TSUNAMI DAMAGE IN MANGROVE AREAS ALONG THE ANDAMAN COASTLINE IN SOUTHERN THAILAND
	Wijarn Meepol
	Department of Marine of and Coastal Resources(DMCR), Bangkok, Thailand wijam_@hotmail.com
	The study was conducted to assess the damage and sediment deposition in tsunami-hit mangrove areas along the Andaman coastline in southern Thailand. A field survey and soil profile was conducted by the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) for these purposes. Results showed that the damaged areas were approximately 314 ha in the provinces of Ranong, Phang-nga and Phuket. Mangroves in Phang-nga province were the most severely hit with 311 ha damaged, while damage in Phuket and Ranong provinces were minimally affected at 2 and 1 ha respectively.The damage affected two habitat types: new mudflat area and mangrove area. The mudflats occupied by Avicenniaspp. was totally damaged, while the mangrove area occupied by Rhizophoraspp. was damaged only near the seashore (40-50 m from seashore or riverbank). The rehabilitation of the damaged mangrove areas conducted by the DMCR, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment involved an area of 304 ha. Sediment thickness on the forest floor, ranging from 5-15 cm, depended on the distance from the sea with the area closest to the shore having the thickest sediment deposit.
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