Dams

Stop building Mekong River dams: experts

Townships along the Mekong River should suspend the construction of dams, which negatively impacts both the environment and residents near the river's lower basin, said experts at yesterday's seminar on the construction of the Don Sahong hydropower plant.

Vietnam Farmers Bristle at Laos’s Planned Mekong River Dam

Residents of Vietnam’s Mekong Delta have raised objections to the Don Sahong hydropower dam that Laos plans to build on the Mekong River's main stream. The objections came in late November after the Hanoi-based Green Innovation and Development Center, the Center for Biodiversity and Development at Vietnam Rivers Network, and local authorities finished a nearly two-week survey in communes in Can Tho and the five provinces of Ca Mau, Soc Trang, An Giang, Kien Giang, Vinh Long.

Dams vs. Airplanes

In August 2014, a 5.5 MW hydropower dam broke for the second time in Gia Lai Province. Luckily no one was killed. This isn’t the first time that dams have leaked or broken in Vietnam but what was striking was the fact that according to the article the construction company ignored basic safety consideration by building the dam in the wet season. As a result, the cement didn’t dry properly and couldn’t withstand the water pressure. After the dam failed for the first time in June 2013, the provincial government ordered the company to suspend construction. The company refused.

Call for rethink on hydro-power plants

Four non-government organisations (NGOs) have called on the National Assembly for tighter controls on hydro-power plants to prevent loss of lives and widespread damage during storms. The recommendation was made by the Viet Nam River Network (VRN), People and Nature…

Damning evidence no match for dam pushers

By normal standards, the scrapping of two controversial dams planned in a protected area should have been a done deal by now. But victories for the environment have become extremely rare in Vietnam in recent years and opponents of the two dams, to be built in the core of the UNESCO-recognized Dong Nai Biosphere Reserve, appear to be seeing the writing on the wall.
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