Chinese Dams Accused of Flooding the Region

November 14, 2008
By LAWI WENG
The Irrawady

Many of the 300 representatives at a recent forum in Bangkok have blamed Chinese authorities for releasing water from three hydropower dams on the Mekong River in August, which devastated hundreds of communities downstream.

The accusations were aired at a forum titled “Mekong Mainstream Dams: Voices across Borders,” which was held at Chulalongkorn University in the Thai capital from November 12-13. Most of the 300 community leaders, environmentalists and activists attending the meeting were from the six nations comprising the Greater Mekong Subregion—China, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.

The two-day forum focused on the devastation and loss of lives and livelihoods following floods in the subregion in August.

Witoon Permpongsachareon, a coordinator with the Mekong Energy and Ecology Network, told The Irrawaddy on Friday that many representatives at the forum pointed fingers at China’s hydropower Mekong River dams—Manwan, Dachaoshan and Jinghong—which released billions of tons of water as a safety measure in May after Sichuan Province in western China was hit by an earthquake. The resulting floods destroyed thousands of homes, farms and livelihoods in Mekong River communities downstream and affected millions of people.

“The representatives are annoyed with the Chinese government and they send strong messages to the government to respect other people’s rights,” he said.

According to a report in Fridays’ The Bangkok Post, a former headmaster at Chiang Khong School in Chiang Rai Province, northern Thailand, accused the Chinese of causing the heaviest floods in the area for 40 years.

“At least three districts [in northern Thailand] have yet to recoup the financial loss of 85 million baht (US $2.4 million)” said the headmaster. “Not to mention the heartbreak of being fooled by authorities that dams help prevent flooding, serve agriculture and produce electricity.”

However, a chief executive officer from the Mekong River Commission (MRC) claimed that the Chinese dams were not responsible for the regional flooding and blamed the Laotian authorities.

The representatives at the forum also spoke about the impact of dams on the natural ecosystem in the river. Many fish are unable to travel to feed or spawn because the dams block the river. Fish production in the Mekong is decreasing every year and more dams are being built in China, Laos, Thailand and Cambodia, according to the Mekong River Commission Fisheries Program.

According to data from the commission, the Mekong River is the world’s largest inland fishery with some 1.5 to 3 million tonnes of fish products per year.

Speaker after speaker at the seminar urged the six countries’ governments to reduce their reliance on electrical power.

Over the next few years, Laos is planning to construct at least seven dams, with a total electricity generating capacity of 7,470 megawatts, while another two Thai-Lao projects will produce a total of 3,409 megawatts. Cambodia, too, has released plans for two hydropower dams—at Stung Treng and Sambor.

SRP warns that it will lead flooded residents to demonstrate

02 Nov 2008: A man travels by boat in Russei Keo district, Phnom Penh city (Photo: Chea Makara, RFA)

02 Nov 2008
By Chea Makara
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Socheata
Click here to read the article in Khmer

On Sunday, the opposition SRP warned that it will lead Phnom Penh residents who have been victimized by flooding from the filling of lakes to demonstrate if the government does not put an end to these lake fillings along the capital suburbs. The opposition party indicated that the lake fillings were undertaken for land development and it also accused that these lake fillings led to the current severe flooding in Russei Keo district.

Opposition leader Sam Rainsy said that the government must stop the lake fillings in Phnom Penh city for land development purposes. Currently, lake fillings are taking place in Boeung Proyab, Beoung Kak and Boeung Paungpeay. He said that theses lakes must be preserved as water reservoirs to prevent flooding.

Sam Rainsy indicated also that flooding will be more severe in the future once the filling of Boeung Kak Lake will be completed: “We sent our questions to the government, and we sent a petition asking for a government representative to come and provide answers. If there is no result, we will hold a demonstration and we will invite all the victimized residents in Phnom Penh to demonstrate to demand that all these companies end their lake filling activities immediately, otherwise, the residents will not accept this situation.”

