Work underway on contested mega-dam: Laos official

Mekong River is so beautiful but will destroyed by dams:

Work underway on contested mega-dam: Laos official

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(AFP)

BANGKOK — Laos has begun work on a controversial multi-billion dollar dam, an official confirmed Thursday, defying objections from environmentalists in its bid to become a regional energy hub.

Construction on the main part of the $3.8 billion hydroelectric project at Xayaburi — stalled for about 18 months over concerns about its impact — formally began after Laos said it had adapted the design to assuage its neighbours’ fears.

“We started working on the river yesterday after a ground-breaking ceremony,” deputy energy minister Viraphonh Viravong told AFP, refuting a previous report that the country’s Prime Minister had said work had not begun.

The project, led by Thai group CH Karnchang, has sharply divided the four Mekong nations — Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand — who rely on the river system for fish and irrigation.

Thailand has agreed to buy most of the electricity generated by the dam, but Cambodia and Vietnam have raised fears it could ruin their farming and fishing industries.

Laos has said the project is on course to be completed by the end of 2019.

“The ambassadors of Vietnam and Cambodia were there at the ceremony yesterday,” Viraphonh said, responding to a question over whether Laos’ neighbours had complained about the official start of construction.

Communist Laos, one of the world’s most under-developed nations, believes the dam will help it become “the battery of Southeast Asia” by selling electricity to its richer neighbours.

But environmentalists say the project will be disastrous for the 60 million people who depend on the river for transportation, food and economy.

They fear Mekong fish species will become endangered as vital nutrients are trapped and dozens of species are prevented from swimming upstream to mating grounds.

Urging further study into its likely impact, Li Lifeng of the WWF conservation group on Wednesday said the region should make a stand now or “risk resting the future of the Mekong on flawed analysis… that could have dire consequences for millions of people.”

Vietnam and Cambodia have refrained from criticising the start of construction, and both have backed Laos to stick to a pledge to halt work if a negative ecological impact is detected.

Thai senators, however, were outspoken on Thursday, saying construction should be suspended for at least a decade pending further scientific studies.

“The lives of 60 million people will be wrecked and catastrophically destroyed. It is an act of sabotage to the Mekong River which is the nature’s treasure”, said Senator Prasan Marukpitak, the head of an environment subcommittee.

Copyright © 2012 AFP. All rights reserved

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Laos: pressing ahead with the Mekong dam despite concerns

Click on the link to get more news and video from original source: http://blogs.ft.com/beyond-brics/2012/11/08/laos-pressing-ahead-with-the-mekong-dam-despite-concerns/#axzz2BgeFU4Jt

by beyondbrics

November 8, 2012 11:14 am

By Jake Maxwell Watts and Nguyen Phuong LinhAs construction starts on a controversial hydropower project in Laos, it becomes clearer by the day that this poor and underdeveloped country is likely to place its ambition to be the “battery of south-east Asia” above any cost to the environment – and that price will be considerable.Construction of a large dam on the Mekong river at Xayaburi began this week despite environmental concerns, which shows a change in attitude from the government that may signal likely endorsement of other foreign-sponsored hydropower projects.

Nguyen Huu Thien, from Mekong Wetlands, a non-governmental organisation in Vietnam, said that Xayaburi would be “a very bad precedent for other decisions on this issue.” The largely Thai-funded project is the first of 11 waiting for approval. Nguyen said he expects the other dams to be approved soon.

Laos is a tiny landlocked country of just 6m with a languid Leninist government which increasingly feels it has little option but to invest in hydropower to feed its richer neighbours’ appetites for electricity and fuel its own economic growth. The World Bank calculated in 2010 that Laos could become a middle-income country if it achieved 7.5 per cent growth over the next ten years. Hydropower and mining contributed to 2.5 percentage points of the 7 per cent annual growth between 2007 and 2010, and it looks set to be even more valuable in the next decade.

