Southeast Asia / Campaigns

Laos

Vietnam's rivers are under threat from a massive hydropower development program. More than 30 projects are under development or at an advanced stage of planning to meet Vietnam's spiraling demand for energy. To make way for these projects, around 190,000 people will be displaced and many thousands more living downstream will be affected.

The revival of plans to build a series of dams on the Mekong River's mainstream in Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand presents a serious threat to the river's ecology and puts at risk the wellbeing of millions of people dependent on the river for food, income, transportation

How to satisfy Thailand's growing demand for power without ruining the environment, disrupting communities or causing political tensions with neighboring countries is a subject of fierce debate in Thailand, the Mekong region's economic giant.

The Bakun Dam on the Balui River in Sarawak, Malaysia, has undergone several delays relating to financing since its conception in the early 1960s and subsequent approval in 1986. Now that China Exim Bank and Sinohydro have become involved, the Bakun Dam has resumed full tilt, like many other global dam projects that are being made possible by China's far-reaching financial investments.

The Cambodian government is on the threshold of committing to an extensive hydropower program mostly with the backing of Chinese financiers and construction companies. Cambodia's free flowing rivers and abundant natural resources are invaluable assets, the health of which are vital to the well-being of Cambodia’s rural population. Poorly conceived hydropower development could irreparably damage these resources and undermine Cambodia’s sustainable development.