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- FG Umweltplanung (19) (remove)
Desertification is seen as a severe threat to Mediterranean ecosystems and the desert fringes. Both land use and climate variations may lead to an advance of the desert, and human and natural factors can be connected in feedback relationships. This makes it difficult to describe cause-and-effect relationships, and to predict the impact of global warming. A key is understanding historic desertification, since the investigation of the past allows to better separate the roles of man and weather. These questions were investigated in the Decapolis region in northern Jordan, an area in the transition zone between the Arabian desert and the Mediterranean climate belt. It had been assumed that historic desertification in the Decapolis was connected with severe degradation of soils, and caused by agricultural mismanagement and deforestation. This idea served as explanation for economic decay and abandonment of cities, too. However, the greatest part of the erosion took place during the last Ice Age and the Younger Dryas. There is no indication that the inanimate landscape changed significantly since the Bronze Age. Historic field systems were partially preserved and seem reflected by distinct soil development, indicating that the impact of land use was more complex and less devastating than previously assumed. Historic human impacts on the natural environment seem limited, and certainly not connected with desertification. Romantic northern European misconceptions of how a "natural" landscape should look like may in this context have contributed to a negative assessment of traditional agriculture in the Mediterranean. Comparative analyses of soils and colluvia, air photos, historic travel reports, tree rings and climate reconstructions indicate that population growth was behind the flourishing of the Decapolis, which took place mostly under favourably stable climatic conditions. Periods of decline seem triggered by climatic anomalies. As it seems, climate change was previously understood too linearly: extreme rainfall events can be more devastating than drought, and temperature, wind and rainfall distribution over the year are important as well. Cool and dry periods at the end of the last Ice Age were connected with incision and sometimes dramatic erosion. Climatic fluctuations during history may have been connected with pests, famines, plagues, and wars which caused dramatic drops of population levels. The ecological sensitivity of the desert belt may have aggravated the impact of climate variations. Economic recovery took place only when population levels rose again. It is so far unknown how climate will develop under global warming, but an increasing number of anomalous events could have dramatic impacts. The key for dealing with global warming seems therefore adaptation to climatic irregularities.
Strategic Environmental Assessment in regional land use planning (here: SEA-REP) is a systematic process in Germany, which aims at an optimisation of the integration of environmental policies into decision-making at regional scale. It therefore plays an essential role for the comparison of site alternatives, and the implementation of mitigation and adaptation measures of negative effects of both regional development and climate change. Significant findings and personal experiences gained in an INTERREG project (‛transSEA’) created a fundamental basis for this doctoral research. The main objective was to develop the ‛LUCCA’ indicator system, which is a result of an analysis of land use types, that are increasingly important for effects of global climate change, and should therefore adapt to future conditions with regional land use planning. This system was developed from current German practice of the methodological application of SEA-REP in the core assessment of site-specific impacts on the affected area and impact zone. Main objectives were to integrate spatial effects of climate change into SEA-REP, and to develop a method to make particularly the tendency of physical degradation of natural resources in a region transparent. The research was based on a comprehensive analysis of best practice of SEA and assessment methods applied in German case studies of regional land use planning. Proposed was a a two-tiered environmental baseline- and objective-led approach of impact assessment. Its first tier is a site-specific assessment of significant impacts of regional plan designations and their alternatives. An environmental conflict analysis has the aim to apply assessment thresholds of conflict intensity for each impact factor affecting the importance of assessed components of LUCCA. Results are three classes of conflict intensity, which were determined and can be measured with the help of state indicators, impact indicators and assessment thresholds. 