The final decision to begin construction of the $3.5bn Xayaburi dam was announced on Tuesday by the Lao deputy energy minister – although the prime minister swiftly denied it – as an Asia-Europe trade summit convenes this week in the Laotian capital, Vientiane. The dam has been delayed since 2010 amid concerns that fish stocks and the livelihood of millions would be threatened on the region’s most important river, the Mekong. Environmental groups have been highly critical of research so far into the possible environmental impact, but the government appears unwilling to delay any longer.

International Rivers, a campaign group, has also expressed concern about Laos’s poor record of public sector corruption.

The Mekong River runs from China through Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam and is the largest source of freshwater fish in the world, according to the Mekong River Commission. Four dams already exist in the faster moving Upper Mekong, but the Xayaburi dam will be the first to be built in the lower area. The MRC estimated in 2011 that the full hydropower potential of the Lower Mekong Basin was over 30,000 MW (more than enough to power Bangkok) – and less than 10 per cent has been developed so far.

There has been no comment on the dam’s approval from Vietnam and Cambodia yet, which both previously opposed the project, although the Lao energy minister Viraphonh Viravong said that he could “sense that Vietnam and Cambodia now understand how we have addressed their concerns”, referring to amendments to the original plans which try to resolve some environmental issues.

The Thais, meanwhile, have reinforced their support for the project, albeit in an understated way, when the foreign minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul said on Tuesday that “the Thai government is not opposed to the project.”

The Xayaburi dam is a joint venture between Thai companies CH Karnchang, PTT and a state-owned enterprise. Thailand is expected to import around 90 per cent of the power generated by the dam when it is completed in 2019.

Despite rising demand in the region for electricity, particularly renewables, previous investments in hydropower have not always been successful. The Mun River dam in northern Thailand, on a Mekong tributary, went over-budget when it was built in the 1990s and caused widespread environmental damage for little benefit to investors.

Laos clearly has ambitions to be a regional electricity exporter and much foreign investment is being attracted for building projects, but opposition groups may find it difficult in a region where securing economic growth is a priority not easily curbed. In the immediate future, the profits may roll in for Laos, but the eventual price may be much higher.

Related reading:
Mekong river dam decision delayed, FT (2011)
Mekong dam project suffers further setback, FT (2011)

For Immediate Release: Laos Begins Work on a Second Mekong River Dam

Laos Begins Work on a Second Mekong River Dam

Click on the link to get more news and video from original source: http://www.internationalrivers.org/resources/laos-begins-work-on-a-second-mekong-river-dam-7663

Date:  Sunday, September 2, 2012

For Immediate Release: September 3, 2012

Bangkok, Thailand – The Lao government has begun work on its second hydropower project on the Mekong River, the 260-380 MW Don Sahong Dam, despite unresolved concerns with the Xayaburi Dam. In August, International Rivers visited the Don Sahong Dam site, located in Laos less than 2 km from the Cambodian border. Activities are already underway at the dam site, even though the project has not yet undergone the Mekong River Commission’s (MRC) prior consultation process, as required under the 1995 Mekong Agreement.

Ms. Pianporn Deetes, Thailand Campaign Coordinator for International Rivers, visited the Don Sahong Dam site and observed, “Villagers reported that the dam builders have already blasted a waterfall near the Don Sahong Dam site. Lao officials have told the villagers that they will not be allowed to fish with Ly fishing gear in the area beginning in 2014. The dam’s construction and the end of Ly fishing is a major concern because local people depend so heavily on fishing for their livelihoods.”

The Don Sahong Dam is being built by Malaysian company Mega First Corporation Berhad near the iconic Khone Falls of the Mekong River. According to the MRC’s 2010 Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), the dam would block the only section of the Mekong River where fish can pass during the dry season, called the Hou Sahong channel. The SEA noted that “the Don Sahong project would represent an impassable barrier to Mekong dry season fish migration.” According to local villagers, last year the project company blasted the waterfall at the Hou Xang Pheuak channel, in order to create a new 5 meter wide channel in the river that is intended to become a fish passage. Currently, fish are able to migrate through the 50-100 meter wide Hou Sahong channel year-round. The SEA report confirms that fishery experts have concluded that no fish mitigation technology exists to effectively mitigate the threat that mainstream dams, including the Don Sahong Dam, pose to the Mekong’s fisheries.

