Biodiversity
Ecosystems
Southeast Asia's Road Building Spree Splinters Ecosystems
Southeast Asia is a global biodiversity hotspot, and Indonesia and Malaysia are no exception, harboring some of the highest levels of species diversity in the world. Yet those two countries also supply more than 80 percent of the world’s palm oil, and it’s widely acknowledged ...
New dam in Cambodia 'would destroy Mekong'
A Chinese-backed plan for Cambodia to build the Mekong River’s biggest dam would destroy fisheries that feed millions and worsen tensions with Vietnam, the downstream country with most to lose from dams on the waterway, according to a three-year study commissioned by the Cambodian government. Keep ...
Doubts swirl around ambitious anti-saline intrusion project in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta
Experts are questioning the touted benefits of an approved multimillion-dollar plan to prevent saltwater intrusion in a coastal province in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta region, highlighting fears of negative ecological and agricultural impacts. Keep reading ...
Mekong River bird species threatened by dam discharges
The Mekong River ecosystem has been devastated from rising water levels during the dry season, as upstream dams in China discharge water to facilitate navigation in the river. Keep reading ...
PRATCH RUJIVANAROM
Cambodia’s fisheries at risk due to hydropower development on Mekong, MRC warns
Hydropower development will likely deal a serious economic blow to Cambodia, with dire outlooks for its fisheries and rice outputs predicted even under best-case scenarios, according to key findings from the Mekong River Commission (MRC).Keep reading ...
Alessandro Marazzi Sassoon
A Bright Future in Cambodia’s Energy Sector?
Rather than ecologically harmful dams, Cambodia should explore solar power to fill its energy gap.[] One such project is the proposed Sambor Dam, to be located on the Mekong River’s mainstream at Sambor town, Kratie province, Cambodia. This would be one of eleven large hydropower dams ...
Sabrina Gyorvary
Environmentalists say Da Nang’s Son Tra must remain pristine
Without the original Son Tra, Da Nang will be just like other sea cities in Vietnam, according to environmentalists who are opposed to tourism development at the site. Biodiversity Conservancy International’s Chair Dang Trung Phuoc has sent letters to Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and ministries, ...
Four million blue swimmer crabs released off Phú Quốc Island
More than four million pregnant blue swimmer crabs on Monday were released into the sea off Phú Quốc Island in an effort to replenish stocks in the area. Quảng Trọng Thao, deputy director of the Kiên Giang Province Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said ...
Organisations discuss capacity for improved regional forest governance
The Center for People and Forests in partnership with the Lao Biodiversity Association and the World Wide Fund for Nature have launched a five year project to strengthen capacity in forest governance. Supported by the European Union, the project’s objective is to empower non-state actors ...
The Mekong and the battle for the ‘Mother of Rivers’
For wildlife enthusiasts in the region, these are exciting times. A horned lizard and rainbow-headed snake were among 163 delightful new species documented last year by scientists alongside 10 endangered Irrawaddy dolphin calves. Fewer than 90 Irrawaddy dolphins exist on the planet.But all is not ...
