Substandard dam assessment opens way to fisheries destruction on mekong. Oct 07, 2011 ive been studying the implications of the proposed xayaburi dam in lao pdr, which would be the first dam on the mainstream of the mekong river downstream from china, for regional cooperation among the lower mekong countries and for the institutions designed to promote such cooperation. Xayaburi a runofriver power station for lao pdr at the end of 2012, andritz hydro won an international bidding process. Xayaburi dam 30% finished, says laos phnom penh post. The pmf can be released safely without overtopping the concrete dam. Xayaburi dam expected to have annual output of 8,400 gwh to boost power supply to laos and thailand. Xayaburi hydropower project prior consultation process. Commercial operation of the dam started in october 2019. This report challenges the claim of the laos government that the xayaburi dam fully complied with the mekong agreement. A sad smile flickered across the face of thongkham phalibai, a mother of two and owner of a. Given the risks involved, it is urgent that the xayaburi dam builders stop all relocation activities and delay further construction, so. Deputy energy and mines minister viraponh viravong said the project which laos began work on without regional approval in november 2012 remains on track to be functioning in 2019.
Notification and consultation procedures under the mekong. The authors examine the language of the mekong agreement in detail. Construction began in 2012 and is scheduled to finish in 2019 but the project has been marred by allegations of human rights abuses and concerns over severe environmental and social consequences. A subsequent report, published in march by the mekong river commission itself, found that, from the xayaburi dam alone, the migrations of anywhere from 23 to 100 species of fish would be restricted, and the rivers iconic giant catfish, which can span 10 ft. The xayaburi hydroelectric power project is a runofriver power plant. Mekong pilot program to monitor impact of lao dams on. The xayaburi hydroelectric power project xayaburi power xpcl. For the design of the xayaburi dam project guidelines, design manuals and codes pre pared by the. Aug 16, 2012 work restarts at xayaburi dam in laos project leader. Potain cranes keep multiyear xayaburi dam project on schedule. Thus, there is a worldwide concern that the xayaburi dam could lead to the construction of more dams. Jul 08, 20 as of today, you can now purchase the dam book, 2nd edition as a pdf file for digital download.
All structured data from the file and property namespaces is available under the creative commons cc0 license. Decision looms for controversial xayaburi dam on lower. Review of the design changes made for xayaburi hydropower. Xayaburi power company limited 215 lanexang avenue, ban xieng yuen, muang chantabouly, vientiane, lao pdr tel. Xayaburi and don sahong are the first two dams along the lower mekong in lao pdr. Click here to start a new topic please sign and date your posts by typing four tildes new to wikipedia. National consultation workshop on the proposed xayaburi dam of the lao pdr ha long city, 22 january 2011 time event event leaders 08. For the flood design of the xayaburi project, the lbllowing internationally accepted con cept is used. Work restarts at xayaburi dam in laos project leader.
According to the xayaburi dams developer, construction of. The governments of cambodia and viet nam have never agreed to the xayaburi project. People and livelihoods located approximately 150 kilometers downstream of luang prabang town, a unesco world heritage site, the xayaburi dam threatens to resettle over 2,100 people in ten villages. Xayaburi mainstream dam on the lower mekong river, lao pdr. In the case of embankment dam segtions the pmi water level shall not exceed the top of the impervious core. Wwf statement on cambodian governments decision to. Ngos set oneyear deadline to stop xayaburi dam posted on 30 march 2014 leading nongovernmental organisations ngos today issued a joint declaration in opposition to ongoing construction of the xayaburi dam on the mekong river mainstem, and called on the thai government to cancel the power purchase agreement relating to the controversial. Ngos set oneyear deadline to stop xayaburi dam wwf. Mar 25, 2014 laoss controversial xayaburi dam is 30 per cent built, its government has told the post. This should be welcome news for overseas purchasers, as well as the many people who have asked for the book in electronic continue reading the dam book now available in pdf. Thousands of new, highquality pictures added every day.
Eia for the proposed xayaburi dam in laos and assessment were woefully inadequate and fell well below international standards for such studies. W4 mekong river upstream from proposed dam site 12 km. Properities parameter unit w1 w2 w3 w4 w5 w6 standard. The project comprises 7 turbine generator units of 175 mw each that will generate and transmit power through the 500 kv transmission system to egat, and one 60 mw unit that will distribute power through the 115 kv transmission system for domestic use in. W6mekong river upstream from proposed dam site 20 km. Amid hydropower boom, laos streams ahead on latest mekong dam.