“The proposed Don Sahong Dam would spell disaster for the Mekong’s fisheries,” said Ms. Ame Trandem, Southeast Asia Program Director for International Rivers. “The dam would block vital fish migrations and decimate the livelihoods of local people who depend on fish for their food security. Like the Xayaburi Dam, the impacts would be transboundary.”

In May, Mega First announced that the Don Sahong Dam’s environmental impact assessment had been approved by the Lao government and that it was close to signing a power purchase agreement with the government for a 30 year concession.  The environmental impact assessment has not been publicly disclosed. According to an evaluation of potential impacts of mainstream hydropower dams on Mekong fisheries published by the MRC in 1994, the Khone Falls area was described as “an ecologically unique area that is essentially a microcosm of the entire lower Mekong River,” and pointed out that “Such a site is so rare in nature that every effort should be made to preserve all of Khone Falls [Siphandone] from any development.”

“We can already see Laos repeating the same tricks that it has used with the Xayaburi Dam,” said Ms. Deetes. “This is going to happen again and again until the MRC governments decide to take action. Before time runs out, it’s crucial that the MRC governments, secretariat, and donors call for an immediate stop to activities at both dam sites.”“As we have seen with the Xayaburi Dam, the Lao government will undoubtedly claim that the blasting of the Hou Xang Pheuak channel for the Don Sahong Dam is only ‘preparatory work’ that does not require consultations with neighboring countries, despite its environmental impacts,” said Ms. Trandem. “In reality, all activities that can harm the river must first be approved by the MRC, including channel excavation work.”

Media contacts:

• Pianporn Deetes, Thailand Campaign Coordinator, International Rivers,  Telephone: +66 81 422 0111, Email: pai@internationalrivers.org
• Ame Trandem, Southeast Asia Program Director, International Rivers, Telephone: +66 86 882 2426, Email: ame@internationalrivers.org

More information:

• View photos of the Don Sahong site
• Click here for more information on the Don Sahong Dam.

The proposed Don Sahong Hydropower Project is located on the Mekong River’s mainstream in the Khone Falls area (also known as Siphandone) of southern Laos, less than 2 km upstream of the Laos-Cambodia border. The Don Sahong Dam would create a barrier across the Hou Sahong channel that would be between 30 and 32 meters high and generate between 260-380 MW of electricity, mainly for export to Thailand or Cambodia. The project’s developer is Mega First Corporation Berhad of Malaysia (MFCB).  U.S. company AECOM carried out the project’s environmental impact assessment and is serving as the Owner’s Engineer.

Like the Xayaburi Dam, the project must first undergo the prior consultation process of the Mekong River Commission before it can go forward. The prior consultation process, under the Procedures for Notification, Prior Consultation and Agreement (PNPCA), requires the Lao government to consult with the governments of Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam with an aim to reach a consensus on whether or not the project should proceed. With the Xayaburi project, Laos has argued that “preparatory work” does not fall within the PNPCA but has not defined what it means by this term. The MRC governments have not reached agreement on this interpretation.

In March 2006, MFCB signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of Laos to prepare feasibility studies for the project. Subsequently, in February 2008, a Project Development Agreement was signed that authorized MFCB to enter into advanced negotiations and finalize the project details with the Government of Laos and potential electricity buyers. MFCB reported that the dam’s final Environmental Impact Assessment report was approved by the Government of Laos in April 2012.

While the Don Sahong Dam’s final Environmental Impact Assessment has not yet been released to the public, the dam is expected to block the migration of many commercial fish species during the dry season. The loss of fish biomass will impact livelihoods and commercial fisheries in Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam, with repercussions for food security and the region’s economies. In the vicinity of the dam site, many families use a traditional type of wing trap fishing, called Ly, which involves setting traps to catch fish that migrate through the channels. Families can earn around $6,000 per year through Ly fishing, and have passed this traditional knowledge through generations. Villagers reported that this type of fishing will be made illegal near the dam site beginning in 2014.  According to the MRC’s Strategic Environmental Assessment, Mega First will also need to excavate approximately 1.9 million cubic meters of sediment from the riverbed of the Hou Sahong channel in order to build the dam, the equivalent of 95,000 truckloads. The excavation would require the use of dynamite or explosives, which would also have a devastating impact on fish habitats and the river’s ecosystem.  Furthermore, the dam risks jeopardizing the last remaining population of Irrawaddy dolphins in Laos, as well as diverting water from the spectacular Khone Phapheng waterfall, undermining the area’s increasing popularity as a tourist destination.