12 LUCCA indicators were defined in connection to regional environmental orientation objectives, environmental components, land uses and further criteria for indicator selection. The second tier is represented by an overall strategic assessment of the regional plan and its designation criteria. This assessment additionally considers positive and cumulative impacts, as well as structural alternatives. The result of the research is a standard concept for environmental orientation objectives, guidance indicators and assessment ranges for the LUCCA indicator system. Regional environmental orientation objectives, which represent outcome values of the future state of environment, were derived from existent environmental quality objectives and environmental quality standards. For each LUCCA indicator mitigation and adaptation measures of regional planning and requirements for tiering to SEA of lower land use planning were proposed. Recommendations for vital and critical action are addressed to competent national and regional authorities of spatial and sector planning. These involve the direct integration of concerns of climate change into SEA-REP, the regional operationalisation of environmental objectives for adaptation to climate change, an improved cooperation between spatial and sector planners concerned with the future use of land and resources, and, last but not least, an involvement of the public in the setting of regional objectives for the future state of a region’s environment. Recommendations for the competent national and federal ministries are the integration of substantial standards into legislation, the setting of binding standards for a stricter reduction of land consumption, the determination of clear responsibilities and activities at all planning levels, and the release of guidance for effective regional land use planning practice that enhances adaptation to climate change. The main recommendations for European regional planning bodies are to establish regional environmental objective concepts for SEA-REP, update regional environmental data profiles, apply the SEA-REP+LUCCA indicator system, develop a tiered decision-support system, challenge conventional regional planning, improve cooperation with sector planning and involve the public in the development of adaptation strategies. A recommended adaptation task at regional planning level is the designation of strictly safeguarded priority areas with specific functions of land uses for the mitigation of negative effects of climate change. Such priority areas, which should be area-specifically defined in a regional land use map, should be linked to the implementation of binding adaptation measures in lower land use planning and at project level. An operationalisation of proposed assessment steps will be necessary for the regional-specific geographic and bio-physical conditions of the EU regions. The thesis concludes with future research needs and an outlook on the potential future role of SEA-REP. A clear responsibility of the future tasks of SEA-REP and LUCCA was recognised as a formal driving force for adaptation of land use to effects of climate change. Improved knowledge on spatial effects of climate change and vulnerability assessments will be required for an effective revision and application of SEA-REP and LUCCA. SEA should gain further importance in a transparent and participative decision-making. Environmental concerns and the protection of LUCCA will have to gain more weight, if the significance of danger and harm, caused by effects of climate change and anthropogenic land degradation, shall be mitigated now and in the future.
Ecological Land-Use Planning (ELUP) is the central strategy implemented in Mexico to achieve sustainable development. However, even after more than a decade of experience there are no concrete evaluations to determine how the implemented ELUP-Programmes (ELUPP) have influenced regional development and thus what the consequences on the environment are. In this investigation, some of the key stages of the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) are carried out on the ELUPP Cancun-Tulum, which is considered to be one of the most important land-use programmes in Mexico. Aim of the study: To achieve the SEA key principles, i.e. to identify reasonable alternatives and to improve the ELUPP Cancun-Tulum. Special emphasis is dedicated to the selection of environmental indicators for monitoring and to the supervision of the programme implementation using a GIS-remote sensing approach. Method of investigation: The baseline environment in the Riviera Maya and the ELUPP Cancun-Tulum’s framework are first examined. Next, an identification of alternatives at regional level is effectuated using geographic information systems (GIS). A monitoring scheme is then proposed to supervise the implementation of the ELUPP Cancun-Tulum. The supervision mechanism is based on a pressure-state-response (PSR) indicator framework. Finally, six environmental indicators are examined using GIS-remote sensing techniques. The assessment encompasses the remote sensing interpretation of two Landsat Geocover Mosaics, and the determination of six landscape spatial indices to evaluate extend and pattern of fragmentation of vegetation. Results and technical applicability: A reasonable alternative site location for the development of New Tulum (which is one of the cities included in the ELUPP Cancun-Tulum) was proposed. A monitoring mechanism was suggested to supervise the ELUP implementation, including the identification of 19 environmental indicators. The GIS-remote sensing analysis demonstrated that there has been a reduction in the total area of habitat available and that fragmentation of vegetation increased in the Riviera Maya. The results reported here can be used to improve the ELUPP Cancun-Tulum. In addition, this investigation may be useful to improve other ELUP-Programmes in Mexico.
