Mekong body to evaluate dams – calls for better understanding of impact of hydropower

The Mekong River Commission (MRC) has emphasised the need to proceed carefully in considering dam projects on the mainstream Mekong River, as a wide ranging assessment of Mekong hydropower development begins this week.

“The Mekong River system is a highly productive and valuable, but at the same time, fragile resource,” said Jeremy Bird, Chief Executive Officer of the MRC Secretariat. “Before any decisions are made to implement mainstream hydropower schemes in the lower Mekong basin, the four lower Mekong countries have agreed to work together to cultivate a better scientific understanding of the wider development impact and to ensure that private sector proposals for new dams are guided by principles of economic, environmental and social sustainability.”

Mr. Bird’s words come as the MRC launches a strategic assessment of the proposed mainstream developments in Lao PDR, Cambodia and on the Lao-Thai border. The influence of upstream dams in China on the Lancang-Mekong River will also be included in the Strategic Environmental Assessment.

The MRC says that the effect of the global financial crisis in Southeast Asia has provided a “breathing space,” allowing the four lower Mekong countries (Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam) to take time to better assess how mainstream projects will affect people in the Mekong River basin.

While there are already 3,235 MW of electricity being generated by hydropower on Mekong tributaries - and dams with an operational capacity of 3,209 MW are under construction, what is new is the interest of the private sector in seriously considering developing hydropower schemes on the mainstream. The Mekong is one of the most active regions in the world for hydropower with eight existing or planned Mekong mainstream dams in Yunan Province in China and 11 proposed by Cambodia, Lao PDR and Thailand.

MRC member countries are committed to undergoing a formal approval process prior to any decision on building dams on the river. Projects being studied for development in the lower Mekong Basin come to the Commission for consultation.

Past studies undertaken by the MRC have shown that dams can have both a positive and negative impact, for example, MRC analysis shows that large dams in the upper Mekong basin can increase dry season flows and reduce flood levels . But at the same time the changed flow patterns can reduce fisheries yield.

More than 60 million people in the lower Mekong basin depend on the river system for food, transport and economic activity. Freshwater fisheries in the basin have a commercial value of at least US$2 billion per year, making it the world’s most valuable inland fishery. Eighty percent of the animal protein for Mekong inhabitants comes from the Mekong, with 70 percent of the commercial catch being long distance migrant species; the kind of fish species that the MRC says could be severely affected by dams on the river.

The MRC is the intergovernmental body responsible for cooperation on the sustainable management of the Mekong Basin whose members include Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam. It deals with all river related sectors including sustaining fisheries, identifying opportunities for agriculture, maintaining the freedom of navigation, flood management and preserving important ecosystems. Superimposed on these are the future effects of more extreme floods, prolonged drought and sea level rise associated with climate change. In providing its advice, MRC aims to facilitate a broad range of dialogue among governments, the private sector and civil society on these challenges.

P.O. Box 6101,
Vientiane 01000, Lao PDR.
Website: http://www.mrcmekong.org

This release was published on openPR.