Damming the mekong river could harm millions who rely on migratory fish, such as the fishermen in this floating village in kandal, cambodia. The xayaburi dam on the mekong river may have to be redesigned to avoid any adverse impact on the environment, a senior lao official says, citing a french. Mar 30, 2014 ngos set oneyear deadline to stop xayaburi dam posted on 30 march 2014 leading nongovernmental organisations ngos today issued a joint declaration in opposition to ongoing construction of the xayaburi dam on the mekong river mainstem, and called on the thai government to cancel the power purchase agreement relating to the controversial. Prior consultation for the proposed xayaburi dam project 24th march 2011 1. April 2014 4 may 2007 lao government signed memorandum of understanding with thai company ch. Aug 12, 2011 a subsequent report, published in march by the mekong river commission itself, found that, from the xayaburi dam alone, the migrations of anywhere from 23 to 100 species of fish would be restricted, and the rivers iconic giant catfish, which can span 10 ft. Asean power grid, electricity generating authority of thailand egat, energy ministry permanent secretary areepong bhoocha oom, hat gyi dam, mekong energy and ecology network, myanmars wartorn shan state, pak beng dam, power development plan pdp, salween river, witoon permponsacharoen, xayaburi dam. This is the talk page for discussing improvements to the xayaburi dam article. If built as planned, the dam will be put into operation in 2019. Nguyen thai lai, deputy minister of monre, vice chairman of vnmc. W3 mekong river upstream from proposed dam site 8 km. The total outflow of water that goes through the power plant equals the natural inflow of water, and no water is stored or channeled away from the mekong river. Located in northern laos, the proposed xayaburi dam is the most advanced of eleven large hydropower dams planned for the lower mekong river. Now, as the latest dam, the laoowned xayaburi, begins operations on the lower mekong, a thai activist group is going to court to slow down the sale of electricity to thai companies.
The lao government insists that the xayaburi project. W2 mekong river at proposed dam site w5 mekong river upstream from proposed dam site 16 km. The xayaburi dam, will block critical fish migration routes for between 23100 fish species to the mekongs upper stretches as far upstream as chiang saen in northern thailand, an important spawning ground for the critically endangered mekong giant catfish. One of the largest groups of potain cranes at work in asia is helping the xayaburi dam in laos stay on schedule as the eightyear project enters its second phase. Xayaburi mainstream dam on the lower mekong river, lao pdr description. The dam would destroy the rivers complex ecosystems that serve as important fish habitats for local and migratory species. Thai activists protest new xayaburi dam on mekong river.
Laos agreed in december to suspend the xayaburi dam project and said on july work. Thai general contracting and infrastructure development group ch karnchang through its 50 percentowned subsidiary xayaburi power co has a 29. The mekong river, a vein of life in southeast asia, is among the most biodiverse rivers in the world and a central livelihood source of tens of millions of villagers living nearby. Part 2 now investigates the application of the mekong agreement and pnpca to laos xayaburi dam project prior consultation process, examining the specific contested procedural and legal elements and the role of the mekong. Today, the supreme administrative court of thailand hears a case brought by thai villagers against thai agencies for the impacts of the xayaburi dam.
The 1,285megawatt dam, located 150 km downstream of northern luang prabang, began commercial operation last october. The xayaburi hydropower project in northern laos is the first of eleven proposed dams on the main stem of the lower mekong river. This is not a forum for general discussion of the articles subject. Can damming the mekong power a better life to laos. Thai activists protest new xayaburi dam on the mekong. The deadline for all effected countries to submit their formal opinions regarding the dam project is april 22, 2011. Thus the water volume which passes through the project is naturally maintained. International rivers, how the next 12 months of xayaburi dam construction will affect the mekong river.
The xayaburi project is the mekong river commissions. Maintaining the lower mekong in cambodia freeflowing is the best decision for both people and nature, and wwf commends the cambodian government for ruling out the hydropower dam development and instead pursuing other energy sources such as solar to meet the kingdoms power demand. Acca member survey business challenges and considerations for the covid19 outbreak mainland china and hong kong sar yuki qian fcca head of policy. W1 mekong river downstream from proposed dam site 2 km.
