BLOG
Thais Fear Water Conflict As New Industrial Boom Takes Off
May 2nd, 2021
Via Channel News Asia, a report on how – while a new industrial boom is bringing high-tech investments to eastern Thailand – this drought-prone landscape may not have enough water to go around: As Thailand embarks on an ambitious industrialisation drive along its eastern seaboard, local communities and conservationists fear a brewing war over water. The Eastern […]
Read more »Trouble Brews in South-East Asia as Thailand Rejects Laotian Dam Report
February 3rd, 2021
Via Future Directions International, a report on growing concerns around the environmental and economic viability of damming the Mekong River: On 15 January, a Chinese contractor for the planned Sanakham Dam in Laos submitted a revised technical report to the Thai National Mekong River Committee, in the hopes of reducing concerns surrounding the controversial project. According to […]
Read more »In the Face of Criticism, Laos Pushes Ahead With Four Mekong Dams
January 15th, 2021
Via The Diplomat, a report on Laos’ plan to push ahead with four Mekong dams but whose costs and competition could leave the putative “battery of Southeast Asia” running on empty: As a struggling least developed country, Laos stands alone when it comes to ignoring common sense and pushing ahead with infrastructure development that it can […]
Read more »The Thirsty Dragon: China Belatedly Notifies Mekong Nations of River Disruption
January 9th, 2021
Via The Diplomat, an article on China’s belated notification to other Mekong nations of a river disruption: Earlier this week, I wrote about the sudden drop in water levels along the Mekong River in northern Thailand, and their likely link to the filling of a dam reservoir upstream in China. The fall first became apparent on January 4, […]
Read more »The Thirsty Dragon: Mekong Levels Reportedly Plummet Due to Chinese Dam Activity
January 6th, 2021
Via The Diplomat, an article on Chinese dam withdrawals on the Mekong: Water levels on the Mekong River have fallen due to the filling of a Chinese dam on the upper reaches of the river in Yunnan province, according to locals and river monitors. The fall was reported on January 4, when locals in the […]
Read more »US Launches Mekong Dam Monitor to Provide a More Holistic View of the River
December 16th, 2020
Via Future Directions International, a report on the launch of the Mekong Dam Monitor which is likely to place further pressure on Beijing to provide timely, accurate and robust hydrological data on water levels and dam operations on the Mekong River: After China promised to provide uninterrupted access to hydrological data on the Mekong River, […]
Read more »