Sedimentation
National and local observers often state that the Tonlé Sap Lake is rapidly filling with sediment. However, recent long-term sedimentation studies show that net sedimentation within the lake proper has been in the range of 0.1-0.16 mm/year since circa 5,500 years before present (BP) and hence there is no threat of the lake filling up with sediment. The nutrients bound to suspended sediments are important for the Tonle Sap system, particularly to maintain its long-term sustainability.
The reversal of the Tonlé Sap river's flow also acts as a safety valve to prevent flooding further downstream. During the dry season (December to April) the Tonlé Sap Lake provides around 50% of the flow to the Mekong Delta in Vietnam.
The lake occupies a depression created due to the geological stress induced by the collision of the Indian subcontinent with Asia. In recent years, there have been concerns from scientists about the building of high dams and other changed hydrological parameters in Southern China and Laos that has threatened the strength and volume of the reverse flow into Tonle Sap, which in turn decreases nesting, breeding, spawning, and feeding habitats in floodplain, which results in adverse impacts on fish productivity and overall biodiversity.
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