Please sign and date your posts by typing four tildes. By kay johnson and panu wongchaum an artistic rendering of the proposed 1400 mw luang prabang hydropower dam on the mekong river in laos is seen in this undated handout obtained by reuters, february 5, 2020. Laos agreed in december to suspend the xayaburi dam project and said on july work had stopped after neighbors cambodia and vietnam. An alternate pastfuture for mekong river dams under the. This is not a forum for general discussion of the articles subject put new text under old text. Xayaburi hydropower project is located in xayaburi province of lao pdr. Xayaburi hydroelectric power project xayaburi power xpcl. This is xayaburi dam project, laos by adrian callan on vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them. In fact, laos, with the financial and diplomatic support of thailand, is going ahead with an infrastructure which might be costly for vietnam. If built, the xayaburi dam would resettle around 2,100 people and directly affect a further 202,000 people living near the dam due to impacts on the rivers ecology and fisheries. Xayabury, laos, march 9, 2017 the xayaburi dam, with installed capacity of 1,260 mw, is the first one among 12 mainstream dams on the mekong river. Karnchang, one of thailands largest construction companies, in 2010. Simon krohn overall technical aspect, gavin quibell water policy. Brief report on national consultation on xayaburi in quang ninh.
At the present stage of the project the structural safety is the key issue, while the other items will become of interest at a later project stage. Testing ground for untried technologies 11182016 i miss the mekong. Xayaburi hydroelectric project how the design implement to the construction. Xayaburi dam hydroelectric dam on mekong stock photo edit. Files are available under licenses specified on their description page. Jan 23, 20 laos finally called out over xayaburi dam. This is the same version published by oreilly in 2009, with a new cover. Xpcl and government of lao pdr gol undertook the redesign of certain aspects of the project to address the concerns raised. Pdf impacts of mainstream hydropower dams on fisheries.
Laos finally called out over xayaburi dam the diplomat. The mekong eye had a rare opportunity to visit the xayaburi dam. Work restarts at xayaburi dam in laos project leader reuters. The xayaburi dam was the first significant test for the 1995 agreement on the cooperation for the sustainable development of the mekong river basin mekong agreement 3 between cambodia, laos, thailand and vietnam. Apr 20, 2018 the xayaburi dam poses a problem for the mekong rivers fish and the people living beside it. The xayaburi dam is a runofriver hydroelectric dam on the lower mekong river, approximately 30 kilometres 19 mi east of sainyabuli xayaburi town in northern laos.
Although the dam is going forward, its risks remain unknown. The xayaburi dam poses a problem for the mekong rivers fish and the people living beside it. The main purpose of the dam is to produce hydroelectric power, 95% of which is to be purchased by the electricity generating authority of thailand egat. The 1,285megawatt xayaburi dam s debut coincides with parts of the mekong drying to a trickle even at the end of the rainy season, though its builders and operators say it is not responsible for. New mekong dam in laos opens to protests, driedout. The xayaburi dam, as seen from above in early 2017 thien y, the mekong eye by thien y. It was a diversion dam on the mekong river to raise the water level on the upstream and release water along the river without the diversion of water from the river and no reservoir as others conventional dam. Since 2007, one of thailands largest construction companies has been preparing plans to build a massive 1,260 mw dam on the mekong rivers mainstream. According to the design blueprint, the xayaburi dam will be 820 meters long and 32. The lao government pledged close cooperation with the mekong river commission secretariat mrcs to share all relevant and practical information on design changes to the xayaburi dam in northern laos. Govt pledges to release xayaboury dam design data laos author. Laos has suspended construction on the controversial xayaburi dam on the mekong river following an uproar from neighboring cambodia and environmental groups, a.
The mekong river, downstream of the proposed site for the xayaburi dam a looming threat to the mekong river the xayaburi dam located in a mountainous valley in northern laos, the proposed xayaburi hydropower dam is the most advanced of eleven large dams planned for the lower mekong rivers mainstream. Find xayaburi dam hydroelectric dam on mekong stock images in hd and millions of other royaltyfree stock photos, illustrations and vectors in the shutterstock collection. Xayaburi dam poses test for mekong regional cooperation. Decision looms for controversial xayaburi dam on lower mekong amraapali 15 apr, 2011. The xayaburi dam is a hydropower project under construction on the mekong river in northwest laos, just across the border from nan province, thailand.
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