Planned Mekong dams need environmental assessment
The Cambodian government’s plan to build 20 dams along the Mekong River, with a view to boosting energy security, could harm food security and biodiversity in the region, as well as ignite a regional conflict over sharing of the river’s water, a conference has heard. But, the energy from the dams is badly needed in the country where most people have no reliable access to electricity, said Chhun Khunvirya, assistant project manager at the state-owned Cambodian electricity agency, Electricite Du Cambodge (EDC). The project needs an integrated assessment on its impacts on the environment, according to Khunvirya who presented the findings from his research project — a ‘Study on Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) for Hydropower Development in Cambodia’ — at the 6th Annual International Ecosystem Services Partnership conference in Bali, Indonesia, last week (26-30 August). … Khunvirya said constructing numerous dams on the river is likely to affect the conservation of freshwater fish — the main source of protein for South-East Asian countries in the Mekong region. … The Cambodian government plans to start building the first dam later this year, and to complete all 20 by 2030. …
SciDev.Net News Staff
http://www.scidev.net/asia-pacific/water/news/planned-mekong-dams-need-environmental-assessment.html
