Environment and natural resources
Mekong river dolphin faces added threat of Laos dam
Conservation experts and residents in Cambodia’s Kratie province say they are concerned for the wellbeing of the Mekong River dolphin, especially if a major hydropower project is built upstream. Laos says it intends to go forward with the Don Sahong Dam project, despite opposition from Cambodia ...
Cambodian PM calls for drought aid preparations
Prime Minister Hun Sen has called on local authorities and government ministries to be ready to distribute water to farmers around the country due to the ongoing shortage in Cambodia’s reservoirs. “Drought . . . has been threatening our agricultural production, therefore relevant authorities and ministries have to ...
Mekong locals seek a voice on Don Sahong
More than 6,400 residents of Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia have signed and thumb-printed a statement on the Don Sahong Dam project, airing concerns ranging from the river’s diminishing fish stocks to the lack of transparency of the Mekong River Commission. The statement, presented last week at ...
Elephant Caravan in Laos sparks conservation debate
For centuries Laos has been known as the Land of a Million Elephants. Now there are fewer than 900 of the iconic creatures – and less than half of those are wild. If the population continues to decline at the current rate, elephants will be ...
Mekong nations launch Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Framework
The Mekong River has always been an important trade route between Western China and Southeast Asia flowing through six different countries. The six foreign ministers met for the first time to frame a cooperation mechanism, agreeing to launch significant projects to enhance water resources, public health, ...
Thousands sign petition against Mekong dam construction
Huynh Thi Kim Duyen said her community in Ca Mau Province has seen a significant decline in fish stocks and water levels in the Mekong River in the past decade. Duyen is among thousands of people in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand who have signed off on ...
Promotion of Lao local wood industry to improve livelihoods
The Value Adding to Lao PDR Plantation Timber Products 2 (VALTIP2) project is promoting the improvement of livelihoods for farmers and processing workers in the Lao wood industry. VALTIP2 on 11 November officially opened a veneer processing and products research centre at the Faculty of Forestry, National ...
Floating Vientiane pump stations to access river water
Water storage engineers in Vientiane are now installing pumps on boats moored over deep sections of the Mekong River as alternatives to riverbank pumps to access sufficient water supplies. Currently, riverbank pumps are still taking water from the Mekong to reservoirs but the level of water ...
Cambodia’s energy policy out of balance: WEC
Expensive and unreliable electricity continues to weigh down Cambodia’s ranking on the UN-accredited World Energy Council’s annual Energy Trilemma Index, according to a report released on 11 November. The Kingdom ranked a low 115 out of 130 countries on the annual index, which assesses countries according ...
Lao Ministry imposes ban on log exports
Laos’ Ministry of Industry and Commerce has imposed an export ban on logs and unprocessed sawn wood following the prohibition instruction given by the government. The move aims to add value to wood resources by processing them domestically before they are exported. Recently, the ministry issued an order ...
