Carbon sequestration analysis of the university campuses in the Bangkok Metropolitan Region

Sutee Anantsuksomsri; Korrakot Positlimpakul; Paron Chatakul; Dalin Janpathompong; Gang Chen; Nij Tontisirin

doi:10.24294/jipd.v8i6.3385

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Carbon sequestration analysis of the university campuses in the Bangkok Metropolitan Region

Sutee Anantsuksomsri

Korrakot Positlimpakul

Paron Chatakul

Dalin Janpathompong

Gang Chen

Nij Tontisirin

Journal of Infrastructure Policy and Development 2024, 8(6), 3385; https://doi.org/10.24294/jipd.v8i6.3385

Submitted：21 Nov 2023

Accepted：07 Feb 2024

Published：05 Jul 2024

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Abstract

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.

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References

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