| Thailand | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Location | Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand, southeast of Burma | ||||||||||||||||||
| National websites | Biodiversity
Research and Training, Thailand
Royal Thai Embassy |
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| Embassy / Chancery in U.S. | 1024
Wisconsin Avenue, N.W., Suite 401
Washington, D.C. 20007 |
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| Agencies responsible for biological inventory and conservation | Royal
Forest Department
61 Thanon Phahon Yothin Chatuchak, Bangkok 10900 Thailand |
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| Non-governmental organizations concerned with conservation | WWF-
Working in conjunction with Thailand in order to restablish a population of eld's deer. Once found throughout the country, the species is now endanger of going extinct. |
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| Major Natural Resources | Thailand has an abundance of natural resources, including tin, rubber, natural gas, tungsten, tantalum, timber, lead, gypsum, lignite, and fluorite. However, many of these resources are not exploited by the country. Still, Thailand is the third largest tin producer in the world and the second largest tungsten produce, and timber is used for various purposes throughout the country. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Major Environmental and Conservation Issues | Like many of it's neigbors, Thailand has rapidly grown in the economic world over the past decade. Industry has quickly expanded throughout Thailand, causing a severe disturbance for the environment. Both water and air pollution are a problem as toxic materials seep in the air and water. Also, Thailand has an increasing population that has a much better quality of life, these factors add to cause a great rate of resource depletion, particularly a shortage of food. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Statistics | Information Sources | ||||||||||||||||||
| Land area | 514,000 Sq. km | Source | |||||||||||||||||
| Area of forest | 13,264 ha | Source | |||||||||||||||||
| Area of wetlands | ? Sq. km Current Wetlands Plans | ||||||||||||||||||
| Area of territorial waters | Area of waters is not clearly defined and is in dispute with both Vietnam and Thailand | ||||||||||||||||||
| Population: | Density: | 117.3/Sq. km | Source | ||||||||||||||||
| Area protected (ha) (only areas >1000ha) at all IUCN levels: | 7,020,276 ha | Fraction of land area protected (%): | 13.66% | Source | |||||||||||||||
| Major Protected Areas | List of Major Protected Areas | Information Center for the Environment | |||||||||||||||||
| Endemic Species |
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| Endangered, Threatened and Vulnerable Species |
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World Conservation Monitoring Centre - Animal | |||||||||||||||||
| Extinct Species |
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World Conservation Monitoring Centre - Animal | |||||||||||||||||
| Species listed on CITES Appendices | CITES-listed Species Database | ||||||||||||||||||
| Legislation | |||||||||||||||||||
| Laws protecting endangered or threatened species | Although there are laws which protect many species from hunting, Thailand does not have the resources to enforce these laws very well. For this reason, much more of an effort is aimed at protecting areas of land with valuable and threatened species, rather than simply protecting the species themselves. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Laws protecting endangered ecosystems | Law protects over a hundred areas throughout Thailand. These areas are protected as national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, and no hunting zones. Thailand has the largest single conservation unit in Asia, a 14,000 km2 strech of land that is home to an immense number of species. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Signatory to CITES | January 21, 1983 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Signatory to Ramsar Wetlands Convention | September 13, 1998 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Signatory to Convention on Biological Diversity | June 12, 1992 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Signatory to Migratory Bird Treaty | Not a signatory | ||||||||||||||||||
| Member of International Whaling Commission | Not a member | ||||||||||||||||||
| Signatory to other international treaties designed to protect or manage biological resources | Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary
Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal
Convention on Fishing and Conservation of Living Resources of the High Seas International Tropical Timber Agreement Montreal Protocol on Substances That Deplete the Ozone Layer Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapon Tests in the Atmosphere, in Outer Space, and Under Water United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change |
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| Natural Resource Use | Information Sources | ||||||||||||||||||
| Fisheries | Marine fisheries make up about 91% of the countries total fisheries. Marine catches make up the bulk of the catch, but fish from freshwater systems, commercial fish farms, and irrigated paddy fields are also importnat. Also, there are many marine protected areas in Thailand which are home to a diverse group of flora and fauna. | Source | |||||||||||||||||
| Forestry / deforestation | The amount of forest in Thailand has decreased significantly over the past twenty years. While forests once took up over 23 million ha, they now take up only 13 million. In order to slow this rapid rate of deforestation, the government has placed restrictions on the cutting of trees. This has slowed the output of the forestry industry immensely, with fewer trees to cut and more restrictions on the cutting. | Source | |||||||||||||||||
| Ecotourism | There are several educational bird tours which are offered to tourists. These tours offer a glimpse of the hundreds of birds that reside in the forests and other areas of Thailand. | Source | |||||||||||||||||
| Trade in wildlife products | Poachers trade a number of rare wildlife items illegally, as the government doesn't have the number of offiers needed to protect the animals. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Hunting | Illegal hunting in Thailand threatens the survival of it's species, most notably tigers. | Source | |||||||||||||||||
| Other uses of natural resources | Thailand utilizes it's natural resources in a variety of industrial goods, including computers, furniture, and lighting products. | Source | |||||||||||||||||
| Human Impacts on Natural Resources | Information Sources | ||||||||||||||||||
| Air pollution | There is a significant amount of air pollution which comes from vehicle emissions, industry, and the power sector. | Source | |||||||||||||||||
| Water pollution | Organic and factory waste cause a considerable amount of water pollution. | Source | |||||||||||||||||
| Development activities | There is a development partnership between Thailand and the Uunited States to help reduce the problems of pollution. | Source | |||||||||||||||||
| Introduced species | In Thailand, no introduced species is yet to have a significant impact in causing the loss of other species. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Legislation addressing these issues | There is no legislation regarding introduced species. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Restoration and Reintroduction | Information Sources | ||||||||||||||||||
| Programs for restoration of damaged habitat | The Royal Forest Department has several programs for forest restoration in place. Over 1 million ha of forest has been restored through these programs. | Source | |||||||||||||||||
| Programs for ex situ conservation (captive breeding and reintroduction) of endangered species | The captive breeding of the Indochinese tiger is one component of a plan to help save this endangered animal.in situ conservation activity is also in effect to help bring the population of the tiger up to a sustainable level. | Source | |||||||||||||||||
Return to Endangered Species Protection around the World
Page compiled by Brian Hill as part of a class project in h90 "The Science of Biodiversity and Conservation" (Peter J. Bryant, Instructor), University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA