A river becoming a road to ruin

Dams and rock-blasting projects are destroying biodiversity and traditional cultures of the Mekong

The groans and grumbles emanating from Thai villages along the banks of the Mekong right now suggest that the river is in serious trouble. Villagers are complaining that Chinese dams upstream are causing unseasonably high and low levels that are disrupting river life.

One calamity that befell riverside villages in Chiang Rai was a swift surge of two metres in August last year. The residents, as well as environmental groups, blamed this on the opening of gates at several dams in China’s Yunnan province, including at the huge barrier in Jinhong, the capital of Xishuangbanna administrative region. In just five minutes, the river level jumped half a metre.

Read more: The Nation

By The Nation