Importance of Wetlands Based on Ramsar Sites in Thailand: A SWOT Analysis and Risk Mitigation

In this paper, it describes about the wetlands in Thailand according to the Ramsar Convention and the comparison of Ramsar Criteria with the 15 Ramsar sites in Thailand. Furthermore, it classified the Ramsar sites into three types of wetlands and the four most significant wetlands are analyzed by using the SWOT analysis. Those Ramsar sites are facing several threats such as endangered invasive alien species, water pollution, mangrove and agriculture encroachment, deforestation, climate change, overfishing, and destructive fishing practices, etc. The government of Thailand has taken some steps to protect those wetlands by establishing a management plan and creating a buffer zone around the wetlands. Finally, the study of this paper identified the most common risks happening in Thai wetlands and pointed out the root causes of those risks, on the other hand, suggesting the mitigation plan for the respective risks has been conducted. In conclusion, it mentions the idea to mitigate the risks between the government of Thailand, local authorities, and the public awareness by sharing knowledge and using the upgraded technology to improve those wetlands for sustainable development purposes.