In Myanmar, Thailand, and the United Arab Emirates, drones have been used to help plant mangrove trees, a potentially impactful development, since trees planted near the equator capture more carbon than those planted elsewhere.
Category: Region
Selected environmental stories from media outlets in the Mekong region and beyond.
Sino-Thai rail line back on track
The Thai government has paid more than 179 billion baht for the construction project which is divided into 14 contracts whereas the Chinese government is responsible for overseeing design and construction work, supplying the railway signalling systems and train carriages, and training personnel.
Dams fail but still vital
Ban Kaeng Sila village in Khon Kaen’s Ubon Ratana district is just one kilometre away from Ubolratana Dam, the largest irrigation dam in the Northeast.. But local farmers had to endure severe drought for three years between 2018 to 2020, as the dam’s reservoir dried.
Building a sustainable and green economic corridor for Laos, hand In hand with FAO
The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, with active support from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, is spearheading an innovative initiative that envisions bringing together governmental, private, and international partners to build a green growth economic corridor along the Laos-China Railway.
Beijing tells regime It fears attack on Its oil, gas pipelines in Myanmar
Chinese officials in Beijing and Yangon-based Chinese diplomats are concerned that forces inside Myanmar seek to instigate anti-China unrest and may be planning to attack China’s twin oil-and-gas pipelines running 800km across the country.
China joins Lower Mekong River countries to study impacts of climate change, dams
Many of the details of the study have yet to be worked out, from exactly which tributaries to focus on to how much data China will share on how it operates its dams. To date, China has refused to reveal how much water its dams release. Furthermore, there is concern that China could use the collaboration as an opportunity to push the narrative that its dams’ disruption of the Mekong’s seasonal flood cycle actually helps downstream countries, despite a lack of evidence, and that some MRC officials make similar claims.
Developing sustainable climate resilient infrastructure solutions in Cambodia
The Asian Development Bank, with support from the Pilot Program for Climate Resilience of the Climate Investment Funds, is assisting Cambodia to build climate-resilient infrastructure through a $588 million investment program called Strategic Program for Climate Resilience. The program led to the development of new regulations, technical guidelines, and legal requirements on construction of infrastructure specific to the nation’s three distinct geographic regions: the coastal areas, the highlands, and the central lowlands.
Vietnam proposes establishment of comprehensive database on multi-dimensional impacts of sea-level rise
Addressing the UN Security Council last week resident Nguyen Xuan Phuc proposed that the UN should establish a comprehensive database system on multi-dimensional impacts of sea-level rise in support of global response policy formulation.
Thai water project gives Beijing a new Belt and Road foothold
Thailand’s military-dominated government is paving the way for a Chinese state-owned enterprise to land a water diversion project, the first of its kind in the country and a likely steppingstone for China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
Cambodia: Climate change, Mekong dams threaten world’s biggest inland fishery
One of the world’s richest inland fishing grounds, Tonle Sap lake nourishes tens of millions of people. But climate change and dam construction are threatening livelihoods at the lake, as well as regional food security.