability to climate change. Regular assessment of national climate change impacts is essential to informing national policy and to allow policymakers to assess priorities and set meaningful targets in line with the country’s international obligations under the Climate Change Agreement

Future changes in annual precipitation extremes over Southeast Asia under global warming of 2°C

THIS ARTICLE PROVIDES detailed information on projected changes in annual precipitation extremes over Southeast Asia under global warming of 2°C based on the multi-model simulations of the Southeast Asia Regional Climate Downscaling/Coordinated Regional Climate Downscaling Experiment Southeast Asia (SEACLID/CORDEX-SEA). Four indices of extreme precipitation are considered: annual total precipitation (PRCPTOT), consecutive dry days (CDD), frequency of rainfall exceeding 50 mm/day (R50mm), and intensity of extreme precipitation (RX1day). The ensemble mean of 10 simulations showed reasonable performance in simulating observed characteristics of extreme precipitation during the historical period of 1986–2005. The year 2041 was taken as the year when global mean temperature reaches 2°C above pre-industrial levels under unmitigated climate change scenario based on Karmalkar and Bradley (2017). Results indicate that the most prominent changes during the period of 2031–2051 were largely significant. Robust increases in CDD imply impending drier conditions over Indonesia, while increases in RX1day suggest more intense rainfall events over most of Indochina under 2°C global warming scenario. Furthermore, northern Myanmar is projected to experience increases in CDD, R50mm and RX1day, suggesting that the area may face more serious repercussions than other areas in Southeast Asia

Spatiotemporal Characteristics of Droughts and Their Propagation during the Past 67 Years in Northern Thailand

Droughts grow concurrently in space and time; however, their spatiotemporal propagation is still not fully studied. In this study, drought propagation and spatiotemporal characteristics were studied in northern, northeastern, and central Thailand (NNCT). The NNCT is an important agricultural exporter worldwide, and droughts here can lead to considerable pressure on the food supply. This study investigated meteorological drought and soil drought in northern Thailand and identified 70 meteorological drought events and 44 soil drought events over 1948–2014. Severe droughts (droughts with long trivariate return periods) mainly occurred after 1975 and were centered in northern and northeastern Thailand. Meteorological drought and soil drought that occurred during 1979–1980 had the longest trivariate return periods of 157 years and 179 years, respectively. The drought centers were mainly located in the Chao Phraya River basin and the Mun River basin. The mean propagation ratios of all drought parameters (duration, area, severity) were lower than 1, indicating that the underlying surface can serve as a buffer to alleviate water deficits. Most of the probability distribution coefficients and all drought propagation ratios of the three drought parameters were found to change significantly based on a moving-window method, indicating that the drought parameters and propagation from meteorological drought to soil drought were non-stationary. Significant increasing trends were detected in mean values of most drought parameters, ranging from 2.4%/decade to 16.6%/decade. Significant decreasing trends were detected in coefficients of skewness (Cs) of all drought parameters and coefficients of variation (Cv) of most drought parameters, ranging from −3.3 to −12.4%/decade, and from −5.5 to −19.4%/decade, respectively. The propagation ratios of all drought parameters showed significant increasing trends, indicating that the function of the underlying surface as a buffer has become weaker. The drought propagation ratios were found to be positively related to two climate indices, the phase index (PI) and the climate seasonality index (CSI). These findings will help to develop a better understanding and management of water resources in Thailand

Spatiotemporal Characteristics of Droughts and Their Propagation during the Past 67 Years in Northern Thailand

Droughts grow concurrently in space and time; however, their spatiotemporal propagation is still not fully studied. In this study, drought propagation and spatiotemporal characteristics were studied in northern, northeastern, and central Thailand (NNCT). The NNCT is an important agricultural exporter worldwide, and droughts here can lead to considerable pressure on the food supply. This study investigated meteorological drought and soil drought in northern Thailand and identified 70 meteorological drought events and 44 soil drought events over 1948–2014. Severe droughts (droughts with long trivariate return periods) mainly occurred after 1975 and were centered in northern and northeastern Thailand. Meteorological drought and soil drought that occurred during 1979–1980 had the longest trivariate return periods of 157 years and 179 years, respectively. The drought centers were mainly located in the Chao Phraya River basin and the Mun River basin. The mean propagation ratios of all drought parameters (duration, area, severity) were lower than 1, indicating that the underlying surface can serve as a buffer to alleviate water deficits. Most of the probability distribution coefficients and all drought propagation ratios of the three drought parameters were found to change significantly based on a moving-window method, indicating that the drought parameters and propagation from meteorological drought to soil drought were non-stationary. Significant increasing trends were detected in mean values of most drought parameters, ranging from 2.4%/decade to 16.6%/decade. Significant decreasing trends were detected in coefficients of skewness (Cs) of all drought parameters and coefficients of variation (Cv) of most drought parameters, ranging from −3.3 to −12.4%/decade, and from −5.5 to −19.4%/decade, respectively. The propagation ratios of all drought parameters showed significant increasing trends, indicating that the function of the underlying surface as a buffer has become weaker. The drought propagation ratios were found to be positively related to two climate indices, the phase index (PI) and the climate seasonality index (CSI). These findings will help to develop a better understanding and management of water resources in Thailand

