While tensions in the South China Sea have the potential for limited skirmishes far out to sea, the competition over the resources of the Mekong River is putting millions at risk of natural disasters, famine and regional instability.
Category: Region
Selected environmental stories from media outlets in the Mekong region and beyond.
Rayong Bay a ‘dead sea’ for fishermen
Home to Thailand’s largest petrochemical and industrial hub, the coastal province is plagued with pollution. A major oil spill four years ago added further insult to the injury.
Climate change will force mass migration of 1 billion by 2100
Asia Pacific is the most vulnerable region to climate change, and poor people are to be hit the hardest, prompting migration on a massive scale: ADB report
Civil society groups denounce new environment bill
Environmentalists have called on the authorities to rethink changing Thailand’s environmental protection law, because the process lacks public oversight.
Small hydro plants, big problem
Professor Vũ Trọng Hồng, Chairman of the Việt Nam Irrigation Association, speaks to the newspaper Nông Thôn Ngày Nay (Countryside Today) about the dangerous impact of the proposal to build four super small hydro power plants in the central province of Quang Nam.
Mekong Transboundary Dialogue
Mekong transboundary water issues across four Lower Basin Mekong countries is the subject of a new video by the Mekong River Commission.
Vietnam’s major cities choking as pollution exacerbates
Urban areas are polluted by transportation, industrial production and daily activities.
The ‘Silk Road’ Verdict
China’s massive infrastructure plan to link it to Europe, including parts of Southeast Asia, does not measure up to economic reality.
The Challenges Facing Cambodian Foreign Policy
What foreign policy risk may lie ahead for Cambodia should it further harden its relationship with China as opposed to hedging some bets with the “other” superpower?
Mekong Delta faces troubling sand shortage
Provinces in the Mekong Delta have run out of sand for construction at a time when many key infrastructure works are in progress.