Mitr Phol Corp., Ltd of Thailand and the Laosamay Road Bridge Construction Company have signed a joint investment agreement for the development and construction of a hydropower dam on the Xe Bangfai river in Khammuan and an irrigation system for both Khammuan and Savannakhet provinces.
Category: Region
Selected environmental stories from media outlets in the Mekong region and beyond.
The battle for the ‘mother of rivers’
Scientists are praising the discovery of new species and rare dolphins in the Mekong region, but overfishing and dams loom to disrupt habitats says a special report by the Ecologist.
Vietnam’s response to climate change? A shrimp and mangrove cocktail
Julia Wallace Like other shrimp farmers here in this lush, canal-lined province in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta, Nguyen Van A can instantly rattle off the precise percentage of saltwater in which crustaceans grow best. And at the moment, he insists with a smile, everybody knows that Ben Tre Province has the best brackish water in the […]
Experts explore sustainable infrastructure amid major development needs
Southeast Asia to be hit hard by road construction: 95 percent of all illegal deforestation takes place within 3.4 miles of a road, meaning road construction will place massive pressure on jungles and forests in the future.
Mekong Delta Blues
BBC Radio 4’s Costing the Earth program explores how the government of Laos is determined to develop the nation by building hydroelectric dams for electricity, yet many people in the downstream countries of Cambodia and Vietnam are worried that the flow of the life-giving waters of the Mekong will be much reduced and fish life devastated. Peter Hadfield reports from the banks of the Mekong
Civil society sets advocacy targets for AIIB
A year after the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank’s launch, NGO leaders involved see now as a key moment to build a constructive relationship. The $100 billion bank has yet to announce many of its own substantial financing projects, choosing instead to partner with other multilateral development banks. The bank is also still staffing up and building its internal systems — exactly the time when CSOs hope their voices can be heard.
Myanmar MP demands environmental protection
Myanmar MP, Dr Aung Khin, representing Pyin Oo Lwin, said, due to rapid deforestation, the country faced its severest weather conditions in 2015 and 2016. The country’s efforts to conserve the natural environment was at the lowest stage. The country ranked 164th out of 178 countries in the 2014 Environmental Performance Index, which suggested that more needed to be done for the conservation of natural resources, the MP said.
Vietnam’s dry season to be severe this year: experts
Mekong Delta farmers experienced the worst dry season in history in 2016, and are now facing another severe season in 2017
China’s ‘Belt and Road’ Policy Benefits Cambodia, Analysts Say
The Asian Development Bank figures that some $26 billion in investment will be needed by 2030 to meet regional infrastructure demands.
Fishing ban remains a year on after Formosa toxic spill along Vietnam’s central coast
The Vietnamese government has asked four central provinces hit by the April 2016 environment disaster linked to the Taiwanese steel conglomerate Formosa to uphold a fishing ban within 20 nautical miles of the coast as the environment has yet to recover