Environment and natural resources policy and administration

Inspired by Australian mining regulations, the Cambodian government is considering a raft of changes to the mineral resources mining law, including a rethink of the sector’s comparatively high tax rate. Citing discussions held with Western Australia state mining industry representatives last week, Meng Saktheara, secretary of ...

An onshore prawn farming project using water known as “third water” developed by Toshimasa Yamamoto, associate professor at Okayama University of Science, will start in August in a mountain village in Cambodia, Japan’s Jiji Press reported. Aquaculture on land is expected to improve nutrition and alleviate ...

Cambodia’s exports of protected rosewood and other high-value timber to China more than tripled last year, according to U.N. figures cited in a new report that blames lax law enforcement across the Mekong region and skyrocketing demand in China for pushing some species to the ...

Customs officials over the weekend said they will shed no further light on Friday’s massive haul of three tons of illegal elephant ivory at Sihanoukville Autonomous Port—Cambodia’s biggest-ever ivory seizure—until investigations are complete and a case can be sent to court. A scan on containers that ...

More than 200 villagers from three communes in Svay Rieng province on Saturday protested against a proposal to build a huge irrigation canal through their land, a local official said Sunday. The planned canal would stretch across Kraol Kor, Svay Yea and Chhoeuteal communes in Svay ...

A meeting at the Ministry of Mines and Energy on Friday about plans for a controversial hydropower dam in Koh Kong province failed to assuage fears among those trying to stop the project that construction had already been approved. During Friday’s meeting, officials from the ministry ...

The Ministry of Mines and Energy invited the head of an NGO battling to stop construction of a highly criticized dam in a remote area of Koh Kong province to meet with ministry officials Friday. Signed by Mines Minister Suy Sem and dated April 25, the ...

About 30 villagers in Phnom Penh’s Meanchey district staged a protest Tuesday morning against tycoon Sok Kong, whom they accuse of piping dredged sand into their farmland and fishing ponds. Fourteen families occupying 21 hectares of land in Prek Pra commune have been locked in a ...

A little more than two years after signing off on a scheme aimed at improving protection of the critically endangered Irrawaddy dolphin, experts said last week they were concerned that Mekong dams would see wholesale destruction of the population. During a two-day workshop that closed on ...

Small and medium-size enterprises (SME) have been urged by the Cambodian government to employ more environmentally friendly practices at a green industry workshop in Phnom Penh yesterday. Cham Prasidh, minister for the Ministry of Industry and Handicrafts, said SMEs and handicraft producers’ reliance on fossil fuels ...

Nearly two years have passed since Cambodia’s leading forestry activist, Chut Wutty, was gunned down in the Cardamom Mountains. After a long wait, more than 100 activists, supporters and monks will finally make the pilgrimage on Saturday to the spot where he was killed to pay ...

អង្គការ​ការពារ​ធនធាន​ធម្មជាតិ​ឈ្មោះ ក្លូបប៊ល វីតណែស្ស (Global Witness = GW) ចាត់​ទុក​កម្ពុជា ថា​ជា​ប្រទេស​មួយ​ដែល​មាន​សកម្មជន​ការពារ​បរិស្ថាន និង​ដីធ្លី​ជាច្រើន​ត្រូវ​បាន​គេ​សម្លាប់។ ស្ថាប័ន​អន្តរជាតិ​មួយ​នេះ អំពាវនាវ​ឲ្យ​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​ចាត់​វិធាន​ការ​ឲ្យ​បាន​តឹងរ៉ឹង ដើម្បី​បញ្ឈប់​ការ​គំរាម​កំហែង​នានា​ទៅ​លើ​សកម្មជន​ការពារ​បរិស្ថាន និង​ដីធ្លី។ នៅ​ក្នុង​របាយការណ៍​សិក្សា​ចុះ​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​១៥ ខែ​មេសា ឆ្នាំ​២០១៤ អង្គការ​ក្លូបប៊ល វីតណែស្ស បាន​ផ្តល់​ចំណាត់​ថ្នាក់​ដល់​កម្ពុជា ស្ថិត​ក្នុង​លំដាប់​លេខ​៩ ក្នុង​ចំណោម​ប្រទេស​ទាំងអស់​ចំនួន​៣៥ ដែល​មាន​សកម្មជន​ការពារ​បរិស្ថាន និង​ដីធ្លី ត្រូវ​បាន​គេ​សម្លាប់។ ក្នុង​ចំណោម​ប្រទេស​ទាំង​៣៥ នោះ ប្រទេស​ដែល​សកម្មជន​ការពារ​បរិស្ថាន និង​ដីធ្លី​ត្រូវ​បាន​គេ​សម្លាប់​ច្រើន​ជាង​គេ រួម​មាន​ប្រទេស​ប្រេស៊ីល (Brazil) ប្រទេស​ហុងឌុយរ៉ាស់ (Honduras) ប្រទេស​ហ្វីលីពីន (Philippines) ប្រទេស​ប៉េរូ (Peru) និង​ប្រទេស​កូឡុំប៊ី (Columbia)។ ចំណែក​ប្រទេស​កម្ពុជា ជាប់​ចំណាត់​ថ្នាក់​លេខ​៩ គឺ​នៅ​ពី​ក្រោយ​ប្រទេស​ម៉ិចស៊ិក (Mexico) ហ្គាតេម៉ាឡា (Guatemala) និង​ប្រទេស​ថៃ (Thailand)។ ...

