Showing 31 - 40 of 201
Flood fixes need rethink
Oped, Editorial, Published on 29/08/2020
» When the country is faced with major floods, policymakers typically resort to the same old solutions: dams and flood dykes.
China's future depends on how it tames its rivers
Oped, Published on 11/08/2020
» The East Asian monsoon is pummelling China this summer. As of late July, flood alerts had been issued for 433 rivers, thousands of homes and businesses had been destroyed, and millions of people were on the verge of becoming homeless. The water level of Poyang Lake, China's largest freshwater lake, has risen to a record-breaking 22.6 metres, prompting authorities in the eastern province of Jiangxi (population: 45 million) to issue "wartime" measures. Chinese citizens have not been threatened with devastation on this scale in more than 20 years, and this is likely just the beginning.
Rethink 'Asia battery' plan
Oped, Editorial, Published on 30/07/2020
» Two years ago this month, the villagers of Attapeu in southern Laos encountered their worst nightmare when the Xe-Pian Xe-Namnoy hydropower dam, which was under construction, failed. Massive torrents of water swept through several villages, causing 71 deaths, heavy damage to properties and left around 7,000 homeless.
The unseen human cost of cheap power
Oped, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 29/07/2020
» On July 23, 2018, the villagers of Attapeu, a sleepy town in southern Laos, suffered their worst nightmare when the Xe-Pian Xe-Namnoy hydropower dam suddenly burst, unleashing massive torrents of water that swallowed local villages, killing 71. More than 7,000 were made homeless.
Thai-US alliance comes with new twists
News, Published on 14/07/2020
» Before General James C McConville, the Chief of Staff of the US army, was able to sign the Joint Vision Statement 2020 for the Thai-US Defence Alliance last Friday, he had to go through the stringent Covid-19 measures required under Thai law for foreign visitors.
The Mekong doesn't need more destructive dams
Oped, Published on 05/06/2020
» On 11 May, the Mekong River Commission (MRC) announced that the proposed Sanakham hydropower project in Laos will undergo the MRC's Prior Consultation process. Sanakham is the sixth mainstream dam to be submitted for Prior Consultation.
Karen fear ravages from river diversion schemes
News, Pianporn Deetes, Published on 14/03/2020
» Muesaw Chokedilok, an ethnic Karen woman from Thailand's Kaburdin Village in Chiang Mai's Omkoi district, hops aboard an old pickup truck for a rugged ride up the mountain. With her are a group of housewives from the same village, all clad in cotton handwoven clothes with beaded lace and colourful headscarves. They are on the way to meet a group of journalists from Bangkok. Their village is at least four hours by car to Muang Chiang Mai.
What might have been at Vegas summit
News, Kavi Chongkittavorn, Published on 03/03/2020
» The Asean officials preparing for the March 14 special Asean-US Summit were greatly relieved when the White House announced on Friday that the Las Vegas rendezvous would be postponed due to Covid-19 fears. Indeed, with exactly two weeks to go before the event, the Asean side was still wondering what the "deliverable milestones" of their summit were likely to be.
Dams lead to extinction
News, Editorial, Published on 08/01/2020
» Before being officially declared extinct by scientists late last month, the Chinese paddlefish, a native to the Yangtze River system, had been listed along with the Mekong giant catfish as "critically endangered" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Mekong left starving
News, Editorial, Published on 06/12/2019
» Known for its signature reddish-brown waters, the Mekong River recently turned a bright blue in some parts. Its crystal-clear water may be beautiful to look at, but this change is a symptom of a sick and starving river. For ecologists and observers, it will be too naive not to point the finger at the usual suspects -- dams.