Yok Don national park still threatened by hydropower project
The Drang Phok Hydropower Plant project, which was started way back in 2007 and criticised for its impact on the ecosystem, has still not been scrapped despite continued opposition. In 2007, the chairman of Dak Lak Province at that time, Lu Ngoc Cu, granted his approval to the Tecco Company to survey the land inside Yok Don National Park to build the Drang Phok Hydropower Plant. In 2011, former provincial deputy chairman Tran Hieu officially allowed Tecco to lodge a investment and construction plan. It was estimated that 53 hectares of forest land would be destroyed to build the 28MW plant. Yok Don is the biggest national park in the Central Highlands and Drang Phok Hydropower Plant would be located near the core area of the park.