Sustainable forest management in 1992 was recognized by the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development as the most important contribution the forestry sector can inject into any sustainable development initiative. The author’s extensive literature review established this as the premise on which Ghana‘s quest for sustainable economic growth and development strategies is being implemented. Since embarking on this endeavour, conscious efforts have been made to define essential components of forest resources against which sustainability assessments could be performed in Ghana. The conceptual framework of the present research rests on FAO’s concept on criteria and indicators as useful tools in monitoring progress towards sustainable forest management and resource-use. In addition, an empirical approach seeks to elicit answers from staffs involved in the management of natural resources as well as from other stakeholder groups in order to address four pertinent questions as; i. the specifics of forest management practices and policies that exist in Ghana‘s high forest zone, ii. interactive forces that come into play with the identification and development of national level criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management, iii. who constitute the stakeholders and lastly, iv. the extent to which progress towards sustainable forest management has been achieved and in which direction it is moving. First a quantum of forest management policy documents were reviewed out of which applicable criteria and measurable indicators, specific to the high forest zone of Ghana, were identified. Together with stakeholder's involvement, performance scores were established for indicators identified within the trio-sectors (forest ecosystem, forest communities and the economy) for sustainability assessments. Based on actual performance scores, measures of successes towards sustainable forest management operations were quantitatively performed with estimated maximum and minimum thresholds levels at which resource-use would be sustainable using the measure of forest resource-use sustainable scale-MoFRUSS. Outcomes of these measurement operations, as depicted on the scale, revealed the actual extent to which stakeholder’s initiatives, towards sustainable forest management have progressed and in which direction they are moving. The study also offers optional policy baskets for resource management interventions from which the Socio-eco-Economy bundle is the most recommendable if the environmental aspect of Ghana‘s Vision 2015 (sustainable development) is to be achieved; with improved societal well-being, improved environmental health and vitality and improved economic growth and development. The study concludes with recommendations to both policy makers and the other vested stakeholders a viable opportunity which could be harnessed to improve on management‘s performance through avoided deforestation.
Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) is a concept and a decision-making support tool. Based on its definitions, it is claimed that SEA can 1) contribute to the integration of environmental concerns into strategic decisions: policies, plans and programmes (PPPs); and that SEA 2) is a systematic process. Although these claims are widely acknowledged in SEA research and practice, they remain largely unsubstantiated empirically. To date, SEA research is dominated by qualitative-type approaches, investigating aspects of effectiveness, of context and of elements of good practice. Quantitative-type research has been rare, and often criticised on the basis that it is unable to capture and address the dynamic nature of PPP-making processes, i.e. the involvement of a wide range of actors, the input of new information and the existence of different views and interests, which give rise to uncertainty and unpredictability. Nevertheless, the potential of quantitative research in SEA has yet to be fully explored, and the extent to which SEA is meeting the two definitional claims mentioned above remains untested and undetermined. Within this context, this study aims to apply a quantitative research approach to SEA and verify the extent to which SEA contributes to environmental integration (EI) and the extent to which SEA behaves systematically. It achieves this by looking at UK practice as a case study. It applies questionnaire survey, correlation analysis and sensitivity analysis as methods of quantitative research approach. The findings of this research confirmed that quantitative methodologies can be successfully applied to evaluate the presence and quality of SEA procedures and their outputs. Furthermore, the degree of EI reflected in plans and programmes (PPs) because of the SEA, as reflected in the PP’s environmental objectives and indicators, can be quantitatively evaluated. However, to enhance this quantitative evaluation process, clearer and more precise environmental objectives are needed. Of the two definitional SEA claims evaluated, that (1) SEA contributes to EI in PPPs and that (2) SEA is a systematic process), there was weak evidence to support the claim that SEA significantly achieved EI within UK SEA practice. Of the second claim, it was concluded that the UK SEA process behaves as a systematic process composed of negative and positive feedbacks. Moreover, the UK SEA process is a stable system prone to over-development and with inadequate negative feedbacks to facilitate self-regulation of the SEA process towards a certain range of EI. Based on the findings, it is recommended that if SEA effectiveness and theory-building are to be enhanced, application of more quantitative methods and hypothetico-deductive paradigms of scientific enquiry should be applied in order to test and verify stated hypotheses. Application of other quantitative methods such as Factor Analysis and/or Principal Component Analysis should be considered in order to further establish the explanatory elements for EI achievement, and contributory roles of various SEA elements in achieving EI. Furthermore, quantitative approaches can facilitate calibrating of SEA reports and EI achieved, and enhance standardisation and quality control. It is further recommended that if SEA is to be understood as a systematic process with dynamic interactions amongst its elements, then further research needs to be conducted to improve follow-up mechanisms and establish quality hold points in order to enhance quality assurance. Specifically, more negative feedback loops or best practice standards and quality control hold points should be integrated into the SEA system in order for it to better self-regulate towards achieving a defined range of EI.
