Mekong shrivels as drought, dam strangle Southeast Asia’s largest river
LOEI, Thailand: The once-mighty Mekong river has been reduced to a thin, grubby neck of water in stretches of northern Thailand – record lows blamed on drought and a recently completed dam far upstream.
The US$4.47 billion Thai-owned Xayaburi hydro-electric power plant went into operation this week in Laos after years of warnings over the potential impact on fish flow, sediment and water levels on a river which feeds tens of millions.
