The Pak Mun Dam did not deliver the peaking energy service it was designed for, and it physically blocked a critical migration route for a range of fish species that migrated annually to breeding grounds upstream in the Mekong’s Mun River Basin.
Category: Region
Selected environmental stories from media outlets in the Mekong region and beyond.
Mekong River levels ‘slightly’ rise amid conflicting regional data
The inter-governmental Mekong River Commission (MRC) said on Monday that levels on the vital waterway have “slightly” increased and it would look into why its outflow data from Chinese dams upstream differed from data later given by Beijing.
Human Rights Abuses in Laos Are Rampant – International Businesses Should Take Action
In 2019, Lao environmentalist Houayheuang “Muay” Xayabouly was sentenced to five years in prison for speaking up for flood victims and criticizing the government’s response to the crisis on Facebook. In the same year, seven activists were detained for planning a pro-democracy rally in Vientiane.
Illegal snares wreaking havoc on populations in wildlife sanctuaries
Cambodians must immediately stop consuming all wild animals in order to preserve Cambodia’s natural heritage and to stop breaking the laws of Cambodia by committing the offences of hunting and trapping them.
Before the coup, Myanmar’s stunning biodiversity had a chance. Now it is not so certain
It’s understandable that the international aid community wants to distance itself from the military regime. But it’s important that development and conservation programs continue to be funded.
Complexities of Democratic Development in the Mekong
Of course, comparing democratic development in the Mekong region might sound like citing “the bad, the worse, and the ugly” but that is because we are using the most advanced frame of democracy from Western standard.
Low Mekong Levels Hurt Cambodia’s Farmers, Prompting Call For Talks Between River Nations
Years of low water levels on the Mekong River are causing riparian communities in Cambodia to lose their livelihoods, prompting experts to call on nations that share the waterway to find a common solution on water usage.
As China-Laos railway nears completion, infrastructure poised to transform Lao economy
Regardless of its significant negative impacts, the railway has already been built and introduces new possibilities for exports, industry and tourism. The transformations to come around the railway may not be any less fraught than hydropower,