Press Release

Phnom Penh - Plans to construct a large hydropower dam near the confluence of the Sesan and Srepok rivers in Sesan District, Stung Treng Province may be ill-advised given the project’s poor feasibility process, which has not adequately considered the project’s negative environmental and social impacts and the needs of affected communities living up and downstream of the proposed dam-site, reveals a recently published report “Best Practices in Compensation and Resettlement for Large Dams: The Case of the Planned Lower Sesan 2 Hydropower Project in Northeastern Cambodia.” The report, c

African Development Bank’s Inspection Panel Accepts Complaint The African Development Bank's independent review mechanism, the CRMU1, has opened the door to a critical investigation into the EUR 1.55 billion Gibe 3 Dam. The unit has accepted a request for project investigation submitted by five international organizations. Management from the African Development Bank has until August 20 to respond to the CRMU, at which time the CRMU is expected to formally commence a full investigation of the Bank’s involvement in the controversial project. Construction of the 1,870 MW hydropower dam bega

In a bold outpouring of public concern for Southeast Asia's Mekong River, more than 16,000 people from within the six-country Mekong region and around the world have signed a "Save the Mekong" petition urging governments to abandon plans for hydropower development along the river's mainstream. The petition - written in seven languages - will be hand-delivered to Thailand's Prime Minister H.E. Abhisit Vejjajiva on 18 June in Bangkok, and sent to other government leaders within the region. Despite strong government backing for dam building on the Mekong River, over 10,000 people from within

Clarification on the European Investment Bank’s role in Ethiopia’s Gibe 3 DamA statement issued June 4 by the European Investment Bank contradicts a June 3 announcement made to Friends of Lake Turkana that the Bank had withdrawn its consideration of the Gibe 3 Dam in Ethiopia. The June 4 statement is consistent with the Bank’s efforts to conduct its operations on Gibe 3 and other controversial projects behind smoke and mirrors.EIB Communication on Gibe 3On March 4, 2009, Ikal Angelei, coordinator of Kenyan community group, Friends of Lake Turkana, sent a letter to the President of the EI

Five Destructive Dams Proposed in Delicate Patagonia Wilderness by Home Depot SuppliersHome Depot Urged to Take Their $50 Million Elsewhere to Avoid the World's Longest Clearcut(Atlanta, GA -- Thursday, May 28, 2009) -- Early this morning the nonprofit environmental organization International Rivers flew a giant "Dam Home Depot" banner over the company's annual shareholder meeting in Atlanta. Protesters also unfurled a banner and raised questions inside the shareholder's meeting, asking Home Depot executives to account for their role in supporting the destruction of Patagonia.The group is prot

CONTACT: Patrick McCully (International Rivers), +1 510 848 1155 In response to passage of the "American Clean Energy and Security Act" by the House Energy and Commerce Committee, a coalition of environmental, legal, consumer, and community advocacy groups released the following joint statement: “While a week of debate failed to adequately strengthen protections for consumers, communities, and the climate in this bill, it erased all doubt of who will benefit most from it: Big Business. Despite the best efforts of Chairman Waxman, the decision-making process was co-opted by oil and coal lobby

Spain's Banco Santander Criticized for Hypocrisy
 Funding Destructive Dam in the Amazon While Adopting Green Principles Washington, D.C.- Spain's Banco Santander, which has been facing growing criticism for being a lead financier in a highly controversial dam project in the Brazilian Amazon, recently signed on to the "Equator Principles," a set of socially and environmentally responsible financing guidelines adopted by a growing number of private banks. At an annual meeting of the Equator banks this week in Washington, D.C., environmental organizations are challengin

Dakar, Senegal - At the annual meeting of the African Development Bank (AfDB) in Dakar, a controversy erupted today over the Gibe 3 Dam, a large hydropower project in Ethiopia that the AfDB is considering funding. A coalition of African civil society groups in Dakar met with AfDB staff and warned that the dam would have devastating impacts on affected people and the environment in Southern Ethiopia and Northern Kenya. The groups called on the AfDB to reject funding for the dam when it takes up the project in June. The AfDB staff defended the Gibe 3 Dam and expressed hope that the project&#