The blasting by Mega First reportedly took place late last year on the Hou Xang Pheuak channel, in order to destroy a waterfall and build a 5 meter wide channel for fish to pass through year-round, as an attempt to create an alternative to the 50 to 100 meter wide Hou Sahong channel. Local villagers are forbidden from fishing in this new channel.

Guilty as the Getaway Driver? Thailand and the Xayaburi Dam

 

Click on the link to get more news and video from original source:  http://www.internationalrivers.org/en/blog/kirk-herbertson/2011-12-5/guilty-getaway-driver-thailand%E2%80%99s-role-xayaburi-dam

 

Mon, 12/05/2011 – 12:40am

By:

Kirk Herbertson

On December 7-8th, the governments of Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam will meet and are likely to decide if the controversial Xayaburi Dam will go forward. The dam would be located in Laos, but would cause significant harm in Cambodia and Vietnam – so who takes the blame? The dam would drastically reduce the number of fish that are able to migrate upstream to their breeding grounds, depriving people in the region of an essential source of food and jobs. It would also prevent nutrients from traveling downstream to farmers who grow rice and other crops in Cambodia and the Mekong River Delta.

Thailand’s fingerprints are all over the dam

Laos is intent on building the dam, the first of nine it envisions for the Mekong River. But Thailand is also a major accomplice in the Xayaburi Dam controversy. Not only does Thailand plan to purchase 95% of the dam’s electricity, but Thai companies are building the dam and four Thai banks will finance the project. Without Thailand’s help, the Xayaburi Dam would not exist.

When a bank robbery is committed, everyone who planned the heist can be held responsible. The judge will not only punish the person who held the gun, but also the getaway driver and anyone else who played a role. This is an important analogy going into this week’s meeting.

Thailand is busy designing the dam, building the dam, paying for it, and deciding how to use its electricity. This is the equivalent of planning the bank robbery, putting together the gang, buying the guns, driving the getaway car, and keeping most of the loot.

Who takes the blame?

As reported in the Bangkok Post on December 1st, however, Thailand’s Minister of Natural Resources and Environment announced that “Laos has the right to construct the dam as it is located inside Lao territory. We will not oppose the project. But if there are any environmental impacts, the Lao government must take responsibility.”

Thailand is deflecting responsibility for the impacts of the dam, even though it will reap many of the benefits. This position is not at all consistent with international law. The Mekong River Basin is a shared resource among the four countries, and the Xayaburi Dam’s harmful impacts will cross borders into Cambodia and Vietnam. Although the dam would be located in Laos, the decision lies well within Thailand’s control. Thailand could still be “guilty” if the Xayaburi Dam proceeds.

Law applies to governments, too

Two recent analyses by U.S. law firm Perkins Coie explain the legal obligations of the Mekong governments under international environmental law and the 1995 Mekong Agreement. All four governments have the following obligations, among others, going into the December 7-8th meeting:

• The 1995 Mekong Agreement commits all four governments to cooperate on use of the river basin in a mutually beneficial way. This also prohibits the countries from using the Mekong River in a way that would harm other countries.
• The International Court of Justice recognizes that under international law, governments have a duty to prevent transboundary harm and to conduct a transboundary environmental impact assessment if the project could significantly impact a shared resource. So far, no transboundary impact assessment has been conducted.
• The Convention on Biological Diversity obligates the governments to protect the biodiversity and endangered species of the Mekong, which would be seriously threatened by the dam. Dozens of migratory fish species are at risk.
• If the dam goes forward, and Cambodia and Vietnam want to seek compensation for harm caused, they have a strong case against both Laos and Thailand.

