Due to the gradual growth of urbanization in cities, urban forests can play an essential role in sequestering atmospheric carbon, trapping pollution, and providing recreational spaces and ecosystem services. However, in many developing countries, the areas of urban forests have sharply been declining due to the lack of conservation incentives. While many green city spaces have been on the decline in Thailand, most university campuses are primarily covered by trees and have been serving as urban forests. In this study, the carbon sequestration of the university campuses in the Bangkok Metropolitan Region was analyzed using geoinformatics technology, Sentinal-2 satellite data, and aerial drone photos. Seventeen campuses were selected as study areas, and the dendrometric parameters in the tree databases of two areas at Chulalongkorn University and Thammasat University were used for validation. The results showed that the weight average carbon stock density of the selected university campuses is 46.77 tons per hectare and that the total carbon stock and sequestration of the study area are 22,546.97 tons and 1402.78 tons per year, respectively. Many universities in Thailand have joined the Green University Initiative (UI) and UI GreenMetric ranking and have implemented several campus improvements while focusing on environmental concerns. Overall, the used methods in this study can be useful for university leaders and policymakers to obtain empirical evidence for developing carbon storage solutions and campus development strategies to realize green universities and urban sustainability.
Pattaya City is a well-known tourist destination in Thailand, famous for its beautiful beachfront, lively nightlife, and stunning natural scenery. Since 2019, the Eastern Special Development Zone Act, the so-called EEC (Eastern Economic Corridor), has positioned the city as a focal point for Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE), boosting its tourism-driven economy. Infrastructure improvements in the region have accelerated urban development over the past decade. However, it is uncertain whether this growth primarily comes from development within existing areas or the expansion of urban boundaries and what direction future growth may take. To investigate this, research using the Cellular Automata-Markov model has been conducted to analyze land use changes and urban growth patterns in Pattaya, using land use data from the Department of Land for 2013 and 2017. The findings suggest an upcoming city expansion along the motorway, indicating that infrastructure improvements could drive rapid urbanization in coastal areas. This urban expansion emphasizes the need for urban management and strategic land use planning in coastal cities.
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