International Symposium on ICT for Sustainable Development (ICTSD 2016)

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    ICT for Sustainable Development
    (Department of Zoology and Environmental Management, University of Kelaniya, Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2016) Wijeyarathne, P.G.
    Socio-economic developments will not be sustainable without proper monitoring and controlling. Such development will lead to economic losses and waste of natural resources. Monitoring and controlling requires accurate information on time. Collection of timely information, processing them and distributing among various organizations are essential. Therefore Information and Communication technology (ICT) has a significant role to play in sustainable development. However, the limitation to access to information or “digital divide” is one of the problems to be solved. Collecting required information for decision making should be highly efficient. Data should be collected from people at grass root level and information should reach them quickly too. Data collection through government organizations only will not be sufficient enough. Crowd sourcing is emerging as a promising data collection method. However, accuracy of data collected through crowd sourcing will be a problem. According to the statistics provided by the Telephone Regulatory Commission (TRC) Sri Lanka, there were 718,168 fixed Internet subscribers in Sri Lanka while Mobile Broadband subscribers reached 3,484,079 by March 2016. It is nearly 5 times than the Fixed Internet subscribers. Therefore, mobile computing should be used to reach people in remote areas where fixed communication lines are not available. Internet of Things (IOT) is becoming popular as “the infrastructure of the information society”. IOT allows devices to communicate each other. According to International Telecommunications Union, IOT is a network of physical devices, vehicles and buildings embedded with electronics, software, sensors and actuators that allows them to collect and exchange data. These sensor networks can be used for monitoring and controlling purposes as well as for data collection. Complexity of these technologies should be removed before using them in real world applications where non technical people are engaged in. These technologies help us to collect massive amounts of data within a short period of time. Analyzing and mining these data is essential for decision making where conventional techniques may fail. Big data analysis is an emerging area of study where these issues are addressed. Accordingly, ICT with other necessary analytical tools is becoming a catalyst for sustainable development.
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    What we are facing in the Mekong River Delta: Dual or multiple threats and opportunities to overcome
    (Department of Zoology and Environmental Management, University of Kelaniya, Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2016) Thuyen, Le Xuan
    The Mekong River Delta is well known as big rice bowl and fish stock for more than 20 million of people. However, there occurred serious problems during the last few decades such as deadly floods (2000 and 2011), bank collapses along the rivers, land loss and encroachment on the coastline, intense intrusion of saline water, extreme drought and water shortage (2015-2016). This paper concerns multiple threats in the Mekong River Delta - what are going on now, what will be in the future. Especially on the widespread consequences of irreversible and long-term process are discussed in the context of current global warming. As all modern deltas - relatively young and unstable landforms, the Mekong River delta is formed by the accumulation of sediments derived from its catchment area. Unfortunately, its fate is exposed to the risk of sediment starvation caused by the dams constructed in Mekong catchment area and also to the risk of sea level rising. Moreover, land sinking due to self-compaction occurring inside of substrate and underground water extraction makes the situation become worse. Based on the research results of Mekong delta subsidence monitoring network (since 2010), it is demonstrated that shallow subsidence is a main factor that conducting a high effective sea level rise, which is few times greater than the mean rate of normal geostatic sea level rise. In reality, the greatest values 3-4 cm/year of shallow subsidence are observed particularly under mangrove forest at some parts of coastal zone, which is in contrast to the landward value of around 1 cm/year. In consequence the low-lying land could be submerged completely and faster than the rate estimated in National Report “Scenarios of climate change and sea level rise for Vietnam”. Our results of pairwise monitoring demonstrate also a positive role of mangrove roots to weaken the land sinking rate. On the other side, the human activities impose locally a lot of serious impacts to the nature. The constructions of polder embankment for rice cultivation induce a series of consequence. Soil contamination by pesticide under intensive rice cultivation (7crops/2 years) in flood free land is clearly higher than that in regions of new alluvium entering and renewing soil fertility during annual flood. Coming back to the question of land subsidence in the Mekong River Delta, although we did much research efforts, however there still remain a lot of problems to investigate such as shallow gas emission, reduction of new alluvium entering inside the polder embankment to compensate land sinking, occurrence of mega-drought and corresponding underground water extraction. These are all slowly-varying processes and it is needed to do a long-term monitoring. Although some approaches of integrated management of the rivers is suggested in order to slow down these processes, land sinking is an unstoppable process occurring globally in all modern deltas. Hence, we may learn something from individual efforts in diverse local practices and share the lessons between people who are suffering the same problem. That is one of reasons the subsidence monitoring network is extending progressively in the big deltas in South East Asia region, i.e., Red River delta and Mekong delta (Vietnam), Chaophraya delta (Thailand), and Irrawaddy delta (Myanmar).
