Blog: The Lower Sesan 2 Dam will soon flood several Cambodian Communities; can it at least provide fair compensation?
Category: Region
Selected environmental stories from media outlets in the Mekong region and beyond.
Petition in opposition to Thailand National Mining policy submitted
A group of villagers are demanding the government cancel its policy of giving out Special Prospecting Licences throughout Thailand to boost gold mining. People who have been affected by the gold mining business agreed and set up a civil society group which aims to reform gold mining business and policy. The primary goal of the group is to reform the national policy on gold mining, including changing business ownership to Thai national only, business transparency, which will provide maximum benefit to the country and Thai people.
Clean Up Your Act
Government and industry say China is meeting environmental goals. Skeptics say yeah, right.
Thai military intimidates environment researchers in Isan
Military officers in Isan, Thailand’s Northeast, intimidated academics and students on environmental research in areas with potash mining planned.
Kubota continues expansion in Thilawa
Japanese agricultural equipment firm Kubota is set to construct a machinery assembly plant in the Thilawa, according to Japanese financial journal Nikkei Asian Review. The move continues the company’s expansion in the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) at Thilawa port, located some 25 kilometres southeast of Rangoon.
Krabi power plant ‘will have little environmental impact’
THE COAL-FIRED power plant and coal transport pier planned for Krabi province will have only a small environmental impact on the area, according to some researchers. A study of possible effects from the power plant and Klong Rua coal transport pier was funded by the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat). The findings were disclosed at a press conference hosted by the Institute for Population and Social Research and Egat at Mahidol University on Monday.
HAGL pact hailed as a ‘good step’
A landmark agreement between Vietnamese plantation firm Hoanh Anh Gia Lai and three indigenous communities in Ratanakkiri was reached yesterday, prompting hope for an amicable conclusion to the years-long dispute.
China-built dam in Cambodia set to destroy livelihoods of 45,000
The thump of jackhammers and the whine of drills pierce the air, workmen in orange safety hats beaver away and a massive concrete wall rises slowly above the river. Here, in lush northeastern Cambodia, the US$800 million Lower Sesan 2 Dam stands as a potent symbol of China’s growing reach, and Beijing’s ambitious plans to expand its influence across Asia by building desperately needed infrastructure.
Work starts on Nghi Son 2 thermal power plant
Construction began on the Nghi Son 2 Thermal Power Plant at the Nghi Son Economic Zone in the central province of Thanh Hoa on September 18. The plant is being built at a total cost of 2.3 billion USD, with 25 percent contributed by a joint venture between Japan’s Marubeni Group and the Republic of Korea Electric Power Corporation (Kepco) and the remaining coming from foreign banks.
Environment group voices concerns over Mekong dam
An environmental watchdog based in Viet Nam is asking the Laos government to reconsider the construction of a controversial hydropower plant along the Mekong River. The non-governmental organisation Viet Nam River Network issued a press release last Friday stating that the Don Sahong project, the second largest dam approved by the Laos government, would adversely affect the area.