Environment and natural resources

From baby elephants to sun bears and pangolins, escalating demand for bushmeat in towns and cities is taking an increasingly heavy toll on some of Cambodia’s most endangered wildlife.    ...

Mines Minister Suy Sem has dismissed a claim by Industry Minister Cham Prasidh, who said that villagers in Kratie province were poisoned and killed by cyanide-tainted water due to run-off from gold mines. ...

According to Gray, the snaring crisis is worst in Vietnam and Laos, but is increasing in Cambodia – where he works – as well as Myanmar, Indonesia and Thailand. In some places – even protected areas – it is so bad that scientists talk of ...

Industry Minister Cham Prasidh has said that villagers in Kratie province’s Chetr Borei district were poisoned after consuming water tainted with cyanide which was used for mining operations in Mondolkiri and Kratie province. ...

Experts from the ministry examined the water in the river of Prek Te in Kratie and found chromium and cyanide. The substances were found at various mining sites between Kratie and neighboring Mondulkiri and the ministry believed that they were improperly handled and that rain ...

The final report assessing the impact of a future dam in Kratie has claimed that the dam project could result in “killing the life” of the Mekong River. This final report said the project’s location is the worst possible for a dam and would have ...

The owner of a timber handicraft workshop and one of his workers were arrested yesterday for allegedly handling illegal luxury wood. Eam Bunly, 45, owner of the workshop in Spean Meanchey commune in Mondulkiri province, and Doeun Sokhim, 35, were detained by Sen Monorom city ...

An endangered gaur was one of “many” wild animals found dead in “dozens” of illegal traps in Pailin province’s Phnom Khieu Wildlife Sanctuary, said Chit Thy, a military officer working with rangers to protect the conservation area, on Wednesday. ...

Contaminated water from a river in Kratie province has been blamed in the deaths of at least 10 ethnic Phnong people as of late Sunday, with nearly 140 others hospitalised and hundreds more families fleeing their homes for fear their ancestors are “angry” at them, ...

Contradicting measurements showing pollutant levels exceeding international guidelines, the Environment Ministry on Friday issued a statement claiming “there is no serious air pollution yet” in Phnom Penh. ...

Kampong Speu Military Police, along with Wild-life Alliance experts, on Wednesday cracked down on a home in Chech village where they confiscated nearly 20 kilograms of live wild animals, officials said on Thursday. ...

Apsara Authority officials and local police yesterday completed a three-day investigation into illegal logging on Angkor Archaeological Park grounds, noting that one man was detained and released after signing a contract to stop cutting trees. ...

Ministry of Environment rangers will soon receive training from experts with the US Forest Service in a bid to improve their ability to crack down on forest crimes and protect conservation areas. US Forest Service officials on Tuesday met with Environment Minister Say Sam Al ...

A group of villagers from a community forest inside Preah Vihear province’s Phnom Tnout Wildlife Sanctuary are collecting thumbprints to evict a family that has been protecting the forest from illegal logging and preventing poaching of endangered species. ...

Chumnoab commune authorities in Koh Kong province have started to dismantle the Areng Valley community office despite appeals from the community to keep it. On March 21, Chumnoab commune officials advised the Areng Valley community to relocate their office because the land it was on ...

Cambodian authorities are monitoring a rogue wild elephant following a day in pursuit of the pachyderm after she trampled a number of villagers’ farmland. The female elephant was spotted on Sunday morning in Oddar Meanchey’s Dangrek Mountains – a rare sighting, according to Banteay Ampil ...

The World Wildlife Fund said that the Irrawaddy dolphin population increased by ten percent in 2017 when compared to data obtained in 2015, but the animal advocate remains concerned about threats that continue in the habitat of the dolphins. ...

The government will “take back” land on roughly 30 islands from private companies that have not made progress on planned developments, Prime Minister Hun Sen said in a speech on Monday that also targeted land-grabbing villagers and idle provincial governors. ...

A new marine protected area has been established off the coast of Kep province to protect biodiversity and prevent illegal fishing, officials said on Sunday. A directive by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries officially established the marine fisheries management area, which spans more ...

Eight environmental organisations yesterday asked the government to take immediate action against loggers and land speculators in a wildlife sanctuary in Preah Vihear province, worrying that more land will be encroached upon. ...

Kratie provincial authorities were searching on Wednesday for the owners of hundreds of cubic metres of first-grade timber found loaded onto seven heavy trucks during a raid on a warehouse in Snuol district. After getting a tip-off, Military Police, police, Forestry Administration and court officials ...

An endangered banteng died of wounds inflicted by a hunter’s snare on Saturday as an attempt to rescue it was mounted weeks after it was first spotted injured in a Kampong Speu community forest. A patrol team in the Bram Beymom Community forest in Thpong ...

An environmental ranger and a community forest member on Tuesday were released from prison under court supervision following their brief detention after allegedly firing at a suspect hauling timber within a protected area supported by the Maddox Jolie-Pitt Foundation in Battambang province. ...

The sustainable development of water and related resources in the Mekong River Basin is at a crucial stage and as member countries of the Mekong River Commission meet this week in Siem Reap, Chheang Vannarith argues that a code of conduct is now vital to ...