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    Carbon sequestration in the sediments of a self-regenerating mangrove in Can Gio mangrove biosphere reserve, Ho Chi Minh City
    (Department of Zoology and Environmental Management, University of Kelaniya, Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2016) Hân, VũTrầnHoài; Sơn, PhạmThanh; Hương, Phạm Quỳnh
    The surface sediments (0-15 cm) were collected from a self-regenerating mangrove in Can Gio Mangrove Biosphere Reserve to: 1/ assess the variation of the sedimentary Corg contents along with the regeneration (from 2008 to 2016) and 2/ assess the current potential of these sediments in carbon sequestration. The data was analyzed with STATGRAPHIC Centurion XVI as this is user-friendly software and a strong tool for statistical analysis in forestry. The Corg content tended to decrease with depth. Due to the presence of branches and trucks on the mangrove floor at the beginning of the self-regeneration, the average Corg content acquired in 2008 was higher than the other times of observation. The decomposition of these tough woody materials seemed to be facilitated by the exposure to heat. Moreover, the acidic pH and moderate salinity of the sediments probably ameliorated the activity of the sediment microbes in decomposing the organic matter, resulted in the lowest content of Corg in 2012. The Corg contents in the study area in 2014 and 2016 were comparable to other intact mangroves. The average amount of carbon sequestrated in the sediments in 2016 was 22.9 ton.m-2 and tended to increase with depth, probably related to the anoxic condition in the deep layers which might resulted from the deposition of fluvial sediments.
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    Comparative evaluation of three environmental flow calculation methods at Ketawala anicut of Aththanagalu Oya, Sri Lanka
    (Department of Zoology and Environmental Management, University of Kelaniya, Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2016) Udayanga, N.W.B.A.L.; Najim, M.M.M.
    Calculation of Environmental Flows (EFs), which are required for the sustenance of aquatic ecosystems in their original pristine state, often emerge as a prominent challenge to the sustainable management of water resources due to their complicity and difficulty of estimation. Being a tropical country that is heavily depended on its agriculture based economy, Sri Lanka often face the challenge of EF estimation during diverse irrigational and drinking water extractions. Lack of technology and expertise, and limitations in the long-term data have directly contributed for the wide utilization of rapid EF estimation methods. Therefore, the current study intends to evaluate the performance of such three widely practiced EF estimation methods, namely Tennant, IUCN and CEA methods for the EF estimation at Ketawala irrigational scheme. The Hydrologic Engineering Centre - Hydrologic Modelling System (HEC-HMS) version 3.5 model was calibrated and validated for the Aththanagalu Oya catchment and the daily river flow values for the past thirty five years (1981-2015) were generated at the pre-weir of the Ketawala anicut. The flow duration curve at the pre-weir of the Ketawala anicut was constructed (via the Gumbel approach) using the above simulated flow regime and the EFs that are applicable for the anicut were estimated via Tennant, IUCN and CEA methods in accordance with the standard methodologies. The Tennant method recommended an EF regime of 4.08 m3/s to be maintained at the post weir of the Ketawala anicut, while IUCN and CEA methods recommended EFs of 11.11 and 11.91 m3/s, respectively. Yet, EFs recommended by all these methods mostly remained higher than the average monthly flows in the dry season while considerably lower than the average monthly flows in the wet season at Ketawala, limiting the practical applicability of the estimated EFs. Furthermore, all these methods remained subjective and less responsive to the variations in the hydrological regime, while neglecting other major ecological components (biota and physic-chemical factors etc.) in an aquatic ecosystem. Hence, regardless of their wide applicably for EF estimation in Sri Lanka, the Tennant, IUCN and CEA methods failed to yield practically and environmentally acceptable EFs for the Ketawala anicut.
