Environment and natural resources

Authorities in Kandal province’s Sa’ang district on Monday denied the claims of some 30 families in Roka Khpos commune that there are plans to confiscate their land to construct a wastewater treatment facility, saying that long-term local residents no longer own land in the area. ...

A preah Sihanouk provincial official said on Monday that the administration would request approval from the Ministry of Environment and the National Committee for Coastal Management and Development to dismantle a Chinese casino on Koh Rong Sanloem. ...

A forestry administration chief at the Pursat provincial Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries on Monday said a couple and their six-year-old daughter had been detained for several hours over the illegal trafficking of wildlife before being released. ...

Environmental specialists are currently clearing the forest surrounding two recently discovered temples and preparing a road leading to them, Ratanakkiri provincial Department of Environment director Phon Khemerin said. ...

More than 20 families from Thma Puok district’s Phoum Thmey commune in Banteay Meanchey province have expressed their objection to a request made by a local drinking water company to pump water from a drying communal pond. They alleged that the firm had failed to ...

Minister of Interior Sar Kheng on Saturday acknowledged that there had been illegal logging in the Phnom Samkos Wildlife Sanctuary in Pursat province. Civil society groups lauded the acknowledgement and urged the authorities to immediately combat the crimes. ...

Ecosystems play an important role in sustaining not only plants and animals, but also humans. But as demands for development continue, a balance between investments and sustainability remains elusive in Ream National Park. A forest ranger is geared with a bag behind his back and a ...

Phnom Penh municipal governor Khuong Sreng on Thursday signed a research report conducted by Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) over 12 months on sewer system development at Choeung Ek lake in the capital. The move will allow Jica to design a development project. ...

A member of the Supreme Consultation Forum told The Post on Thursday that he had questioned the Ministry of Mines and Energy over its position regarding a proposed project to develop a sizeable stretch of the Mekong River. ...

The Phnom Penh Municipal Department of Environment on Thursday warned it would start imposing fines on residents who fail to dispose of rubbish properly after a campaign to raise public awareness about the law and the environment ends. ...

A Preah Sihanouk provincial official said on Thursday that the owner of Jinding Hotel and Casino on Koh Rong Sanloem is flouting the authorities’ order to close the business by March 22. Preah Sihanouk Provincial Hall spokesman Kheang Phearum told The Post that the provincial ...

The 7th Mekong River Commission (MRC) Regional Stakeholder Forum was held in Lao capital Vientiane over Monday and Tuesday, with participants discussing urgent issues facing the Mekong region, the Secretariat of the MRC has said. ...

A prominent member of the Supreme Council of Consultation is set to launch an investigation into the “dubious” ownership of a private property that allegedly encroaches on the sea in Kampot province. Sok Sovann Vathana Sabung, who is president of the Khmer Rise Party (KRP), ...

While indigenous communities in the Kingdom have largely obtained equal rights, they need to step up their advocacy when facing abuses and threats to their traditions, conservation NGO Save Cambodia’s Wildlife (SCW) said. ...

The Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology said on Tuesday it is conducting an environmental impact study after it received a proposal from Try Pheap Engineering & Construction Co Ltd to dredge the Mekong River and use the sand to develop the river bank. ...

Authorities in Battambang province have stopped some 150 residents, led by a powerful official, from planting tree saplings in the Samlot Protected Area, amid allegations that the act was merely a pretext to seize protected land for private ownership. ...

The Prey Lang Community Network (PLCN) is planning a joint patrol this month with activists from four provinces – Stung Treng, Kratie, Kampong Thom and Preah Vihear – to scout the protected area and crack down on forestry crimes. Kheng Kho, a PLCN representative in ...

Bunong indigenous residents in Dak Dam commune in Mondulkiri province’s O’Raing district have accused the authorities of ignoring the clearing of community forest land at Chrey Thom waterfall resort and a local cemetery despite repeated complaints since 2017. ...

Prek Pnov district authorities have evicted families living illegally around Boeng Tamouk lake, Phnom Penh’s largest reservoir, part of which is to be reclaimed to build a market. Sim Sophang, district administrative chief, said there will be no compensation. “There is no policy to compensate them ...

Fishermen in Kratie province on Friday found the carcass of a female Irrawaddy dolphin, weighing nearly 200 kilograms, in Kratie city. A WWF statement on Friday said that its research team, in collaboration with provincial fisheries administration officials, estimated that the marine mammal was between ...

Nearly 30 pieces of sralao and koki timber measuring 3m long and 30 to 40cm in diameter were found by locals at three sites in O’Raing district’s Dak Dam commune in Mondulkiri province on Tuesday. The timber was hidden in a forest around 1km from ...

More than 300 kakoh logs were confiscated on Monday by Ratanakkiri provincial anti-financial crime police, in cooperation with Banlung district authorities at a secret timber storage site in Yeak Loam commune’s Labo village. The logs have been handed over to local Forestry Administration officials pending legal procedures. ...

Try Pheap Engineering & Construction Co Ltd has requested permission from Prime Minister Hun Sen to pump and restore the banks of the Mekong river, according to a Council of Ministers’ letter. The restoration area in question stretches from the Kaam Samnor Cambodia-Vietnam border checkpoint ...

Cambodia’s Beng Per Wildlife Sanctuary is symbolic of the country’s poor forestry management. Around 2,000 square kilometres (sq km) – around three times the size of Singapore – is lost to illegal logging in Cambodia every year where wildlife sanctuaries – despite their name – ...