Overview
Climate change is set to drastically affect the world, and Thailandwill likely be one of the most affected countries given its geography,economy and level of development. Thailand is already experiencingthe impacts of global climate change. Thailand’s Department of Meteorology reported that the annual mean temperature in Thailandrose by approximately one degree celsius from 1981 to 2007 (seeFigure 1). As stated by the Intergovernmental Panel on ClimateChange (IPCC), the upward drift is very likely due to the increasein greenhouse gas concentrations caused by anthropogenic (human- based) activity.
According to models developed locally, the meandaily maximum temperature in Thailand will increase by 1.2 to 1.9degree celsius by 2050.
Further, the number of rainy days and thelevel of precipitation in Thailand has decreased over the last fiftyyears (see Figure 2).The decline in annual precipitation has already had an impactupon Thailand, most notably in the Mekong river drought mentionedearlier. At the same time, scientists expect that precipitation events,while shorter in duration and net amount, will increase in intensityin the form of destructive storms and floods.