Southeast Asia Research and Capacity Building Initiatives
Buffalo State College
Sustainable Sanitation and Impact of Sewer Discharges on Receiving Water in Phnom Penh, Cambodia
This initiative is ongoing and connects several parallel projects funded by different sources, including the International Foundation for Science (IFS)/Swedish International cooperation Development Agency (SIDA) Sustainable Sanitation Program (http://www.ifs.se/Programme/ifs_sida_sanitation_2007.asp), YSI Foundation (https://www.ysi.com/), Center for Khmer Studies (http://www.khmerstudies.org/), and the SUNY Research Foundation. It is expected that this initiative will continue for at least 18 months and a summary of the work to date is provided at IFS_YSI_summary. Earlier work related to this initiative can be found at Kummu et al. 2007.
Water Quality and Health Risk Assessments in Chiang Mai, Thailand
This initiative is a collaborative effort between the Geography and Planning Department at Buffalo State, the Department of Geography at Chiang Mai University, and the Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University. Two distinct studies have been conducted in Chiang Mai, both of which were funded by Summer Research Fellowships from the Office of Undergraduate Research at Buffalo State (http://www.buffalostate.edu/undergraduateresearch/x7.xml) with local support from Chiang Mai University.
The first study, done in 2004, saw Buffalo State Undergraduate Amy Kruger travel to Chiang Mai to help examine the relationship between land use, water quality in rice paddies, and the incidence of liver fluke infection of Bithynia spp. snails found in the rice paddies. The study found that paddies with the poorest water quality and highest incidence of infection were found in areas more highly impacted by urban land use. The rice plants in the paddies were found to effectively filter and reduce E. coli levels in the water. Results of the study were published in Krueger et al. 2004 and Ngern-klun et al 2006.
The second study, undertaken with Buffalo State Undergraduate Harmony Guigino in the lead, was completed in 2006. This study examined the impact of Chiang Mai on water quality in the Mae Kha canal that runs through the city. In general, water quality became degraded as it passed through the city, as compared to upstream control sites. Water quality became poorer as the result of general drainage discharges from the city as well as the presence of informal settlements located immediately on the banks of the canal. Technical and social planning issues were examined in relation to efforts to improve water quality in the canal. Results of the work were published in the Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Southeast Asia Water Environment: Guigino et al. 2006.
Continuous Water Quality Monitoring at the Chaktomuk Junction and Tonle Sap Lake
A network of four Hydrolab Datasonde 4a’s was operated from the rainy season of 2004 through the rainy season of 2006 to continuously monitor water quality in the Chaktomuk Junction around Phnom Penh. The Hydrolabs measured temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, conductivity, and turbidity at 15 minute time steps during this time. The network was operated as a collaborative effort between Resource Development International – Cambodia (www.rdic.org) and Buffalo State and the full data set currently is undergoing final review and analysis. A preliminary review of approximately the first year of data is provided by Irvine et al. (2006) and eventually the full data set will be accessible via this website.
Hydrolab Datasonde 4a’s also were used to monitor temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, conductivity, and turbidity in the flooded forest fringe of the Tonle Sap Lake near the Pursat River, Cambodia, between the end of July, 2005 and the end of January, 2006. This monitoring was done as a collaborative effort between Resource Development International – Cambodia and Buffalo State and was partially supported by the Water Utilization Program – Finland (WUP-FIN), a complementary program (http://www.eia.fi/wup-fin/) to the Mekong River Commission. A preliminary review of the data is provided by Irvine et al. (2006).
Mapping of Airborne Particulates: Phnom Penh, Cambodia
The city of Phnom Penh is experiencing growth and, with this growth, an increased level of air pollution. The most obvious form of air pollution is airborne particles that are attributed to increased vehicle traffic in the city - vehicular exhaust and re-entrained dust. For this study, airborne particulates were counted and sorted using a six-channel (0.3, 0.5, 0.7, 1.0, 2.0, and 5.0 µm) laser particle counter (photo1). Initial sample counts were taken at 88 sites within the city of Phnom Penh, Cambodia from January 15 to17, 2007. These dates are representative of dry season conditions in Phnom Penh. A subset of 33 sites was re-sampled on June 19, 2007, a date representative of the wet season in Phnom Penh. Objectives of this study are to provide a baseline count for airborne particulates in the city of Phnom Penh, and to explore the characteristics of the particulate counts utilizing summary statistics and maps. The median Phnom Penh city-wide fine and coarse particle counts are 1.07 *108 /m3 and 1.36*106 /m3, respectively. Fine and coarse particle counts were 22 and 37 percent lower, respectively, during the wet season as compared to the dry season. While the fine particle count can be attributed to vehicle exhaust, the coarse particle count is attributed to re-entrained road dust and dirt roads. The overall coarse particle count is influenced by a number of hot spots across the city. Selective paving of these hot spots will greatly reduce the level of airborne coarse particulate (map). This work is being conducted by Stephen Vermette and Joel Bernosky (Dept. of Geography and Planning, Buffalo State College, Buffalo, NY), and Doug Graber Neufeld (Dept. of Biology, Eastern Mennonite University, Harrisburg, Virginia).
Mercury Contamination in Cambodia
Two reports on mercury contamination in Cambodia are available in this website ( Blacksmith report December 18, 2007 and Mekong River report June 25, 2006). Mercury is used by gold miners to extract gold in a simple fashion. The high price of gold has resulted in a ten-fold increase in mining activity in four years. The miners are worried about their health but there is little that can be done quickly to alleviate their problems. Mercury is not their biggest health concern. The biggest problem is the potential for a mineshaft collapse. Their isolation limits any medical analysis or treatment. Some miners were supplied with water filters that stopped their diarrhea. Providing alternative water supplies is likely the most effective treatment. More documentation of the degree and extent of contamination are also needed.