Scientists have discovered a new phenomenon in the skies above Southeast Asia: a huge, invisible hole in the atmosphere’s lowest layer that may exacerbate the effects of Cambodia’s climate change. The hole – roughly twice the length of New Zealand and concentrated just east of the ...

The National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM) said Tuesday that it needs an additional $217 million from donors and NGOs to help recovery efforts from the floods of September and October 2013. A document accompanying the Post-Flood Early Recovery Needs Assessment Report, prepared by the ...

Police in Kandal province’s Koh Thom district seized a shipment of live pythons en route to market in Vietnam on Friday, arresting the accused smuggler and turning the snakes over to conservation group Wildlife Alliance, police said yesterday. ...

A man was seriously injured on Saturday by an anti-personnel landmine that exploded under him as he tried to sneak across the Thai-Cambodian border to illegally log rosewood, local officials said. [O’Smach commune chief] Mr. [Phang] Sam Ath said the border area where the men ...

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen flew Friday to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam to attend the second Summit of the Mekong River Commission (MRC), which will be held on Saturday. The premier was accompanied by Minister of Water Resources and Meteorology Lim Kean Hor, Environment Minister ...

Cambodia will probably call for a moratorium on the Laos’ 260-megawatt Don Sahong dam development project on the lower Mekong River during the second Summit of the Mekong River Commission (MRC), to be held on April 4 and 5 in Ho Chi Minh City of ...

The Areng Chorng ethnic minority group yesterday submitted five petitions – addressed to the UN office in Cambodia and four government institutions – seeking a halt to the Sinohydro dam project in Koh Kong province. After blocking Sinohydro from entering the dam site in the Areng ...

Two major conservation groups yesterday said that the proposed Stung Cheay Areng dam in Koh Kong province should be scrapped, while protesters who have blocked developer Sinohydro Group from entering the site for several days headed to Phnom Penh to voice their concerns and discontent. Conservation ...

In anticipation of a regional summit this weekend, government officials and civil society have their sights locked on a controversial hydropower development just across the Cambodian border in Laos. NGO Forum submitted an open letter yesterday urging Prime Minister Hun Sen to confront Laos about its ...

Smugglers sank two boats filled with illegally logged rosewood into Koh Kong’s Sre Ambel River as they shook off pursuing rangers from Wildlife Alliance on March 22, the NGO has said. An anonymous informant tipped off rangers in Sre Ambel district to the boats, allegedly filled ...

Siem Reap Provincial Court on Wednesday charged four soldiers from the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF) with illegally logging rosewood and placed them in pre-trial detention, an official said. “We charged them under article 96 of the Forestry Law,” said Hok Pov, an investigating judge at ...

A growing number of red-headed Sarus cranes are reportedly flocking west from Vietnam to a protected sanctuary in Kampot province’s Kampong Trach district, and conservationists observing the trend aren’t sure why. The Tuoitrenews website reported on Saturday that unusually large numbers of the birds, which are classified as ...