Xayaburi

The Mekong River, downstream of the proposed Xayaburi dam site (Pianporn Deetes)

The scenic rapids, strong currents, and complex ecosystems of the mighty Mekong River in the remote province of Xayaburi in Northern Laos are the spawning grounds of rich migratory fisheries that feed millions of people along the entire length of the river. Beneath the sparkling sand beaches, exposed during the dry season, thousands of gold-panning families find a vital source of income, supplementing their fishing and farming that helps meet their daily needs.

However, this way of life is now threatened. Since 2007, Ch. Karnchang, one of Thailand’s largest construction companies, has been planning to build a massive 1,260 MW dam on the Mekong River’s mainstream at the Kaeng Luang rapids, 30 kilometers from Xayabouri town. This dam would affect hundreds of thousands of local people directly, and millions more indirectly due to its impact on the Mekong River and its interconnected ecosystems.

The Xayaburi dam, if built, will block critical fish migration routes to the Mekong’s upper stretches as far upstream as Chiang Saen in northern Thailand that is an important spawning ground for the critically endangered Mekong Giant Catfish. The dam would destroy the river’s complex local ecosystems that serve as important fish habitats for local and migratory species. The dam would also block sediment flows in the Mekong River, affected agriculture as far downstream as the Mekong Delta in Vietnam.

In June 2010, Thailand’s electricity utility, EGAT, signed an initial agreement with Ch. Karnchang to purchase over 95% of the Xayaburi dam’s electricity. At least four Thai banks, Kasikorn Bank, Bangkok Bank, Krung Thai Bank, and Siam Commercial Bank, have expressed their interest in providing loans to the Xayaburi dam, despite its massive environmental and social costs.

In September 2010, the Xayaburi Dam became the first mainstream dam to be submitted for approval by the region's governments through a regional decision-making process called the "Procedures for Notification, Prior Consultation and Agreement" (PNPCA), facilitated by the Mekong River Commission (MRC). At an MRC meeting in April, regional governments delayed a decision on the dam due to concerns raised by Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam about the dam’s transboundary impacts and the need for further study and consultation. In spite of this decision, Laos appeared determined to move ahead with the project, defying its neighbors by starting illegal initial construction at the dam site.

Due to the massive risk and impacts associated with the Xayaburi and other Mekong mainstream dams, a Strategic Environmental Assessment report published in October 2010 by the MRC recommends that decision-making on these dams be deferred for 10 years.

Together with our partners the Thai People’s Network for the Mekong and the Save the Mekong Coalition, International Rivers is calling on regional governments to refuse support for the project and seek better energy solutions to protect the Mekong River, which is a lifeline for millions in the region.

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