Being one of Ukraine’s major sources of economic revenue, the country’s agro-industrial sector proved, at the same time, to be perhaps the most vulnerable branch of economy in the times of political and social turbulence. While the state is searching for the ways of strengthening its positions at the global market, its agricultural potential to a considerable extent remains both under- and misused. Based on comprehensive historic analysis, this research establishes the origins of the current situation and assesses the possibilities of positive change. Utilizing the experience of other European countries’ with regards to making agriculture more sustainable and competitive in the modern world, the author describes the ways of applying these practices against the background of Ukrainian socio-political system. Drawing knowledge from the experience of Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) worldwide, this research aims at harmonizing their methods with evaluation demands in Ukrainian agriculture. It discusses and criticizes the existing assessment approach and suggests measures necessary for making it more comprehensive. The author offers profound analysis of Ukrainian agricultural policies to date, reviews national regulating directives and outlines country-specific challenges as to improving agricultural sustainability. In order to provide Ukrainian decision-makers with a clear and all-round tool for assessing the advances and failures of the acting state policies in the AIS, a set of reliable indices for evaluating agricultural performance has been developed by the author, which is largely based on the widely-acknowledged Driving Force – State – Response framework offered by the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and Human Development Index (HDI) from United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) methodology. At the same time, the newly developed set takes into consideration the peculiarities of Ukrainian socio-political setting. Three major categories of indicators were chosen as a backbone for further elaboration, namely economic, social and political. Therefrom results a list of twelve relevant indices. At the concluding stage of the research, they were processed and transformed to three top-level indices: Economic Development Index, Environmental Situation Index and Social Development Index. These three indices are intended for clear and illustrative presentation of the current situation for high level decision-makers and governmental bodies. Methodology utilized for the purposes of this research with necessary adaptation and fine tuning can also be used with other set of initial data, indicators and indices. Application field can also be downscaled from the highest (national) to the lowest (regional) level by adapting the indicator-indices system to the initial input data. This will considerably simplify the compilation and presentation of regional reports and will provide transparency for interregional comparison within the country.
Unlike many areas of the world where agricultural producers exhibit the physical, economic and social resources to moderate, or adapt, subsistence agriculture in the Sudano-Sahel region of Cameroon is seem to be particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climatic variability. This is in part due to the fact that the majority of the population depends on rain-fed agriculture for their livelihood. Adapting to climate change in the subsistence agricultural sector is therefore very imperative in providing food security and concomitantly protecting the livelihood of rural communities. This study examined the patterns of current climatic variables on some selected subsistence staple crops namely; millet and sorghum in the Cameroon´s Sudano-Sahel. It also valorized and documented the community based adaptation strategies used by local farmers to cope with current climate change, explored the constraints and opportunities in adaptation and mitigation that could facilely be integrated and incorporated into policies and programs. The guiding premises were that climatic change impacts subsistence crop yields as the lower the rainfall, the higher the vulnerability of the yields of staple crops. It also hypothesized that the present community-based strategies used by the local farmers are relevant and crucial to the present day quest for climate change adaptation strategies. Analyses of agricultural droughts using the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI), spatio-temporal land use and land cover dynamics via remote sensing were utilized as well as the application of statistical tools for the investigation of pressure and state indicators. A participatory research approach was used in exploring adaptation patterns perceived by the ruralites in the face of variable climatic condition via administered questionnaires. The results suggested critical impact asymmetries due to climatic and socio-economic factors affected subsistence crops in the Sudano-Sahel of Cameroon. Furthermore, SPI results indicated incidences of droughts; with the Multilinear Regression (MLR) models showing temperature and rainfall to an extent determined agricultural crop productivity in the Sudano-Sahel. However, other factors such as population growth have undoubtedly caused enormous impacts on the agricultural system as seen in remote sensing analyses. Questionnaire survey findings also connoted that subsistence farming communities have a rich repertoire of strategies ranging from changing of planting dates, changing of crop varieties, switching from crops to livestock, use of local indicators, movement from rural to urban areas, increment in cultivated lands, irrigation soil conservation practices among many others as they perceive varying climatic conditions. Additionally, some of these indigenous strategies are inherent in ecological agricultural practices that offer a win-win scenario for the simultaneously tackling of climate change adaptation and mitigation and hence meeting the development goals. The results further highlighted the lack of money, poor access to climate information, the encroachment of desert and shortage of man power as some of the factors hindering subsistence farmers’ ability to adapt. The study concluded that adaptation measures in subsistence agriculture were highly significant for poverty reduction, thus improving on the well-being of the ruralites. The key to the ability of farmers to adapt would be access to relevant knowledge and information. Following the rich repertoire of strategies by local farmers, adaptation needed to be mainstreamed and institutional networks strengthened in order for effective community based adaptation.
