VIENTIANE, Nov. 10 (Xinhua) -- Laos is taking steps to
convince neighboring countries of the merits of the planned Don Sahong
hydropower project over Mekong River.
Lao government officials organized a site visit on Sunday
and Monday so that interested parties could see the site first-hand and get a
sense of the natural and social environment of the project area in the far
south of Champassak province, some 700 km south of Lao capital Vientiane.
The site visit was arranged after the Lao government
notified neighboring countries through the intergovernmental Mekong River
Commission (MRC) of its decision to proceed with development of the 260 MW
run-of-river dam, Lao state-run Vientiane Times online reported on Sunday.
More than 100 people are visiting the site of the 723.1
million U.S. dollars project. Plans call for the group to travel by boat to the
dam site and walk along the channels through the Siphandone area where the
Mekong River flows into Cambodia.
The visit was organized by Lao Ministry of Energy and Mines
together with the Lao National Mekong Committee and the project developer,
Malaysia's Mega First Corporation Berhad (MFCB).
Delegations from Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam and representatives
from MRC development partners, non-governmental organizations ( NGOs),
independent organizations and regional media outlets were invited to take part.
The site visit aims to demonstrate that the dam will not be
built on the Mekong mainstream, and that Laos is complying with the 1995 Mekong
Agreement on sustainable development. The aim of the visit is to provide
accurate information regarding Laos' decision to develop the project and to
gather feedback, said the report.
The main concerns of neighboring countries are fish passage
and migration through the area. Senior Environmental Manager of the Don Sahong
Hydropower Project, Peter Hawkins, said once the dam is built, fish will be
able to use several other channels for upstream and downstream migration.
Some foreign media and environmental activists said Laos is
in violation of the 1995 Mekong Agreement as it failed to conduct prior
consultation with downstream neighbors before giving the project the go-ahead.
Deputy Minister of Energy and Mines, Viraphonh Viravong, said Laos did not
breach the 1995 agreement because it does not regard Hou Sahong as part of the
Mekong mainstream.
The mainstream of the Mekong could be considered
Khonphapheng and Lipi because the water flow through Lipi represents 60 percent
of the total river flow, while the flow through Khonphapheng accounts for 30
percent.
Viraphonh said Laos did not regard the dam as being on the
Mekong mainstream, which would require prior consultation.
The Don Sahong Project is located in the Khong District of
Champasak Province in Laos and situated on the five-kilometer-long Hou Sahong,
one of the braided channels of the Mekong River approximately two kilometers
upstream of the Lao-Cambodian border.
2 comments:
No dam,no fucking dam! Laos build dam will kill livelihood down stream,millions relying on Maekong River to sustain their daily economy to support their families lives by fishing or whatever else they do down stream.Dam will kill livelihood of three countries down stream,Siam,Khmer,yuon....etc. No fucking dam upstream! You preach your contract signed in 1995 [treaty] will get sue and isolate your fucking state out of Asian's brotherhood,Siam,Khmer,yuon won't allows you to build any more dam for the SAKE of environmental and economical sustainability downstream for three countries.
Kdamjor
this area, the mekong water flows into cambodia, why they still allow it to go on if they know it will affect the people's live downstream from here. who cares about the fish migration, let the fish stay in cambodia territorial waters, dont the effects on people's live downstream is more important than the fish if you ask khmer people living along the mekong river waterway! wake up, people, tell lao gov't to stop!
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