Mekong projects must take impact on environment into account
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha may have been wrong when he said his government would clear the waterway for navigation in the Mekong River for the benefit of Thailand, suggesting that nobody should oppose this project. The Mekong runs through six countries in the region and ...
Longer wait for final word on Myitsone dam project
The struggle goes on over whether the controversial Myitsone dam and other hydropower projects along the Ayeyarwady River should be built, following indications that further reports on the projects are needed. A member of the commission for reviewing and scrutinising hydropower projects along the Ayeyarwady ...
The soul of the Mekong is in trouble
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha last week asked reporters why non-governmental organisations, environmental activists and academics continue to protest against the planned blasting of rapids in the Mekong River. He said many of these protesters are outsiders, meaning people who do not live by the riverside, do ...
Marine quality checked
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has asked four central provinces to provide regular reports on marine environment quality. The provinces of Hà Tĩnh, Quảng Bình, Quảng Trị and Thừa Thiên Huế have been told that they should seriously implement the instruction to monitor ...
South Korea offers loan to Cambodia
South Korea has agreed to provide more than $400 million in loans to Cambodia for infrastructure and health development. Foreign Affairs Minister Prak Sokhonn and South Korean ambassador Kim Weon-jin signed two agreements at a ceremony on January 31 outlining loans that will be dispersed to ...
Poverty Reduction Fund reports five years of success
Despite poverty reduction activities achieving real success over the past few years, the improvement of behaviour patterns in poor communities in remote areas should continue to be monitored. The lessons learnt from the implementation of poverty reduction projects were discussed at a meeting held in ...
Mekong Delta shifts strategy, takes advantage of benefits of flooding
In the past, Mekong Delta residents, striving to produce as much rice as possible, built closed embankments to prevent floods and cultivate third crops. But now they need floods to preserve water to fight drought and saline intrusion. Le Anh Tuan, deputy head of the Climate ...
Will Myanmar lose its Irrawaddy dolphins?
Tears fill U Maung Lay’s eyes as he describes losing the dolphin he knew since his childhood, the latest casualty of a battle against pollution and electrofishing that may see the species disappear from Myanmar. Loved for generations for corralling the catch into fishermen’s nets, ...
Massive fish death occur in Winkamaue creek, Paung Township
A huge amount of fish have died in the Winkamaue Creek, Oaktantar village, Paung Township, Mon State, since the beginning of the year, villagers say. Guan Shein, Oaktantar village administrator, said: “On January 15, villagers informed us about the massive fish deaths in the Winkamaue ...
China hydropower having major impact along Mekong River: study
Hydropower facilities along the upper reaches of the Lancang, which becomes the Mekong River as it flows out of China, have led to major river-flow changes affecting Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, according to a study from Finland’s Aalto University. The study found river-flow ...