Kob Sleh, the Russei Keo deputy district governor, rejected the accusation leveled by the opposition party, and he blamed the flooding in the district on the intense rainfalls in Phnom Penh city during this rainy season. Furthermore, land filling activities led to the cutting of the water drainage system into the drainage channels consisting of the O’Veng channel, the Bak Touk channel, the Kob Srov channel and the 598 channel. All these channels connect to the Kob Srov dike.

Kob Sleh indicated also that the filling of Boeung Kak Lake does not affect the current flooding and that Boeung Kak Lake is a dead Lake and is not connected to any drainage system.

Kob Sleh said: “They don’t know the geography, they kept on talking, they have a way of talking. They did not talk like a constructor, but they talk like critics. They can talk about it, but they should look at the geography also, where does the extent of the flooding in Russei Keo, in particular along the north of Phnom Penh in Russei Keo, where does it come from?”

Kob Sleh indicated that the water is receding gradually after the authority was able to release the water into the lake, and he said that the water will continue to recede in one week if there is no additional rainfall.

He added that, up to now, flooding covers the Svay Pak district (Red Lantern district) all the way to the Kob Srov dike, and water will not recede as long as the sewers cannot be unplugged at Lou (Sewer) village located in Svay Pak district, near National Road No. 5, in order to drain water into the lake.

It should be noted that Russei Keo district has been flooded for more than 2 months already, and residents must travel by boat, while others must live in makeshift tents because their houses are flooded.

The areas that are severely affected by the flood are: Pochentong, Phnom Penh Thmei road, Hanoi road, Boeng Proyab Lake, Teuk Thla, Phsar Toch, Tuol Sangker and Tuol Kok, to name a few.

Flooding of the Mekong River in Kampong Cham

Cambodians are transported by boat near the Mekong river in Kampong Cham province, 130 km (80 miles) east of Phnom Penh, during floods Aug. 16, 2008.(Xinhua/Reuters Photo)
Cambodia children play in front of their house near the Mekong river during floods in Kampong Cham province, 130 km (80 miles) east of Phnom Penh, Aug. 16, 2008. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)
A Cambodian woman transport her cows to higher ground during floods near the Mekong river in Kampong Cham province, 130 km (80 miles) east of Phnom Penh, Aug. 16, 2008. The Mekong river has hit its highest level in at least 100 years after several months of unusually heavy rain, officials said on Friday. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)
A Cambodian man rows a boat during floods near the Mekong river in Kampong Cham province, 130 km (80 miles) east of Phnom Penh, during floods Aug. 16, 2008. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)

North Korea on brink of famine after floods-study

SEOUL, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Destitute North Korea will likely be pushed into famine due to devastating floods this year that wiped out crops and ruined farm land, a South Korean state-run think-tank said on Thursday.

"The North's food inventory has almost hit the bottom, so unless there's an extraordinary measure to stabilise supply, there may be a situation next year similar to the late 1990s," a study by the Korea Rural Economic Institute (KREI) said.

Famine in the late 1990s brought about by flooding, drought and years of mismanagement in the farm sector killed as many as 10 percent of the North's 22 million people, according to some estimates.

The KREI study said North Korea will run about 1.4 million tonnes short of the food needed to feed its people and estimated damage to its farming sector at more than $275 million.

North Korea has said flooding in August was some of the worst to hit the country. It killed at least 600 people, left more than 300,000 homeless, destroyed thousands of buildings and wiped out more than 11 percent of its farm land, its official media said.

But another South Korean specialist in North Korean agriculture has said it was unlikely that the isolated state would soon slip back into famine because of a large increase in grain production over the past decade.

North Korea, which suffers from chronic food shortages, usually relies on handouts from neighbours South Korea and China to make up its food deficit and it receives food aid from international agencies such as the U.N. World Food Programme.

Chronic malnutrition among North Korean children remains a problem, but mass hunger has not set in, according to Michel Le Pechoux, UNICEF deputy representative in North Korea.

"Food and malnutrition is an issue, but to say that people are starving, we do not have evidence of that," Le Pechoux told a news briefing in Geneva.

"I wouldn't qualify it as famine. I think the situation in the late 1990s and the situation now is very different," he said, adding it was "still fragile".

