News
China Belatedly Notifies Mekong Nations of River Disruption
Earlier this week, I wrote about the sudden drop in water levels along the Mekong River in northern Thailand, and their likely link to the filling of a dam reservoir upstream in China. The fall first became apparent on January 4, when locals in the Thai port town ...
Sebastian Strangio
Mekong Levels Reportedly Plummet Due to Chinese Dam Activity
Water levels on the Mekong River have fallen due to the filling of a Chinese dam on the upper reaches of the river in Yunnan province, according to locals and river monitors. The fall was reported on January 4, when locals in the Thai port town ...
Sebastian Strangio
China notifies Mekong River neighbours it is holding back waters
China has notified downstream neighbours it is holding back the Mekong River flow at a hydropower dam on the waterway’s upper reaches for 20 days, as part of a new data-sharing pact, the Mekong River Commission (MRC) and Thailand said on Wednesday. The statements came a ...
Panu Wongcha-um, Kay Johnson
Delta blues? Tensions rise along the Mekong as science meets strategy
China has been ramping up its investments with the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation mechanism, which – according to American officials – is an attempt to compete with the Mekong River Commission (MRC). A competition over who dominates scientific and technical knowledge of the river indicates an escalation in the complexity of ...
Giulio Boccaletti
More dams would devastate the ailing Mekong River
Once, not that long ago, the Mekong River in Southeast Asia was a formidable waterway. Navigating much of the 4,350km-long river was a real challenge. The Mekong, which originates in China and empties into the South China Sea in Vietnam after passing through four other ...
Daniel T Cross
Satellites to track Chinese dams on Mekong river, as US likens ‘threat’ facing Southeast Asia to South China Sea
Threats to Southeast Asian unity on the Mekong are as “existential” as those in the South China Sea, according to the United States, which this week launched a project that will use satellites to track water levels at Chinese dams along the river. David Stilwell, US ...
Maria Siow
U.S. Steps Up Scrutiny of Chinese Built Dams on Mekong Basin
The U.S. is increasing scrutiny of Chinese dams along the Mekong River, its latest move aimed at helping Southeast Asian nations push back against Beijing. The ‘Mekong Dam Monitor,’ funded by the U.S. government and run by for-profit consultancy Eyes on Earth and the Washington-based Stimson Center gathers ...
Philip Heijmans
Chinese dams under U.S. scrutiny in Mekong rivalry
A U.S.-funded project using satellites to track and publish water levels at Chinese dams on the Mekong river was announced on Monday, adding to the superpowers’ rivalry in Southeast Asia. The 4,350-km (2,700-mile) waterway – known as the Lancang in China and flowing south through Myanmar, ...
Kay Johnson, Matthew Tostevin
Mekong People's Forum Pushed to Pave Way for Wider Participation in Mekong Decision Making
Over a hundred participants from various sectors, which have been working on development issues in the Mekong Basin, attended the two-day seminar held in Chiang Rai’ Chiang Khong district, where has been one of the locations which have long suffered from development projects in the ...
B.Tribune
Tide turning for Mekong protesters
After almost two decades of campaigning against hydro-dams and water projects built on the Mekong River, local civic groups and conservationists finally launched the “Mekong People’s Forum,” with the hope of moving their campaign to a policy level. The forum was held on Dec 1–2 in ...
WASSAYOS NGAMKHAM