Water resources
Surface water
Cambodia starts work on canal linking Mekong River to sea
Cambodia has launched a controversial canal project to link the Mekong River to the sea. Work on the $1.7bn project kicked off on Monday. Phnom Penh hopes the canal will boost the country’s economy. However, concern over the impact on the region’s environment and foreign relations ...
Al Jazeera and news agencies
Mekong Delta expects higher floods this season
HCM CITY – The Cửu Long (Mekong) Delta is entering its annual flooding season and many rice farmers in upstream provinces have opened their field sluices to let the floodwaters and aquatic creatures in. The floods are caused by the rising level of the Mekong River ...
Viet Nam News
China says Mekong dam did not discharge water downstream amid heavy flooding in Thailand
China said on Tuesday a major dam on the Mekong River did not discharge floodwaters last week amid heavy flooding in Thailand. Monsoon rains across large areas in Thailand have caused extensive flooding that has killed at least nine people and affected more than 51,700 households, ...
Meredith Chen
Cambodia will not negotiate over Funan Techo canal: Hun Sen
Cambodia’s leader Hun Sen has said that his country would not negotiate with Vietnam over the planned Funan Techo canal, despite concerns about its environmental and geopolitical impacts. A group of Vietnamese experts suggested last week that Hanoi should ask Phnom Penh to delay the project ...
RFA Staff
Where Have All the Mekong River’s Fish Gone?
The Mekong was once a river teeming with fish, providing food security for millions of poor farmers as well urban centers. These days, that river of abundance has disappeared, replaced by forlorn fishers who say they’re lucky if they can secure a catch at all, ...
Tom Fawthrop
One-fifth of Mekong river fish species face extinction, report says
BANGKOK, March 4 (Reuters) – Unsustainable development threatens the health and diverse fish populations of the Mekong river, with one-fifth of fish species in Southeast Asia’s main artery facing extinction, a report by conservation groups said on Monday. The Mekong, stretching nearly 5,000 km (3,000 miles) ...
REUTERS
Fears grow that dam across Mekong River in Laos could harm World Heritage site of Luang Prabang
LUANG PRABANG, Laos (AP) — Landlocked Laos doesn’t have the famous beaches of its neighbors to attract tourists, but instead relies on the pristine beauty of its mountains and rivers and historical sites to bring in visitors. The crown jewel is Luang Prabang, a UNESCO World Heritage Site where legend ...
DAVID RISING
Rethinking our cities' link to water
Water holds special symbolic significance in Thai culture, from Loy Krathong to Songkran festivals. But as much as we respect the value of water, we must also recognise that failure to care for our water resources puts our lives and wellbeing at risk. Over the last ...
RICHARD FRIEND & PAKAMAS THINPHANGA
China vows closer security ties with Mekong states as cyber scams, Myanmar unrest have cross-border impact
China and its five Southeast Asian neighbours along the Lancang-Mekong River have agreed to focus on security cooperation, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said. “We will resolutely combat cross-border crime in the [region], especially cyber fraud and gambling,” Wang said after the annual Lancang-Mekong Cooperation foreign ministers’ meeting with ...
Zhao Ziwen
New Thai government must show more responsibility with the Mekong
Around this time of year when the rainy season begins, people living on the banks of the Mekong River along the Thai-Lao border always feel a little less stressed because rising water levels mean more fish and food to support their survival. Until the mid-1990s, these ...
Titipol Phakdeewanich