NHBSS 055 2I Pagdee Biodiv
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NAT. NAT. HIST. BUL L. SIAM So c. 55(2): 323-339 , 2007 BIODIVERSITY AND ECONOMIC VALUE OF WETLAND RESOURCES AT NONG HAN ,UDONTHANI PROVINCE , NORTHEAST THAILAND Adcharaporn Pagde eI, Samang Homchuen 1,Narumon Sangprl 似品 alr , Chuthima Hanjavani f2, and Pornchai Uttharak 2 ABSTRACT biodiversity A biodiversity survey was conducted at the Nong Han wetland ,Udornthani , and within a 3-km radius from June to August ,2006 , as part of Udornthani's provincial natural resource and and environmental management plan. Economic valuation was also carried out to estimate net direct direct benefits earned by local communities from the biodiversity resources. Nong Han is a wetland wetland of international importance. The area is surrounded by marshes ,agricultural zones , dikes , and scattered woodlands. The only populated island ,called Donkaew , is situated in the the southwestern end of the wetland. The survey identified 177 plant species ,including 114 tree tree species (7 4 native and 40 introduced) and 63 aquatic plants (38 marginal , 10 floating , 9 emerged , and six submerged species). In total , 17 orders , 44 families , and 75 species of invertebrates invertebrates were identified from Ekman grab and pond net samples. Arthropods were the the most diverse and abundant invertebrates , followed by mollusks and annelids. Forty-six species species of fish from 18 families were recorded from fish captured by local villagers Fifty-two Fifty-two bird species ,including Asian Golden Weaver Ploceus hypoxanthus which is globally Near-Threatened Near-Threatened (IUCN Red List of Threatened Species ,2006) , and Purple Heron Ardea purpurea , Steaked Weaver P. manyar and Asian Golden Weaver P. hypoxanthus which 蹴 Vulnerable Vulnerable in Thailand , were observed using point counts. From the economic valuation ,th 巴 direct direct use value of the biodiversity resources estimated from gross benefits and harvesting costs ,including tools ,equipment ,traveling and labor costs ,was 10 ,534 bah t! household. This value value accounted for 32% of the annual household income for this local economy. In conclusion , as as Nong Han is home of great biodiversity and contributes to local livelihoods ,inventory of the the resources and their economic value is necessary for effective biodiversity management seful U seful data will enable decision makers to develop management plans that promote habitat protection protection and sustainable use. Keywords: Keywords: biodiversity , economic value ,Nong Han wetland INTRODUCTION Biodiversity represents the foundation of wetland ecosystems that affect human well-being , especially local livelihoods. Wetlands provide feeding and breeding sites for various plants and animals ,help control flooding and water quality ,and support nutrient I Department of Environmental Science ,Faculty of Science ,Khon Kaen University ,Khon Kaen , 40002. Author correspondence correspondence to Adcharaporn Pagdee ,e-mail: [email protected]. 2 Department of Biology ,Faculty of Science ,Khon Kaen University ,Kh on Kaen ,40002 Received Received 16 March 2007; accepted 15 November 2007. 323 324 AOCHARAPORN PAGDEE ET AL. cycling. cycling. Wetlands 紅 'e als 'O s 'O urces 'O fh 'O useh 'O ld inc 'O me and pr 'O land vide and res 'O urces f'O r traditi 'O nal agriculture ,ec 'O t'O urism , and recreati 'O nal activities. In In Thailand ,wetlands c'O ver at 'O tal 'O f 36 ,616 km 2 'O r appr 'O ximately 7.5% 'O f白ec 'O un- try's try's t 'O tal area (OFFICE OF ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY AND PLANNING ,2002) , c'O nsisting 'O f tw 'O br 'O ad categ 'O ries: freshwater and c 'O astal wetlands. One 'O f the m 'O st imp 'O rtant freshwater sites sites is N 'O ng Han Kumpawapi in Ud 'O mthani Pr 'O vince , the sec 'O nd largest freshwater lake in in the n'O rtheastem 百lailand. N 'O ng Han wetland c 'O vers an 紅 'ea 'O f appr 'O ximately 45 km 2 with with an average depth 'O f the lake 'O f 1-2 m. The largest and 'O nly p 'O pulated island ,named D 'O nkaew , is situated in the s'O uthwestem end 'O fN 'O ng Han , and several smaller isl 組 ds 紅 e scatteredinthelake 紅白.D ik. es and water channels were built f'O r fl 'O'O dc 'O ntr 'O l and irrigati 'O n purp 'O ses. Maj 'O r land uses ar 'O und N 'O ng Han include rice paddies ,cassava pl 印刷i'O ns ,livest 