A massive Chinese-financed dam in Cambodia has "washed away the livelihoods" of tens of thousands of villagers while falling short of promised energy production, Human Rights Watch said Tuesday.

The 400-megawatt Lower Sesan 2 dam in the kingdom's northeast has sparked controversy since long before its December 2018 launch.

Fisheries experts had warned that damming the confluence of the Sesan and Srepok rivers -- two major tributaries of the resource-rich Mekong river -- would threaten fish stocks crucial to millions living along the Mekong's flood plains.

Tens of thousands of villagers living upstream and downstream have suffered steep losses to their incomes, HRW said in Tuesday's report, citing interviews conducted over two years with some 60 people from various communities.

"The Lower Sesan 2 dam washed away the livelihoods of Indigenous and ethnic minority communities who previously lived communally and mostly self-sufficiently from fishing, forest-gathering, and agriculture," John Sifton, Human Rights Watch's Asia advocacy director and the report's author, said Tuesday.

"Cambodian authorities need to urgently revisit this project's compensation, resettlement, and livelihood-restoration methods."

"There's no doubt at all that (the dam) contributed significantly to the larger problems the Mekong is facing right now," said Mekong energy and water expert Brian Eyler, while adding that more research was needed on the exact losses.

The government had pushed ahead with the project -- which involved resettling about 5,000 people -- in hopes of producing about one-sixth of Cambodia's annual electricity needs as promised by China Huaneng Group, the builder.

But production levels are "likely far lower, amounting to only a third of those levels", the report said.

Government spokesman Phay Siphan defended the dam, saying it provided "the most positive impacts" and that the resettled villagers have new homes, farmland and electric power.

"The allegations are not reasonable, they don't look at Cambodian experiences... and the new location is better than the old place," Phay Siphan said, adding that the government would continue to monitor the impacts on surrounding villages.

The dam, which cost a reported $780 million to build, is part of China's Belt and Road initiative, a mammoth $1 trillion-dollar infrastructure vision for maritime, rail and road projects across Asia, Africa and Europe.

The scheme, a symbol of Beijing's efforts to extend economic influence around the world, has been widely criticised for saddling small countries with unmanageable debt.

Related Links
Water News - Science, Technology and Politics

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

Chinese army warns dam battered by storms could collapse
Beijing (AFP) July 20, 2021
The Chinese army warned that a stricken dam in the centre of the country "could collapse at any time" after being severely damaged in torrential storms that killed at least three people and brought the region to a standstill. Weather authorities have issued the highest warning level for central Henan province as downpours caused widespread disruption and the evacuation of residents of flooded streets. On Tuesday evening the regional unit of the People's Liberation Army warned that the relentless ... read more