The Mekong

Critics of the 1,285-megawatt Xayaburi hydropower dam in northern Laos fear recent upgrades to the controversial project won’t be enough to save the Mekong River from a critical tipping point when it starts churning out electricity at full throttle next month. After seven years of construction, ...

The much anticipated annual flooding season in the Mekong Delta is set to arrive in the next few days, much later than usual. The Mekong River Commission (MRC) reports that the floods have reached Thailand and Laos now, and should reach Cambodia in the next few ...

Authorities urged residents living along the Mekong River in Stung Treng, Kratie and Kampong Cham provinces to be vigilant as water levels rise perilously close to meriting an emergency declaration. On Sunday, water levels in Stung Treng province were just 20cm shy of an emergency declaration ...

The Mekong is reeling from the combined onslaught of climate change, sand-mining, and incessant damming of the river, which combined to help cause the worst drought recorded in over 100 years in July. “This is the worst ecological disaster in history of the of Mekong region,” declared Thai ...

The Mekong River is again striking record lows, threatening crop production, fish stocks and the livelihoods of 70 million people amid rampant over-development and dire warnings. But this year’s drought, the second in three years, could mark a turning point and a bleak future.Scientists, backed ...

The Mekong River basin was identified as a major disaster risk hotspot by the United Nations today. Poor people living close to the river suffer high exposure to flood and drought, according to a report released today. A UN official also called for the nations in ...

In recent weeks, the Mekong River, one of the world’s longest and largest rivers, which has been under peril due to a confluence of development, demographic, and geopolitical pressures, has been at its lowest levels in a century. Dams upstream are holding back much needed water ...

The Mekong River, a critical waterway for six countries in Southeast Asia, is registering critically low water levels this summer. The Mekong River Commission (MRC), which monitors Southeast Asia’s longest river, reported in mid-July that water levels over the previous month had fallen to “among the lowest ...

Some have survived for hundreds of millions of years, but many of the world’s freshwater megafauna—including sumo-sized stingrays, colossal catfish, giant turtles, and gargantuan salamanders—may soon find themselves on the brink of extinction, according to a new study published. For the first time, researchers have quantified the ...

Drought, follows flood and storm, is among the most influential natural disasters in the world. According to 2018 publication on the International Disaster Database website, 16% of people affected by disasters in 2018 were affected by droughts. Over the past few decades, countries along the Lancang-Mekong ...