Community-Based Adaptation (CBA) to climate change is a people-centred approach designed for the enablement of communities to collectively develop strategies to respond to local impacts that directly affect their lives and livelihoods. Nevertheless, CBA requires political support and the integration into larger-scale adaptation plans and policies; as the scope of local initiatives is rather small, they cannot substitute national or city-level adaptation efforts, but they may be a supplement as short- or medium-term response measures. Despite the success of single CBA pilot projects, the institutionalisation of CBA and its integration as a bottom-up approach into larger-scale adaptation plans and policies is definitely a challenge: firstly, the potential of CBA is still overlooked by decision-makers and planners; secondly, the decentralisation of decision-making is still underdeveloped in many countries and communities are not yet empowered and enabled to actively participate; and thirdly, there is lack of approaches to 'scale-out' and 'scale-up' successful CBA pilot projects.
Consequently, this doctoral thesis aims at going beyond the work of theorists and focuses on the identification of ways to institutionalise CBA. In the theoretical section of this thesis, an academic concept of CBA is formulated; the scope of CBA is defined and challenges for taking CBA beyond the pilot stage are identified. In a further step, a governance and management concept for the integration of CBA as a bottom-up approach into top-down planning approaches is developed. In order to do that, suitable existing governance and management concepts are identified and transferable concept components are combined.
The first result of this concept development step is an ideal-typical 'CBA Governance Management Model' (CBA-GMM), which combines concepts for a policy instrument and a pro-poor funding mechanism, for a governance approach, based on multi-level and network governance, as well as for a management approach that altogether may theoretically help to enable CBA activities. In a next step, the CBA-GMM is applied to the real case of Vietnam. After the assessment of the political and institutional framework, its strengths, constraints and challenges with regard to the institutionalisation of CBA, an 'Applied CBA Governance Management Model' for Vietnam (CBA-AGMM) is developed, which proposes a concept for the integration of CBA into the strongly hierarchical structure of the Vietnamese administrative and decision-making structure. This doctoral thesis shows that it is theoretically possible to integrate CBA as a bottom-up approach into larger-scale adaptation efforts, while it honestly reflects the constraints for putting it into practice.
Yemen is one of the most water-stressed countries in the world. The water deficit has been aggravated by the rapidly increasing demands for both surface and groundwater resources that are being unsustainably exploited. To address the country’s severe water scarcity, the government has adopted long-term intervention policies as stated in ‘Yemen's Strategic Vision 2025’. These policies are aimed at restoring the balance between water demand and availability, and at reducing the existing water deficit. Although 11 years have passed since this vision was adopted, the water deficit is still on the rise. The present situation raises questions about the efficiency of the intervention policies adopted by ‘Yemen's Strategic Vision 2025’ and about the effectiveness of implementing these policies. Another fundamental question pertains to the availability of a strategic assessment tool in the water resources sector that can be used to assess strategically future and current policies, strategies and plans, in order to ensure their efficiency in supporting water resources and in producing the positive impacts for which these strategic initiatives were developed in the first place. Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) is an assessment tool designed to function at a strategic level and help to bring aspects of environmental sustainability into the decisionmaking process. This research aims to demonstrate the potential of SEA in enhancing environmental sustainability in water policies for achieving sustainability of water resources in Yemen. In order to show the potential of SEA in the Yemeni water resources sector, this research has applied SEA methodologies and adopted a scenario-building approach for assessing the intervention policies adopted by ‘Yemen's Strategic Vision 2025’ to support augmentation of water resources. Qualitative and quantitative approaches have been used in this research. Quantitative historical data on water availability, water demand and water savings by interventions have been collected from the databases of national institutions and international organizations concerned. Statistical analyses have been used to project future trends until 2025. Qualitative analyses of relevant studies and reports covering the environmental, administrative, sociocultural and political-economic aspects of water resources management in Yemen have been implemented as well. In addition, 13 semi-structured key informant interviews have been conducted with decision-makers, managers and leading experts in the water and irrigation sectors. The research produced three future scenarios for the total water balance that may play out until 2025 in Yemen. These scenarios provide impact assessment and alternatives’ comparison of the existing intervention policies. The resulting scenarios are as follows: the ‘Business as Usual’ scenario, which forms an assessment of currently applied interventions and provides an image for the future, if current interventions are maintained at the same pace; the ‘Do-nothing’ scenario representing the situation if no interventions are implemented; and the ‘Sustainability’ scenario, which represents the potential future of the total water balance if existing interventions are to be scaled up and out. The findings confirm the significant potential of currently adopted intervention policies to support water resources. They also reveal that the current level of implementing the intervention policies has hindered the potential of these intervention policies in achieving the expected positive impact on the water balance by 2025. In order to achieve a significant decrease in the water deficit, the strategic quantitative targets that need to be implemented were identified. The methodology followed in implementing the research and achieving the findings demonstrates the potential of SEA in enhancing environmental sustainability in water policies for achieving integrated and sustainable water resources management in Yemen. The recommendations of the research covered improving the existing water balance as well as improving the assessment and planning context in the water resources sector. In order to improve the water balance situation, the research recommends implementing quantitative targets for water savings and augmentations, such as those developed by this research. These targets have been identified based on the capacities of sectors implementing these interventions. The research also recommends further decentralization of planning and management of water resources and the establishment of Water User Associations (WUAs) as the main vehicles for ensuring sustainable planning and management of water resources, including the scale out of interventions, subject to assessment in this research. In order to improve assessment and planning of water resources, the research recommends the adoption of SEA, the updating of water resources data and conducting regular assessments of policies, plans and programmes as part of monitoring their impact and providing a chance for amending these policies and strategies, if required, to achieve sustainability of water resources.