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    Deforestation of Veppal & Marichchukkaddi forest reserves in Sri Lanka
    (Department of Zoology and Environmental Management, University of Kelaniya, Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2016) Fernando, G.M.T.S.; Kodippilige, N.P.; Prakashnie, M.P.
    The unprecedented increase of human population makes the pressure on native forests and it has been caused to increase of deforestation in worldwide. Global warming is a one of the critical impacts that arise due to deforestation and it affects on all organisms. Thus majority of the world community has been paid a significant attention to protect the green cover of the earth to mitigate the impacts of global warming.This research is focused on recently reported biggest deforestation incident in Sri Lanka that Veppal and Marichchukkaddi deforestation happens North-West direction from the Wilpattu National Park. Total land extent of these forests is 16,437.74 hectares(ha) and these are the reserved forests that conserve under the Department of Forest Conservation (DFC). This research studied the legality of this deforestation, extent of deforestation, present situation and its impacts to the environment. This was done by using change detection analysis from years 1963 to 2016 of the Veppal and Marichchukkaddi forest reserves. The topographic map data and satellite imageries were used to derive the deforestation of the study area, and recent changes and impacts were observed by a field visit. Analysis was done using GIS and Remote Sensing techniques such as spatial analysis, image classifications and statistical analysis. Relevant gazettes and other legal documents were referred as secondary data to verify the legal situation. The results show an illegal deforestation in the study area from the mid of the year 2010 to 2015. Secondary information shows the granted legal permission in 2013 to clear the land of 250m beside the Puttalam-Kondaichchi Road (B379) between 23–29 kilometer posts. According to the analysis, the total extent of this permitted zone is 248 ha. However, the beginning of the year 2011 deforested land extent was 245.35 ha (1.49% of total forest area). Then in 2013 this deforested extent expanded to 470.78 ha (2.86%) and in 2015 this extent was the 556.79 ha (3.38%). At the field survey, it was observed that DFC has made their new forest boundary with a large loss and such settlements that are located in the middle of the forest will be a big threat to the existing forest cover as well as wild habitats in the forest. Outputs of this research are very important for the general public to be aware of illegal deforestation in the country, as well as for policy makers to know about the inadequacy of available conservation activities.
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    Detection of some technical and environmental parameters of forest road network based on ZEB1 LiDAR data
    (Department of Zoology and Environmental Management, University of Kelaniya, Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2016) Arseniou, G.; Hahn, M.
    Forest road networks constitute critical infrastructure mandated to comply with established ecological and technical standards according to the principle of Silviculture which is the practice for controlling the composition, health, growth and sustainability of forest ecosystems. Traditional, survey-based methods used in determining road network adherence to standards, safety, and maintenance needs, are time consuming and costly, with shortcomings accentuated in the presence of steep terrain and dense vegetation. The primary purpose of this study is to develop an innovative and precise method based on ZEB1 LiDAR data for technical assessment of forest roads and environmental impacts during construction or maintenance in terms of sustainability. Many studies focus on the detection of forest roads using airborne LiDAR data. These studies usually aim to extract and map forest roads. The innovative aspect of this study is that the mobile handheld laser scanner ZEB 1 is used for collecting LiDAR data. ZEB1 laser scanner has not yet been used for forest road mapping but mainly for collecting data in order to derive biometrical characteristics of the forests. The main methodology aspects include: data preparation, classification of the point cloud between terrain and non-terrain points using the Multiscale Curvature Classification Algorithm, DTM generation from the study area, detection of forest roads on the DTM, environmental and technical assessment of forest roads according to standards that have been set according to each road class, and accuracy assessment of the technical parameter results which are based on ZEB1 data. The technical road parameters that are evaluated include roadway width, traverse and lengthwise inclination, while the intensity parameters that cause problems to the ecosystem, are the road surface area with construction problems and ditches network. The accuracy assessment of the results based on ZEB1 data is performed by comparing them to results based on Leica TS 15 data regarding the same road parameters using t-tests. The proposed methodology based on ZEB1 data for both technical and environmental road assessment is found to be precise and reliable solution especially for short forest road networks. There is no significant statistical difference regarding the detected parameters between ZEB1 and Leica TS 15 results. The main advantages of the implemented methodology are the following: less time is needed to collect dense datasets from the study area, only one person is needed to do field measurements, and there is no need for GPS.