The stakes are high for the coming week. Ideally, the four governments will think about the future of the Mekong River Basin and will fulfill their obligations under international law. The right decision is to recognize that a healthy Mekong River could benefit all of the region’s citizens for generations to come.

• Kirk Herbertson’s blog

20,000 People Call on Mekong Govts to Cancel Xayaburi Dam

For immediate release

November 30, 2011

Media Contacts:
Pianporn Deetes, Thailand Campaign Coordinator, International Rivers, +66 81 422 0111, pai@internationalrivers.org
Sor.Rattanamanee Polkla, Lawyer for the Community Resources Centre, +66 81 772 5843
Ame Trandem, Southeast Asia Program Director, International Rivers, +855 92 569 113, ame@internationalrivers.org

More Than 20,000 People Call on Mekong Governments to Cancel the Xayaburi Dam

U.S. Senate Committee Calls for Delay in Xayaburi Dam

Bangkok, Thailand – 22,589 people from 106 countries submitted an international petition today to the Prime Ministers of Laos and Thailand, calling for cancellation of the proposed Xayaburi Dam on the Mekong River in Northern Laos. The petition comes one week before the four Mekong governments meet on December 8th in Siem Reap, Cambodia, where they are likely to decide whether to proceed with the project.

The Xayaburi Dam is the first of eleven dams proposed for the Lower Mekong River. The petition expresses grave concern about the future of the Lower Mekong Basin, and urges the Prime Ministers to cancel the project and defer all decisions on Mekong dams for a period of at least ten years, until further studies can be conducted. The petition was presented to Thailand’s Government House and the Lao Embassy in Bangkok on Wednesday.

“The people of Southeast Asia and concerned citizens around the world have once again voiced their opposition to the Xayaburi Dam,” said Pianporn Deetes, Thailand Campaign Coordinator for International Rivers. “The whole world is watching. We do not want to remember December 8th as the day the Mekong died.”

The petition comes a day after the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee unanimously approved a resolution by Senator Jim Webb calling for the protection of the Mekong River Basin and for delaying mainstream dam construction along the river. The resolution calls for the U.S. Government to allocate more funding to help identify sustainable alternatives to mainstream hydropower dams and to analyze the impacts of proposed development along the river.

“The Committee’s adoption of this resolution sends a timely signal of U.S. support for the Mekong River Commission’s efforts to preserve the ecological and economic stability of Southeast Asia,” Senator Webb, chair of the Senate East Asian and Pacific Affairs Subcommittee, said in a statement. “The United States and the global community have a strategic interest in preserving the health and well-being of the more than 60 million people who depend on the Mekong River.”

Although Laos is proposing the dam, Thailand is also playing a key role as investor, project developer, and purchaser of 95% of the dam’s electricity. The petition calls on the government of Thailand to cancel its plans to purchase electricity from the Xayaburi Dam and any other Mekong Mainstream Dams.

“Laos has a duty under international law to provide enough information about the regional impacts of the Xayaburi project to allow its neighbors to make an informed decision, but it has yet to do so,” said Sor.Rattanamanee Polkla, a lawyer for the Community Resources Centre in Thailand and a member of Mekong Legal Network. “Moreover, Thailand, as the primary beneficiary of the dam, should be equally responsible for providing more information about the project’s impacts. Under international best practice, Thailand should assess all energy options before deciding to dam a river of such importance for millions of people’s livelihoods, in line with the recommendations of the Strategic Environmental Assessment sponsored by the Mekong River Commission.”

“Through this petition, the international community has spoken out against the Xayaburi Dam as this is a river of global significance,” said Guadalupe Rodriguez, a member of the German-based organization Rettet den Regenwald (Rainforest Rescue), and one of the sponsors of the petition. “We cannot allow a privileged few to trade away the biodiversity and ecosystems that feed millions, as it would spark tension in the region.”

At a meeting in April, the governments of Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam raised concerns about the Xayaburi Dam’s transboundary impacts and recommended further study and public consultations. The four governments could not agree on a solution, and elevated the decision to a ministerial meeting now scheduled for December 7-8.

