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| A picture taken on March 25, 2011 in the area of Myanmar's northeastern city of Tachilek shows large cracks running along a road a day after an earthquake struck the area. (AFP) |
Saturday, Mar 26, 2011
Saigon Giai Phong (Vietcong communist party)
Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Thailand have agreed to convene a special session on the prior consultation process for Laos’ controversial proposed Xayaburi hydropower dam on the Mekong River before determining how they should proceed with the proposal, the Mekong River Commission announced Friday.
The four Lower Mekong Basin countries reached this decision at the 33rd MRC Joint Committee Meeting in Cambodia’s Preah Sihanouk Province on Mar. 24-26.
They agreed that they would join with the intent to seek a conclusion at the newly-scheduled meeting on April 21, 2011, said the MRC – the inter-governmental body responsible for cooperation on the sustainable management of the Mekong Basin.
The Xayaburi project, proposed by the Lao Government, falls under the MRC’s Procedures for Notification, Prior Consultation and Agreement (PNPCA) process, which require the four countries come together with the aim of reaching a conclusion on the proposal within six months of its submission. The deadline for the end of this formal process is April 22, 2011.
The Xayaburi project, designed to generate power for consumption in Thailand and Laos, is tabled for consideration, among other management, organizational and procedures-related matters, at this internal meeting.
The Joint Committee Members, comprising one senior official from each of the four countries, agree to hold a special joint committee meeting in Laos’ Vientiane to come to a conclusion on the project, according to the MRC.
Since the notification of what would be the first dam project on the mainstream of the Lower Mekong River, the countries have conducted national consultations with related stakeholders including potentially affected communities, to gauge their views and perspectives on the project.
The MRC Secretariat – the operational arm of the MRC – also commissioned a team of experts in several sectors including fisheries, sediment and dam safety design to review documents including the Environmental Impact Assessment submitted by the Lao Government to other MRC countries.
The Secretariat acts as a facilitating body for the prior consultation process.
Friday’s MRC statement said the JC Members also agreed to disclose to the public the MRC technical review which has been used by the four countries as part of their consideration of the Xayaburi project.
MRC added that the report was presented at the meeting Saturday in Preah Sihanouk Province but the member countries have not provided their official comments on it yet. Laos, as the notifying country, commented that the report is a valuable contribution to the process of considering the Xayaburi project as well as other similar development initiatives but will provide its detailed comments at a later time.
The Procedures for Notification, Prior Consultation and Agreement state that member countries must notify the MRC’s Joint Committee in the event they wish to engage in any major infrastructure developments, such as hydropower schemes, on the mainstream Mekong or tributaries, particularly as those developments may have significant trans-boundary impacts on people or the environment downstream.
The Xayaburi hydropower project would be the first such project on the Mekong mainstream downstream of China and would be capable of generating 1260 megawatts of electricity, mainly for export to Thailand.
The Xayaburi dam is located about 150 km downstream of Luang Prabang City in northern Laos. The dam has an installed capacity of 1,260 megawatts with a dam 810 m long and 32 m high and has a reservoir area of 49 km2 and live storage of 1,300 cubic metres. The developer is Ch. Karnchang Public Co. Ltd. of Thailand.
There are concerns that Xayaburi Province might be hit by an earthquake.
On the Mar. 24 night, a 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck in the east of Myanmar near the borders with Thailand and Laos and was felt as far away as the Vietnamese capital Hanoi. The powerful earthquake killed 74 people in Myanmar and one in Thailand, according to officials from the two countries.
3 comments:
Koh Tral Island must not be forgotten
By Ms. Rattana Keo
Why do Koh Tral Island, known in Vietnam as Phu Quoc, a sea and land area covering proximately over 10,000 km2 [Note: the actual land size of Koh Tral itself is 574 square kilometres (222 sq miles)] have been lost to Vietnam by whose treaty? Why don’t Cambodia government be transparent and explain to Cambodia army at front line and the whole nation about this? Why don't they include this into education system? Why?
Cambodian armies are fighting at front line for 4.6 km2 on the Thai border and what's about over 10,000km2 of Cambodia to Vietnam. Nobody dare to talk about it! Why? Cambodian armies you are decide the fate of your nation, Cambodian army as well as Cambodian people must rethink about this again and again. Is it fair?
Koh Tral Island, the sea and land area of over 10,000 square kilometres have been lost to Vietnam by the 1979 to 1985 treaties. The Cambodian army at front line as well as all Cambodian people must rethink again about these issues. Are Cambodian army fighting to protect the Cambodia Nation or protecting a very small group that own big lands, big properties or only protecting a small group but disguising as protecting the Khmer nation?
The Cambodian army at front lines suffer under rain, wind, bullets, bombs, lack of foods, lack of nutrition and their families have no health care assistance, no securities after they died but a very small group eat well, sleep well, sleep in first class hotel with air conditioning system with message from young girls, have first class medical care from oversea medical treatments, they are billionaires, millionaires who sell out the country to be rich and make the Cambodian people suffer everyday.
Who signed the treaty 1979-1985 that resulted in the loss over 10,000 km2 of Cambodia??? Why they are not being transparent and brave enough to inform all Cambodians and Cambodian army at front line about these issues? Why don't they include Koh Tral (Koh Tral size is bigger than the whole Phom Phen and bigger than Singapore [Note: Singapore's present land size is 704 km2 (271.8 sq mi)]) with heap of great natural resources, in the Cambodian education system?
Look at Hun Sen's families, relatives and friends- they are billionaires, millionaires. Where did they get the money from when we all just got out of war with empty hands [in 1979]? Hun Sen always say in his speeches that Cambodia had just risen up from the ashes of war, just got up from Year Zero with empty hands and how come they are billionaires, millionaires but 90% of innocent Cambodian people are so poor and struggling with their livelihood every day?
Smart Khmer girl Ms. Rattana Keo,
C'est la folie !
construire le barrage en stoppant le cours de Mékong , au Laos en amont de Tonlésap.
Le catastrophe nous attend .
Côté vietnamien n'est pas mieux , pour le Delta , pour la culture du riz.Les laotiens ne doivent pas accepter ces projets ! Pour 1200 mw électriques pour la compagnie thai , ils sont prêts à détruire combien de millions de gens qui dépendent du Mekong.Les faunes et flores que crée le Mekong seront détruits .
Quand le bassin Tonlésap sera sec , qu'est -ce qu'on va attendre de ce désastre.
Les gouvernements de ces 4 pays ( Laos , Thailande , Cambodge , Vietnam ) ne doivent pas accepter cette construction .
Ces compagnies de construction ne voient que l'intérêt à court terme .
On doit appeler la population de ces pays que traverse le Mékong , boycotter cette construction .
Pour ceux qui aime le Mekong doit se mobiliser et empêcher son gouvernement de réaliser ce barrage.
Mobilisons nous , contre la construction Xayaburi !
and they still want to build the dams there! the earthquake will break them apart; they are in they earthquake prone zone, the so-called ring of fire in burma country!
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