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    Sediment modelling in Nillambe Oya, Sri Lanka
    (Department of Zoology and Environmental Management, University of Kelaniya, Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2016) Gunawardena, M.P.; Najim, M.M.M.
    Sedimentation in surface water bodies is a major problem worldwide as well as in Sri Lanka especially in the upper Mahaweli catchment. To address these issues, proper monitoring of sedimentation is necessary, but daily monitoring and data collection are greatly time consuming and costly. Therefore, development and application of models for accurate simulation of these variations will be a vital requirement for management of these ecosystems. Therefore, the present study was done with the objectives of calibrating and validating the HEC-HMS 3.5 and HEC-RAS 4.1.0 models based on climatic, sediment and landuse data and applying the calibrated models to predict sediment variations. With the purpose of addressing this issue, combination of HEC-HMS 3.5 and HEC-RAS 4.1.0 models were used to simulate flow and sediment changes in the Nillambe Oya, which is located in the upper Mahaweli catchment with typical landuse patterns of the central highlands of the mid and up country wet zone of Sri Lanka. During the period from May 2013 to September 2013; flow was measured and water samples were analysed for sediment in nine selected days. Rainfall data, other meteorological data, flow and sediment data were obtained from the Environment and Forest Division of the Mahaweli Authority and the Meteorology Department of Sri Lanka. HEC-HMS 3.5 and HEC-RAS 4.1.0 models which are developed by the United States Army Corps of Engineers were used to simulate flow and sediment of the Nillambe Oya. The HEC-HMS 3.5 model was used to generate flow which is needed for HEC-RAS 4.1.0 model in order to perform simulation of sediment in Nillambe Oya. Daily flow data for five years (from October 1991 to September 1996) were used to calibrate the HEC-HMS 3.5 model and another set of flow data for five years (from October 1994 to September 1999) were used to validate the model. HEC-RAS 4.1.0 model was calibrated using sediment data collected and analysed in five days along with flow and other meteorological data. The validity of the calibrated model was evaluated using sediment data collected in the other four days. The calibrated and validated HEC-HMS 3.5 model reliably predicted the flow in Nillambe Oya. The HEC-RAS 4.1.0 model simulates only the sediment derived from river scouring and it cannot simulate the sediment resulting from watershed erosion. According to the model simulations, the sediment concentration derived from river scouring varies from 6.9% to 10.3% when compared to the total sediment load. On average, 92% of the sediments carried by the river is resulted from watershed soil erosion. Therefore, proper watershed management actions should be taken in order to reduce the sediment load carried by the Nillambe Oya and also to minimise the impact of sedimentation of the Nillambe reservoir.
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    Agricultural drought assessment using MODIS satellite data in Kurunegala District
    (Department of Zoology and Environmental Management, University of Kelaniya, Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2016) Gamanayake, B.G.N.N.; Kadupitiya, H.K.; Weerasinghe, V.P.A.
