Villagers fish on the Srepok River in Stung Treng province. A report this week says dams and mining are polluting the river. (Photo by: Daniel Lanctot)Wednesday, 30 December 2009
Vong Sokheng
The Phnom Penh Post
SEVERAL thousand villagers living along the Sesan and Srepok rivers in Stung Treng province are facing a severe shortage of rice and clean water as a result of polluted runoff from hydropower dam developments and mine explorations, local representatives and environmental activists warned Tuesday.
“We think there are about 50,000 residents in the area, and many of them have already complained about the water becoming muddy, with red, white and blue colours,” said Tek Vannara, programme manager for the Culture and Environment Preservation Association.
A report released by the Sesan-Srepok-Sekong (3S) Rivers Protection Network on Sunday attributed the water’s pollution to hydropower dams located on the upper reaches of the Sesan, both on the Vietnamese and Cambodian sides, and added that mining activities could also be responsible for the recent spike in pollution.
“The closing and opening of the existing hydro-dams in Vietnam, the ongoing construction of other dams, together with gold-mining explorations and other mining activities of companies upstream, both in Vietnam and Cambodia, have caused the current pollutions of the Sesan and Srepok rivers,” the report stated.
Bai Thong Nhuth, a representative of communities living along the two rivers, said the Sesan has been muddy since October, whereas the Srepok’s waters started getting dirty last November. He said he has already submitted an appeal for intervention to local authorities.
“There could be serious consequences for communities along the rivers because they use the water for drinking and cooking. We are worried that epidemic diseases may spread,” he said, and added that at least three communes in the area face imminent relocation because they cannot access clean water.
Nou Savath, a 48-year-old villager from Bangbong village along the Sesan River, said that residents and environmental groups have noticed negative effects downstream from the Yali Falls dam, on the Vietnamese side of the border, since at least 2002.
“I have faced difficulties and uncertainties for almost seven years now. Floods of muddy water kill pigs, cows and damage rice fields every day. No one is taking responsibility for this,” Nou Savath said, adding that this year he could harvest only 30 percent of what used to be an average rice yield on his 2 hectares of land.
Hak Vimean, deputy director of the Stung Treng provincial Department of Environment, said that he has submitted a report on the matter to higher authorities.
“The muddy waters are not caused by development projects in our provincial territory. The pollution may be coming from projects upstream. We are conducting an investigation on the issue, but there is no result yet,” he said.
“We think there are about 50,000 residents in the area, and many of them have already complained about the water becoming muddy, with red, white and blue colours,” said Tek Vannara, programme manager for the Culture and Environment Preservation Association.
A report released by the Sesan-Srepok-Sekong (3S) Rivers Protection Network on Sunday attributed the water’s pollution to hydropower dams located on the upper reaches of the Sesan, both on the Vietnamese and Cambodian sides, and added that mining activities could also be responsible for the recent spike in pollution.
“The closing and opening of the existing hydro-dams in Vietnam, the ongoing construction of other dams, together with gold-mining explorations and other mining activities of companies upstream, both in Vietnam and Cambodia, have caused the current pollutions of the Sesan and Srepok rivers,” the report stated.
Bai Thong Nhuth, a representative of communities living along the two rivers, said the Sesan has been muddy since October, whereas the Srepok’s waters started getting dirty last November. He said he has already submitted an appeal for intervention to local authorities.
“There could be serious consequences for communities along the rivers because they use the water for drinking and cooking. We are worried that epidemic diseases may spread,” he said, and added that at least three communes in the area face imminent relocation because they cannot access clean water.
Nou Savath, a 48-year-old villager from Bangbong village along the Sesan River, said that residents and environmental groups have noticed negative effects downstream from the Yali Falls dam, on the Vietnamese side of the border, since at least 2002.
“I have faced difficulties and uncertainties for almost seven years now. Floods of muddy water kill pigs, cows and damage rice fields every day. No one is taking responsibility for this,” Nou Savath said, adding that this year he could harvest only 30 percent of what used to be an average rice yield on his 2 hectares of land.
Hak Vimean, deputy director of the Stung Treng provincial Department of Environment, said that he has submitted a report on the matter to higher authorities.
“The muddy waters are not caused by development projects in our provincial territory. The pollution may be coming from projects upstream. We are conducting an investigation on the issue, but there is no result yet,” he said.
14 comments:
Most of Khmer people depending on river and lake for their daily life living, fishing, drinking, farming, if they destroy these river and lakes, they destroy people's life, the same thing with Tonle Sap Lake, the waters are polluted with chemical...
Cambodian authority should keep an eyes on power boats, i've seen people changed oil on the river bank, the boat engines leaking oil all over the places and no one seem to care about stuff going into the waters..? they should report to EPA dept or something? i'm not sure they have one...
No one in Srok Khmer should be STARVING! Indeed it is a shame.
It's a environment crime to pollute the river stream people use and depend their livelihood on.
Take a look at the map of Cambodia at the merging point of Se San and Sre Pourk , Sekong in Steung Treng with the Mekong reiver. The Mekong River dark color at that location denotes the human made disaster to the environment from Vietaam, via Laos then through Cambodia.
Follow up the stream from Steung Treng, with Google map, you will see where the sources of pollution are in Vietnam.
The Google map link is :
http://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&tab=wl
See also the Down River Report by Eric Ritkow, Cori Crider, Teyler Gianninni in Ngo Forum Cambodia with the following link:
http://www.ngoforum.org.kh/Environment/Docs/mekong/Down River.pdf
Not only the dams construction for electricity production, but also the river pollution by mining activities are more deadly to environment and human livelihood. these irresponsible activities will affected not only Cambodian and lao people but inevitably Vietnamese people themselves, because Mekong River pour down last to Vietnam.
I wonder if they ever tested for mercury, because people consumed alot of fish everyday...?
The scary thing is that Vietnamese fertilizer factory being build in Srok Kien Svay...lots lots of chemical will flowing into the lake...
Yep, vietnam making sure all Khmers will die of cancer in 2012...
just look at the map where the river flow from, those countries in the upper river is responsible for polluting the water into cambodia. hello, it's not that hard to see when you study the map in detail, really. i suggest khmer people study our geography thoroughly so we know everything about our country, lands, territories, waterways, etc, etc...
Beoung Tonle Sap Lake is in great danger these days...No one seem to care about it at all? the waters are so polluted...
Don't they have people do some testing once in while..? it's easy to pour some toxic chemical in the lake..if someone really a bad person, like viet al-quiada?
Cambodia still way behind technology, they got a long way to go...
of course, but don't give up so easily, though because we all have to start somewhere somehow, really! that's just the way of life, really! some people start late, some start early and some already have been there done that, etc, really!
always learn and remember that isolation and ignorance are the real enemies of cambodia. think about it, ok!
Cambodian authority must start to do some testing on our waters?, Lake, rivers, streams, and fine$$ those who broke the law..., like illegally spill gassoline, or Toxic chemical into the Lake...especially those power boats company, they must obey the law, Tonle Sap Lake is the main water tanks for our country...
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