Over 60 million people depend on the Mekong River and its tributaries for water, food, transport, and income. It is the lifeline of mainland Southeast Asia.
The proposed Xayaburi Dam in northern Laos would devastate the people and ecosystems of this great river. It would cause irreversible ecological damage, including the likely extinction of the Mekong Giant Catfish, forcibly dislocate over 2,100 people, and directly affect over 200,000 more. Incredibly, this unacceptable price comes without significant benefit: the “dam’s ability to produce electricity will be severely compromised within a few decades because the dam’s reservoir will fill up with silt,” according to The New York Times.
Currently, the Xayaburi Dam is under review. While Laos is eager to build the hydropower dam for the electricity it will produce, surrounding countries Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam are concerned about these negative impacts. The four countries met on April 19 to discuss the proposed dam, and, in a temporary but significant victory, decided to defer and elevate the decision to higher authorities.
Yet, the future of the Mekong and the thousands of families who depend on it is still uncertain.
Champions of the Mekong: Grassroots Groups Taking up the Fight
Fortunately, there are a number of local organizations committed to stopping the Xayaburi Dam. With a little financial support from Global Greengrants Fund and Aveda Earth Month funds, these water warriors are giving their all to protect the Mekong River.
- Thai Water Partnership is supporting the rights of affected communities to ensure that their concerns are heard by decision-makers. They’re using a $5,000 grant to do monitoring and advocacy on Thailand’s water policy, networking, research and field surveys in dam-affected areas, and media work to raise awareness.
- Living Rivers Network is spreading the story of the Xayaburi Dam to the media and traveling to remote villages to raise awareness among all those that will be affected by project. They used a $3,500 grant to bring 12 journalists from Thailand’s leading TV, newspaper, and magazine outlets to visit the proposed dam site on the Mekong mainstream in northern Laos. Now, they’re organizing meetings and campaign activities in seven provinces in northeast Thailand to inform affected communities about the impacts of the dam and rally their support against the proposal.
While we wait for the next regional government meeting on the future of the Xayaburi Dam, these groups and many others will not waste a moment to raise awareness and participation among local communities to fight the destructive project.