More information:

• Full text of the petition
• Senator Webb’s press release and text of the Senate Resolution

–30–

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Tel: +1 510 848 1155 | Fax: +1 510 848 1008 | info@internationalrivers.org | www.internationalrivers.org

Conservationists: Work underway on controversial Mekong River dam

View Original Source:  http://worldblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/08/04/7251210-conservationists-work-underway-on-controversial-mekong-river-dam

By Miranda Leitsinger, Senior Writer and Editor, msnbc.com
August 5th, 2011

Johan Frijns / International Rivers

A July 23 visit to the site of the proposed Xayaburi Dam has revealed that construction on the dam’s access road and work camp is forging ahead despite an agreement by the four lower Mekong countries to defer a decision on the project earlier this year.

Conservationists say work on a controversial hydropower dam on the Mekong River is underway in Laos even though that Southeast Asian nation had deferred a decision on whether the project should go ahead in face of strong opposition from neighboring countries earlier this year.

Construction on the Xayaburi Dam’s access road and work camp is moving ahead, International Rivers, which campaigns to protect rivers, said in a statement about a visit to the site made on July 23 by a researcher unaffiliated with their group who wished to remain anonymous. Some land has been cleared, but the owners had not received compensation, International Rivers said.

The Bangkok Post on Sunday reported that their correspondents in early April had “found major road works under construction” in the area surrounding the proposed dam and “villagers preparing to be relocated” — with some told they would get about $15 in compensation. International Rivers believe the work in late July was a continuation of that process, said Aviva Imhof, the California-based group’s campaigns director.

“By building this dam, Laos is disregarding its regional commitments and robbing the future of millions of people in the region who rely upon the river for their livelihood and food security,” said Ame Trandem, Southeast Asia program director for International Rivers.

The dam — the first of 11 proposed in the waterway’s lower basin — would generate 1,260 megawatts of electricity, mostly for export to Thailand, according to the Mekong River Commission (MRC) — created by Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam in 1995 to oversee sustainable development along the waterway.

Laos proposed building the dam in September 2010, the main goal being to generate “foreign exchange earnings for financing socio-economic development in Lao PDR,” according to the river commission.

Under earlier agreements, Laos has the right to proceed on its own without approval of the other three nations. But Laos’ choice in late April to defer a decision appeared to indicate that the desperately poor country wants its neighbors’ support, especially that of Vietnam, which is a major trading partner and political patron.

Conservationists warn that the dam could significantly reduce the critical fish stock in the Mekong, the world’s most productive inland fishery.

The 3,000-mile river, which winds from China’s Tibetan Plateau through Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam, is home to nearly 1,000 freshwater fish species — including more species of giant fish, such as the Mekong giant catfish and the dog-eating catfish, than any other river. It provides a total harvest of about 2.5 million metric tons a year worth up to $6.5 billion, according to fish biologist Zeb Hogan, a research professor at the University of Nevada, Reno, who has studied the river for 15 years.

About two-thirds of the population of the lower Mekong Basin — or 40 million people — are involved in the Mekong’s fishery at least part-time or seasonally, the MRC said.

At the MRC meeting in late April, Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam raised concerns about “gaps in technical knowledge and studies about the project, predicted impact on the environment and livelihoods of people in the Mekong Basin and the need for more public consultations,” the commission said in a statement.

Vietnam proposed that this project — and other hydropower projects planned for the Mekong mainstream — be delayed for at least 10 years.

“The deferment should be positively seen as a way to provide much-needed time for riparian governments to carry out comprehensive and more specific quantitative studies on all possible cumulative impacts,” Le Duc Trung, head of Vietnam’s delegation, said in the MRC statement.

Laos disagreed, saying it was not practical to extend the process and argued that the dam would not have a negative environmental impact on its neighbors.

The four countries were to meet in Phnom Penh on Friday to discuss the next steps in the decision-making process for the dam, but the meeting was postponed indefinitely on Tuesday, International Rivers said.

The Laos-based MRC did not immediately respond to an e-mail seeking comment on the ongoing construction and the postponed meeting was not immediately responded to. In late June, an MRC spokesman, Surasak Glahan, said that Laos had engaged consultants to conduct studies to address concerns raised by Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand about the dam.