Plans for hydropower plant on the Mekong River threaten habitat of four of the world's largest freshwater fish, says WWF
Jonathan Watts, Asia guardian.co.uk 24 Sep 10;
Despite the risks to the world's biggest freshwater fish, Laos has rejected calls for a dam moratorium on the lower reaches of the Mekong because it wants cheap power to develop its economy.
The south-east Asian nation moved this week to secure regional approval for the first major hydropower plant on its stretch of the river in the face of protests from international conservation groups.
Catfish the length of cars and stingrays that weigh more than tigers are threatened by the proposed 800m barrier, but the government said the economic benefits outweigh the environmental risks.
"We don't want to be poor any more," said Viraphone Viravong, director general of the country's energy and mines department. "If we want to grow, we need this dam."
In a submission to the Mekong river commission (MRC) on Wednesday, Laos said it wants to build a 1.26GW-hydropower plant at Sayabouly in northern Laos to generate foreign exchange income.
If approved, about 90% of the electricity would be sold to neighbours Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia.
It is part of a major plan to expand the economy through the utilisation of natural resources. According to Viravong, 20% of Laos' GDP will come from hydropower and mining by 2020, up from about 4% today.
Sayabouly is the first of 11 proposed dams on the lower reaches of the Mekong, a river that is already heavily dammed upstream in China.
The MMRC – made up of representatives from Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand – will now assess the environmental impact of the project, but conservation groups fear the procedure is flawed and have called for a 10-year moratorium on hydropower on the river.
"This dam is the greatest challenge the MRC has faced since it was formed. It is the most serious test of its usefulness and relevance," said Marc Goichot, of the WWF. "It is already very clear this dam would amplify and accelerate the negative impacts of Chinese dams to the Mekong delta. What are the other impacts?"
Concerns have been raised about sedimentation, fisheries and the migration patterns of endangered freshwater species.
Four of the world's 10 biggest freshwater fish migrate up the Mekong to spawn. Among them is the Mekong giant catfish, which is the size of a bull shark, and the Mekong stingray, which can weigh up to 600kg.
The dam – which is being designed by Swiss company Colencois and the Thai contractors Karnchang – is also likely to affect the flow of nutrients along a delta that sustains tens of millions of people.
The Laos authorities insist the dam will be designed to mitigate the impact on food security, ecosystems and wildlife, but officials acknowledge that no solution is ideal for the environment.
"It won't be 100% perfect, but we believe mitigation measures will be effective. We must balance out the costs and benefits," said Viravong.
He felt there was no alternative. "We have done studies on micro-energy and renewables, but they are expensive. I don't think the world can subsidise that. If we do it ourselves, only cheap energy from hydropower will do."
Mekong dam proposal goes under the microscope
WWF 23 Sep 10;
WWF is seriously concerned about the negative impacts posed by the Sayabouly hydropower dam proposed for the Mekong river in northern Laos, following the Lao Government’s notification of the dam to the Mekong River Commission (MRC) on September 22.
The Lao Government’s engagement with the MRC on the Sayabouly dam is a positive first step in the three-stage assessment process. The Sayabouly dam is the first of the 11 proposed lower Mekong river mainstream dams to be critically assessed by member countries of the MRC.
“There must be a rigorous and transparent assessment of the impacts of this dam,” said Marc Goichot, Sustainable Infrastructure Senior Advisor for WWF Greater Mekong. “It is already very clear this dam would amplify and accelerate the negative impacts of Chinese dams to the Mekong delta, what are the other impacts?” he said.
If built, the Sayabouly dam will block the sediment and nutrients that build the delta and feed its immense productivity, which provides more than 50 percent of Vietnam’s staple food crops. Moreover, the dam would alter habitats downstream in Laos and Cambodia potentially having devastating impacts on wild fisheries and causing the likely extinction of critically endangered Mekong giant catfish.
A workshop organized by the MRC Secretariat concluded that with current technologies it would be impossible to build a dam that would allow for such a large and diverse fish migration as takes place in the Mekong river.
The third MRC Basin Development plan grossly underestimated the negative impacts on biodiversity and sediment flows of lower Mekong river mainstream dams proposed north of Vientiane, including Sayabouly. The Basin Development plan will guide the MRC assessment of all lower Mekong river mainstream dams.
WWF supports a ten-year delay in the approval of lower Mekong river mainstream dams to ensure a comprehensive understanding of all the impacts of their construction and operation. Immediate electricity demands can be met by fast tracking the most sustainable hydropower sites on the lower Mekong’s tributaries.
“This dam is the greatest challenge the MRC has faced since it was formed. It is the most serious test of its usefulness and relevance,” said Mr Goichot.
The CH. Karnchang Public Company Ltd. of Thailand has been contracted by the Lao Government to construct the Sayabouly dam if it is approved. Karnchang has hired Swiss company Colenco to produce the design of the Sayabouly dam. WWF has tried to engage with both parties to highlight the risk and promote sustainable alternatives. Neither party has elected to engage with WWF on the matter.
To promote sustainable hydropower development, on September 24 in Bangkok, WWF and other development partners convened a conference of leading Asian, US and European financial institutions to highlight the financial, social and environmental risks and responsibilities of hydropower development on the lower Mekong river.
The meeting also explored ways to avoid, manage and mitigate these risks supporting the conclusions of the MRC Summit held in Hua Hin on April 5 that was attended by all governments of the Mekong and endorsed sustainable development of the Mekong river basin.
