All peaceful on the Mekong front

River downer: A bird’s eye view of the Mekong River in Nong Khai province exposes sand dunes. Levels of water often can vary, triggered by dams developed on the river in China and Laos. Mekong civil society groups are advising the federalgovernments of Thailand and Cambodia to shift their Mekong River policy towards securing environments and promoting ecological justice. The ecological advocates and activists haveactually spoken out ahead of Sunday’s election in Thailand and an upcoming survey in Cambodia (July 23). They desire to reverse the existing position towards hydropower financialinvestment in favour of securing the river’s abundant biological treasures and special environments, as well as the ecological rights of regional neighborhoods throughout the area. Plea to survey prospects As a outcome of hydropower dam advancement in the Mekong area, the whole stretch of the Mekong River is now dealingwith ecological crises that are damaging the river’s communities and abundant natural resources, on which over 60 million individuals throughout the area depend. Chanang Umparak, from The Mekong Butterfly, an ecological group based in Thailand, stated the jobs might well identify the fate of the magnificent Mekong. Six countries share this global river, however the matter was hardly raised throughout the election project. According to International Rivers, 11 dams are operating in the upper Mekong River in China, while 2 hydropower dams — the Xayaburi Dam and Don Sahong Dam — are at work on the Mekong mainstream in Laos. Three more dams are under building — Luang Prabang Dam, Pak Beng Dam, and Pak Lay Dam. “Phenomena such as unseasonal changes in the water level and the ‘blue Mekong impact’ from sediment loss both outcome from the dams on the river, however the federalgovernments [of the Mekong countries] are quiet on this matter,” Ms Chanang stated. However, even however the effects of hydropower dams on Mekong communities are clear, the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) earlier this year signed power offers with Laos, permitting Thailand to buy up to 10,500 megawatts of power from Pak Lay Dam and Luang Prabang Dam. “The federalgovernments of the Mekong area generally view the river simply in terms of financial advancement and invest
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