Environment and natural resources

A Chinese-backed plan to build Cambodia’s biggest dam could “literally kill” the Mekong river, according to a confidential assessment seen by the Guardian which says that the proposed site at Sambor is the “worst possible place” for hydropower. Keep reading ...

The Mekong River Commission (MRC) has expressed strong support for Laos over its green growth strategy, adding that the inter-governmental organisation is ready to share its resources to ensure this initiative is sustainable. “Green growth is obviously a pathway to sustainable development and I’m pleased to ...

As resistance mounts to hydroelectric dam projects along the Mekong River, local leaders have tried to engage civic movements in the Mekong sub-region in the battle. The latest group to emerge is the Transborder News Network, which held a forum on dam project investments and ...

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Conservation International, in collaboration with the Cambodia National Mekong Committee, disseminated a report May 10 on the Freshwater Health Index, a tool to assess freshwater ecosystem health in the Sesan, Srepok and Sekong rivers, which are major tributaries ...

A river basin hosting three Mekong tributaries and providing a livelihood for 3.4 million people is under threat because of the construction of 65 dams, according to a study issued in Phnom Penh on Thursday by conservation groups. Conservative International (CI) and the International Union for ...

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc underlined the pressing need to focus resources on tackling climate change in the Mekong Delta in the wake of landslides along river banks, canals and seashores threatening life and property of local residents.  Keep reading ...

Dozens of projects threaten agriculture and fishing in Southeast Asia. Sam In, a 48-year-old rice farmer from Cambodia’s northeastern province of Stung Treng, never knew that people paid for water until he was forced to move out of his home on the banks of a Mekong ...

China deserves credit for shutting down the illegal trading in elephant ivory that has contributed in recent years to the killing of thousands of African pachyderms. But much credit should also go to international nongovernment organizations that have championed the elephants’ cause and raised public ...

Although the Mekong is popularly seen as a South East Asian river, its headwaters are located in China, where it is known as the Lancang. From there it flows through Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. The future of the Mekong, though, will be heavily ...

In recent years, increased salinity intrusion in the Mekong Delta, due to changing climate and fluctuations in river water levels especially during the dry season in coastal regions, has affected agriculture especially rice farming livelihoods. Salinity intrusion has also severely affected domestic water supplies. Saltwater ...