The last U.N. nutritional assessment, conducted in 2004, found that 37 percent of North Korean children were chronically malnourished, similar to rates in Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar, he said. That was far better than its 60 percent rate in the 1990s.

Malnutrition is linked not only to food supply but also dirty water that causes diarrhoea, Le Pechoux said.

UNICEF is currently undertaking nutritional assessment among people left homeless by the floods in 19 North Korean counties.

Aid workers have said the environment for supplying food aid to the country has improved due to Pyongyang's progress in implementing an international agreement to end its nuclear weapons programmes.

"In the past few months there has been a lot of progress on a number of issues," Le Pechoux said. "We are all quite happy with the current political climate and interaction with the government."

(Additional reporting by Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva)

Agricultural disaster looms in flood-affected Cambodia

Phnom Penh, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) - More than 19,000 hectares of rice paddies in the north-east of Cambodia have been submerged under flood waters for over a week, threatening food-security and livelihoods there, local media said on Tuesday.

An estimated 15,000 hectares of paddy fields in Kompong Thom have been inundated, with 60 percent possibly ruined, while about 3,000 hectares in Preah Vihear have been flooded with 80 percent of fields affected, Nhim Vanda, first vice president of the National Committee for Disaster Management, was quoted by Cambodian-language newspaper the Kampuchea Thmey as saying.

In Ratanakiri province 1,660 hectares have been flooded with about 80 percent of fields possibly destroyed, said Nhim Vanda, who has been dispatched into the field to monitor the flood situation in each province.

The flooding, which began earlier this month, has also forced the evacuation of 19,000 people from their homes, though approximately 80 percent have now returned, said the paper.

Two adults in Preah Vihear drowned along with nearly 100 buffalos tied in stables, and around four kilometers of national roads in the province and seven kilometers of provincial tracks have also been destroyed, it added.

Four districts in Kompong Thom adjacent to Preah Vihear have suffered from the floods, which originated in the latter province, said Nhim Vanda, adding that about 70 rescue boats have been sent to the region.

Agriculture is Cambodia's third largest pillar industry.

Flood Damage Could Exceed $10 Million, Official Says

Win Thida, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
14 August 2007

Damages from prolonged flooding in northeastern Cambodia could surpass $10 million, officials said Wednesday.

The floods have killed at least two people and displaced tens of thousands, disaster officials said.

About 18,000 hectares of rice fields are under water in the region, and the Cambodian Red Cross has sent 10 tons of the staple to feed victims, the Cambodia Daily reported Tuesday.

"About the flood, we are ready, and if there is any problem, we are ready," said Nhim Vanda, vice president for the government's Committee for Natural Disaster Control. "Today, I think there is nothing that we should worry about. I only feel that if we have a lot of rainstorms in our country we will have to monitor it."

Floodwater was now receding in some areas, he said, but it has cost the country up to $10 million in damages.

"I think that in about two weeks, if there is no rain or storm, the flood will leave us for the sea, and other countries, and the situation will be less serious," Nhim Vanda said.

Flooding Kills 1 in Kampong Thom; Death Toll at 2

Chiep Mony, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
13 August 2007

Continued provincial flooding claimed another victim Monday, bringing the death toll to two, as thousands more were displaced. A 4-year-old child from Prasat Sambor town died when his family's rowboat capsized, said Sok Kheng, a commune official from Kampong Thom.

"When people tried to go to safe higher ground, by rowboat, this boat capsized, causing the child to fall overboard," Sok Kheng said.

In 30 years, Sok Kheng has not seen flooding like this, he said.

Authorities estimate 15,000 people have so far been displaced by recent flooding.

Last week, a 54-year-old woman from Preah Vihear province became the first to die in the deluge, which authorities told the Cambodia Daily was the worst since 1992.

Flooding Hits 11,000 Villagers in North, Northeast; 1 Dead

A Cambodian amputee beggar is given money by a passerby while wading in the street flood in Phnom Penh in 1998.

Mean Veasna, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
10 August 2007

Flooding in the north and northeastern regions of Cambodia has displaced 11,000 villagers, killing one young girl, officials said Thursday.

