September 29, 2010

Laos's dam proposal threatens Mekong catfish

WWF is concerned about the negative impacts posed by the Sayabouly hydropower dam proposed for the Mekong river on its wild catfish, 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.

According to Marc Goichot, Sustainable Infrastructure Senior Advisor for WWF Greater Mekong, the Sayabouly dam, if built, will block the sediment and nutrients that build the delta and feed its immense productivity, which provides more than 50% 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.

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.

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.