    Drought is a climatic anomaly characterized by long spell scarcity of water. Agricultural drought is usually defined by less availability of soil water to maintain crop and forage growth by the deficiency of normal precipitation over an identified period of time. Since drought is a creeping phenomenon which appears slowly and resulting web of impacts not only to agriculture but also for all other aspects, monitoring, forecasting, evaluating impact and proposing solutions to drought hit areas are challenging than other disasters. Distinct to point observations of ground data, remote sensing provides direct spatial information on vegetation stress that occur due to drought conditions. This facilitates the utilization of time series Vegetation Indices derived using time series satellite data for continuous monitoring of vegetation conditions and tracking drought occurrences. MOD13Q1 (250m, 16-day) satellite images, which contain NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index), were used in this study and Vegetation Condition Index (VCI) was calculated using ENVI 4.5 Remote Sensing software for agricultural drought monitoring in Kurunegala District during the year 2000-2015. Spatial variability of drought frequencies was evaluated and mapped using ILWIS 3.4 free software. Map accuracy was assessed using actual drought data available for Kurunegala district in the database of Disaster Management Center. According to the results, North and North-West parts of Kurunegala District were identified as severe agricultural drought prone areas. In order to enhance the accuracy, water mask was recommended.
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    An investigation on image processing techniques for substrate classification based on dominant grain size on RGB images from UAV
    (Department of Zoology and Environmental Management, University of Kelaniya, Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2016) Shafi, M.
    Water management, especially considering the ecological health and function of rivers are receiving considerable attention due to their economic and social impacts. The study of ecological and abiotic processes is the main focus of the field of ecohydraulics, which investigates the river dynamics especially focusing on the changes in river habitats, where the river bed substrate composition is a major abiotic input parameter. The classification of bed substrates is commonly based on the dominant grain size, and is important in a wide variety of contexts; biodiversity and ecological integrity, provision of information for flood defense and flood hazard management, maintenance of stream navigation and sediment transportation, and studies on ecosystem services. This thesis applies remote sensing technology and advanced image processing techniques for the study of river habitats. The texture parameters are examined using image processing techniques to determine the dominant grain classes of substrate, providing a new method to classify and map the river bed, considering the different regions of submerged, dry exposed and vegetated regions. The study was conducted using high-resolution RGB orthomosaic with 1 cm/px resolution, acquired via a UAV and compared with ground truth mapping data using the dominant substrate to classify each spatial region. The image cover was classified via application and examination of a variety of pixel-based image classification methods. The highest classification accuracy for pixel based analysis was achieved using the thresholding and masking algorithm which achieved an overall 97% correct classification. For measurement of substrate classes, object-based image classification was applied, where the texture parameter was applied by using different gray level co-occurrence matrix (GLCM) in all directions. The classification accuracy for segmentation-based-classification obtained, was found to be lower, at 61%.
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    Continues monitoring of environmental radioactivity in the area polluted by the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Accident 2011 and disclosure of the data to public through the Internet
    (Department of Zoology and Environmental Management, University of Kelaniya, Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2016) Fuse, M.; Miura. S.; Ozawa, S.
    The Internet has become a powerful communication media. In authors’ previous paper, it has been shown that the Internet can be a good risk communication tool in panic situations caused by natural disasters. The present paper deals with the role of the media in the recovering process from the disaster. It is five years since the earthquake of the magnitude 9.0 occurred at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean near the coast of Northern Japan. There occurred nuclear accidents triggered by the tsunami at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plants (FNPP). They experienced wide range of radioactive contaminations. Many people had to evacuate from the polluted lands. Even today, about 100,000 people in the Fukushima Prefecture cannot come back to their home lands. The National Institute of Technology, Fukushima College (NITFC) is located at 40km south of the FNPP. About 100 students (10% of total students) had their home lands in the risky 30km region from the FNPP. Some staffs and students of NITFC have been monitoring the radioactivity of their environment since just after the accident and they continued to open their data to public through the Internet. This paper discusses influence of giving different source data to the public beside the official governmental data regarding the radioactivity of the environment.