Urban morphology is used in many developed countries to classify and manage the dis-tribution of urban functions. In urban planning, it helps to identify the emerging prob-lems and solve the disorder of urban functions. The megacity Ho Chi Minh City has faced many problems with uncontrollable urbanization, urban management and plan-ning. It has received increasing tropical storms and cyclones which caused more heavy rains in recent decades. Rapid urbanization has caused the increase of built-up coverage with disordered typologies, incomplete infrastructure and urban-peripheral instability. In the flooding context, these problems have increased more seriously with flooding impacts and caused uncontrollable planning and management in the city. This study applies the urban morphology method to measure flood impacts on urban functions and develop the adaptive solutions for flooding adaptation for Ho Chi Minh City. The methods in this study are based on applying fractal geometry, GIS and Remote Sensing on large-scale maps for measuring the urban morphology. The land-use map and the building footprints map of 2010 were founded to analyze the distribution of urban areas by high resolution of satellite images and large scale GIS data. The fractal geometry was a setting based on Avenue program of Arcview GIS to measure the urban morphology. This formed a key input for the multi-criteria analysis (MCA) method that investigated the cause of flood impacts and suggested the solution for flooding adapta-tion. In addition, alterations of lakes, ponds and watercourse from 1995 to 2009 were explored. The study showed HCMC had problems on irrational development in residential densi-ties areas and urban functions, and the uneven development of population and residen-tial density between the urban areas: too much in the urban districts (about 300 to 500 persons per hectare per block and coverage ratio 0.7 - 0.9). This pushed the increasing demand on built-up area and filled-up rivers and canals (About 80 percent of original ponds and lakes in inner-center were filled-up in the past; and 63 percent of ponds and lakes have been filled-up in Sub-Districts and new-urban-development areas). It made the imbalance between the permeability of land surface and the run-off water flows; then leads the inundation to increase. This is the main reason for reducing the water-storage capacity in rainy season. Flooding in urban residential area was more im-pacted than in rural residential area, higher level and longer flood time; while flooding in the rainy season due to high tides, heavy rains or both was the emerging and uncon-trollable problems. For flooding adaptation, urban morphology analysis helped to figure out the potential areas in the city could be used for reducing flooding impacts in urban areas. There are many low-density residential areas in above 1.5 meter AMSL areas in the North, Northwest and Northeast areas of the city which could be developed with complete infrastructure and urban services to attract people from high-density residential areas impacted deeply by floods in the center. These potential areas could be the long-term strategic solution to flooding adaptation for HCMC. The results also suggested that some current flooded areas would be re-planned or returned to be the water-storage and permeable areas (such as green parks, ponds and lakes). This re-planning would improve the city landscape and increase the permeable surface, green spaces and open spaces to HCMC. More green spaces, lakes and ponds will also help to reduce the temperature of urban center in the dry season. This adaptation solution would reduce at least 25 percent of current flooded areas in urban center. The protection and constructed restriction of current agricultural areas in peri-urban Districts would maintain the infil-tration and green-tree areas. Furthermore, the complete drainage system would help to reduce better flood for these areas. Finally, fully dredging river and canal system of the city would reduce about 25 to 30 percent of current flooded areas.