Roads are cut off and farms inundated in Preah Vihear, Stung Treng and Ratanakkiri provinces, officials said.

The flooding is due to storms in Thailand and Laos since Aug. 5, and damages are estimated at $1 million, Nhim Vanda, deputy director of the government's Disaster Relief Committee, said.

"We have moved about 9,000 people in Ratanakiri to four highland areas," he said. "In Stung Treng, we evacuated more than 2,000 people to safety."

Authorities are facing food shortages for flood victims, Preah Vihear Governor Preap Tan said.

"Our preliminary report shows that about one thousand families lack food," he said. "Roads are cut off in several areas, but the most important thing is that people need food supplies."

Mekong River will create major flooding

Friday, August 10, 2007
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

The rapid rise of the Mekong River level could create major flooding in the next few days because intense rains are currently falling in the upper Mekong River basin. Another major storm is also predicted to arrive at a time when the current major storm has not subsided yet. Mao Hak, director of the department of water of the Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology, told the Rasmei Kampuchea newspaper that the water level along the Mekong River will keep rising in the next 2-3 days. According to a prediction by the department of meteorology, the water level will rise up to 9.27-meter in the province of Stung Treng, 19.24-meter in the province of Kratie, 12.93-meter in the province of Kompong Cham, 7.48-meter at the Bassac-Chaktokmouk River. The forecast predicts that the water level could rise even higher on 12 August.

Ratanakiri villagers evacuated because of flooding

Tuesday, August 07, 2007
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Heng Soy

A report indicated that about 2,000 families of villagers have been evacuated out because their homes were flooded from the strong rainfalls caused by the tropical storm which passed through during last weekend. Muong Poy, the governor of Ratanakiri province, told The Cambodia Daily that about 2,000 families from Lumphat and Kaun Mom districts were evacuated to higher grounds on Sunday and Monday, after the flooding of their homes. The Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology broadcasted an information on Monday telling villagers living along rivers to pay attention because the river cresting will take place in the next 2 to 3 days. Mao Hak, director of the hydrology and river works department, said that rainfalls in the last few days caused a significant rise of water level in the provinces of Kratie and Stung Treng, and the flood water is flowing downward, causing a rise of water level in the Mekong River in the province of Kompong Cham, as well as in other provinces bordering the river.

Officials: Cambodia's Ratanakiri severely flooded, Mekong may burst banks

PHNOM PENH, Aug. 7 (Xinhua) -- Heavy rains have forced the evacuation of thousands of families in Cambodia's Ratanakiri province, rendering all roads into the northeastern province impassable and prompting a nationwide flood warning, local media reported Tuesday.

Muong Poy, the governor of Ratanakiri, told the Cambodia Daily that about 2,000 families from Lumphat and Kon Mon districts have been evacuated from homes submerged by the flood.

He said that thousands of hectares of paddy land in the two districts, which both straddle the Srae Pov river, have also been destroyed, adding that provincial officials have plans in place to help the flood victims, writes Rasmei Kampuchea.

Chai Vuth, the deputy governor of Stung Treng province, said that the heavy rains have flooded the road to Ratanakiri, making it impossible for vehicles to enter, adds the newspaper.

The Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology has issued a statement warning all riverbank residents in the country, particularly those living alongside the Mekong, to be prepared for serious flooding in the next two or three days, reports Rasmei Kampuchea.

Lim Kean Hour, the chief of the ministry, told the newspaper Monday that the heavy rains have already caused a great deal of destruction in Preah Vihear province and that the Mekong river is rising dangerously.

Figures from the ministry's Department of Hydrology and River Works show that in Stung Treng province the Mekong River Monday had risen by 1.28 meters to 7.68 meters in one day, while in Kratie the water level has risen by 1.70cm to 16.58 meters.

Mao Hak, the director of the Hydrology department said that floodwaters flowing downstream will raise the water level of the Mekong in Kampong Cham and other provinces on its route, adding that Phnom Penh is not in danger of flooding, reports the Cambodia Daily.