Sand dredging licences secretly soaring
Despite the government’s vow to be more transparent with regulations and the issuing of sand-dredging licences, Cambodia’s Ministry of Mines and Energy has granted nearly 70 new such licences without holding public auctions or requiring companies to disclose environmental impact assessments results to the public, according to data from the ministry. According to the ministry’s documents, the government made over $4.1 million in sand dredging revenue last year and $1.62 million for the first quarter of 2016.