Future Changes in High and Low Flows under the Impacts of Climate and Land Use Changes in the Jiulong River Basin of Southeast China

Climate change and human activities have profoundly affected the world with extreme precipitation, heat waves, water scarcity, frequent floods and intense droughts. It is acknowledged that climate change will persist and perhaps intensify in the future, and it is thus meaningful to explore the quantitative impacts of these changes on hydrological regimes. The Jiulong River basin serves as an important watershed on the southeast coast of China. However, future hydrological changes under the combined impacts of climate change and land use change have been barely investigated. In this study, the climate outputs from five general circulation models (GCMs) under the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) were corrected and spatially downscaled by a statistical downscaling method combining quantile mapping and machine learning. The future high-resolution land use maps were projected by the CA–Markov model with land use changes from the Land-Use Harmonization 2 (LUH2) as constraints. The future dynamic vegetation process was projected by the Biome-GBC model, and then, the future hydrological process under four representative concentration pathways and shared socioeconomic pathways (RCP–SSP) combined scenarios was simulated by a distributed hydrological model. Based on the copula method, the flood frequency and corresponding return periods were derived. The results demonstrated that future precipitation and air temperature would continue to rise, and future land use changes would have different developing pathways determined by the designs in various SSP–RCPs. Under the combined impacts of climate and land use change, the total available water resources will increase due to increasing precipitation, and the high flow and low flow will both increase at three stations under the four SSP–RCPs. The annual 1-day maximum discharge is projected to increase by 67–133% in the last decade of the 21st century, and the annual 7-day minimum discharge is projected to increase by 19–39%. The flood frequency analysis showed that the Jiulong River basin would face more frequent floods in the future. By the end of the 21st century, the station-average frequency of a historical 100-year flood will increase by 122% under the most optimistic scenario (SSP126) and increase by 213% under the scenario of greatest regional rivalry (SSP370). We demonstrated that climate change would be the major cause for the increase in future high flows and that land use change would dominate future changes in low flows. Finally, we recommend integrated and sustainable water management systems to tackle future challenges in this coastal basin

Future Changes in High and Low Flows under the Impacts of Climate and Land Use Changes in the Jiulong River Basin of Southeast China

Climate change and human activities have profoundly affected the world with extreme precipitation, heat waves, water scarcity, frequent floods and intense droughts. It is acknowledged that climate change will persist and perhaps intensify in the future, and it is thus meaningful to explore the quantitative impacts of these changes on hydrological regimes. The Jiulong River basin serves as an important watershed on the southeast coast of China. However, future hydrological changes under the combined impacts of climate change and land use change have been barely investigated. In this study, the climate outputs from five general circulation models (GCMs) under the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) were corrected and spatially downscaled by a statistical downscaling method combining quantile mapping and machine learning. The future high-resolution land use maps were projected by the CA–Markov model with land use changes from the Land-Use Harmonization 2 (LUH2) as constraints. The future dynamic vegetation process was projected by the Biome-GBC model, and then, the future hydrological process under four representative concentration pathways and shared socioeconomic pathways (RCP–SSP) combined scenarios was simulated by a distributed hydrological model. Based on the copula method, the flood frequency and corresponding return periods were derived. The results demonstrated that future precipitation and air temperature would continue to rise, and future land use changes would have different developing pathways determined by the designs in various SSP–RCPs. Under the combined impacts of climate and land use change, the total available water resources will increase due to increasing precipitation, and the high flow and low flow will both increase at three stations under the four SSP–RCPs. The annual 1-day maximum discharge is projected to increase by 67–133% in the last decade of the 21st century, and the annual 7-day minimum discharge is projected to increase by 19–39%. The flood frequency analysis showed that the Jiulong River basin would face more frequent floods in the future. By the end of the 21st century, the station-average frequency of a historical 100-year flood will increase by 122% under the most optimistic scenario (SSP126) and increase by 213% under the scenario of greatest regional rivalry (SSP370). We demonstrated that climate change would be the major cause for the increase in future high flows and that land use change would dominate future changes in low flows. Finally, we recommend integrated and sustainable water management systems to tackle future challenges in this coastal basin