'O ck grazing , and residential areas. The wetland c 'O nsists 'O f several habitat types ,including freshwater lakes ,marshes , scattered scattered w 'O'O dlands , and agricultural areas (Fig. 1). N 'O ng Han pr 'O vides habitats f'O r 'O ver 74 bird species and at least 39 native fish species (OFFICE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND E 附 IRONME 附札POLICY AND PLANNING , 2007). In additi 'O n,a large number 'O fv i1l ages , including including the Dis 住ict 'O f Kumpawapi ,紅el 'O cated in 'O r ar 'O und the wetland and depend 'O n it f'O ra v組 ety 'O fg 'O'O ds and services. Increased Increased 田'O n'O mic and s 'O cial devel 'O pment resulting 合om expansi 'O n 'O f the p'O pulati 'O n in in this 紅 ea has put intensive pressure 'O n the wetland res 'O ur ,回 s; causing deteri 'O rati 'O n 'O f the ec 'O system. Hence , the Office 'O f Ud 'O mthani Pr 'O vincial Natural Res 'O urces and Envir 'O nment is is n'O w devel 'O ping a natural res 'O urce and environmental management plan in 'O rder t 'O ensure b'O th sustainable use and c'O nservati 'O n 'O f wetland res 'O urces at N 'O ng Han Kumpawap i. This survey-based survey-based research was carried 'O ut as p釘 t'O f this management pr 'O gram. Th e study aims t 'O create a bi 'O diversity invent 'O ry ,including plants ,invertebrates ,fish , and birds atN 'O ng Han andits andits 3・km radius pr 'O ximity. 1t als 'O aims t 'O estimate the ec 'O n'O mic value 'O f all direct benefits 'O f the wetland pr 'O ducts gained by l 'O cal c 'O mmunities. METHODS Bi 'O diversity data were c'O llected m 'O nthly from June t 'O August ,2006 1 , at selected vi1l ages representing representing the f 'O ur sub-districts su 町'O unding N 'O ng Han. Aquatic and n 'O n-aquatic plants and and trees at.N 'O ng Han wetland ,including the main lake ,islands ,dikes and agricultural z'O nes and and grasslands 'O utside the dikes but within 3・km radius proximity , were identified at the sites. sites. Unkn 'O wn species were c'O llected and/ 'O r ph 'O t'O graphed f'O r further examinati 'O n in the lab 'O rat 'O ry. Benthic invertebrates were c'O llected using an Ekman grab sampler and p'O nd net sampling. sampling. Identificati 'O n was based mainly 'O n MERRIT & CUMMINS (1996) and MORSE ET AL. (1 994). Fish species were identified fr 'O m daily catches by l 'O cal villagers at D 'O n Klang , ITh e Offi ce of Udomthani Provincial National Resources and Environment allocated a 5-month period (May- Se 附 mber ,2∞6)forthis p叫ec t. As a result ,all field surveys were designed to complete in August , so data collected represented represented biodiversity in the rainy season. s IOD IVERS IT Y AND ECONOM IC VALUE OF WETLAND 3 25 a b Figur e 1. W etl and hab itat s at No ng Han : a) th eo pen wa tcrl ake w ith f1 0at in g pl ant s and b) slI bll1 erge d ancl ell1 er ge cl plant s at D o ng L lI an g Islancl - o ne of th e larges t islancl s in N ong H an we tlancl . 326 ADCHARAPORN PAGDEE ET il L. Marginal pl ant Fi gure 2. Diagram of where plant species were observed in th e studied area Don Nguen, Donkaew, and Dium vi ll ages. Fish were photographed and specimens were collected for preserv ation. Species identification was based on YIDTHAYANON (2004) and RAI NBOT H (1996). For bird surveys, point counts were employed. The surveys took place at six locations, representing all habitat types around Nong Han, during two periods: morning (0700-0900 h) and aftern oon sessions (1 500- 1700 h). Ti me spent at each point was approxi mately 10 minutes within a 1-km rad iu s di stance. LEKAGUL & ROU ND (J 991) was used fo r species identification. Economic valuation focuses on direct use value, representing direct benefits of biodi versity resources gained by local communities. This part of the study took place in June, 2006 with groups of vi ll agers from Don K lang, Don Nguen, Donkaew, and Dium vill ages. These communities represent each of the four sub-districts surrounding Nong Han where local people share common social and economi c backgrounds and therefore, we assumed that their consumption practices should be similar. With a total number of 690 household s from these four vi ll ages, a 200-household sample size was selected according to LOOM IS & W ALS H, (1997) who suggested that a range of appropriate sample sizes for economic valu ation should be 200 up to 1,000 househo ld s or individuals.