Amphibious Culture : Harmonizing Between Life and Seasonal Flooded Forests
Reclaiming and preserving the basin to constantly be humans' food resource and Mekong's aquatic nursery, by separating reclamation and preserving areas, providing a learning building, and creating an ecological trail.
My role
Site analysis and investigation
Landscape Master plan
Design handoffs with developers
3D modeling
Visual illustrations
Location
Thailand, Nakhon Panom
Tools
AutoCAD, SketchUp, Adobe Photoshop, and Adobe Illustrator
Project Type
Thesis, Bachelor of Landscape Architecture.
Site Location
Located in Nakhon Phanom, Northeast Thailand, this design proposal focuses on reclaiming and preserving the Seasonally Flooded Forest, adversely affected by the charcoal industry and industrial agriculture since 1965. The project aims to restore the forest in Pak Yam village, fostering a connection between humans and nature, enhancing life quality, and transforming the area into an ecological and cultural tourist attraction for Nakhon Phanom province.
Challenge
The Lower Songkram river basin, known for its unique "Seasonal Forest" that withstands 3-4 months of annual flooding, is crucial for aquaculture and provides natural resources. However, extensive damage from firewood concessions, capitalist agricultural invasion, and monoculture practices have significantly deteriorated its ecosystem.
Site Analysis
Dry season
Flooding season
Dynamic landscape
Define problem
The Lower Songkram River basin features a unique "Seasonal Forest" ecosystem, enduring 3-4 months of flooding annually. It's vital for aquaculture in the Mekong River during droughts and offers resources via sediment during water recession. Recently, the area has suffered from extensive damage due to firewood concessions, agricultural industry expansion, and monoculture practices, resulting in significant ecosystem deterioration.
Timeline
Landscape Plan
Village : Information center and homestay
Main Entrance to a seasonal flooded forest
Station 1st: Trail to the creek
Station 2nd: Starting point of the trail to forest
Station 3rd: Trail to the Songkram river
Station 4th: Observatory and Pier
Dry evergreen forest
It is divided into five main sections: the knowledge and reclamation center, ecological forestry, homestay area, community's public space, and an agricultural farm (which has been adapted to suit the basin's context). The planning and design concept focuses on the ecosystem's flexibility and dynamics during both rainy and drought seasons. To successfully design the project, it is essential to understand the details of the natural processes in the Songkram basin and integrate related knowledge from various fields into a planning method that can reciprocate both development and conservation simultaneously.
Site Potential
The design phase heavily emphasizes ecology, particularly the climate-induced seasonal floods.
This necessitates a flexible design adaptable to both dry and wet seasons, focusing on the transition between the basin and dry evergreen forest. The project aims to harmonize with the rural environment, focusing on reclaiming and preserving the basin as a food source and aquatic nursery for the Mekong. It includes designated reclamation and preservation areas, a learning center, an ecological trail, and incorporates three distinct reclamation methods.
The concept of "Adaptable Design" with a "Dramatically Dynamic landscape'' was proposed in the planning and landscape, which would not only restore flood forests and the environment but also improve the local economy.
Restoration process
Village plan
1.Eco-tourism & Information center and homestay
2.Fresh and Dry market
3.Village’s pier
4.Pavilion
5.Temple pier
6.Amphitheater
7.Seasonal farming
Better Quality of Life
The project enhances Quality of Life by developing infrastructure that supports social, economic, ecological, and socio-cultural spaces. Social spaces include stations in the Seasonally Flooded Forest, serving as gateways between humans and nature for recreation. Economic spaces like markets, piers, plazas, and amphitheaters facilitate community gathering. Socio-cultural spaces feature traditional plazas and temple piers.
Fresh and dry markets and Temple’s pier
The Eco-Tourism Station
Perspectives
2016 Awards Jury
“The analysis was very comprehensive, going beyond the people affected to the flora and fauna of the site. It all hung together as a story. One juror stated, “This was the project where my faith was restored.”