Fact sheet

China's Nu River Fact Sheet

Friday, October 31, 2014
Known as the Salween River in Burma and Thailand, the Nu River stretches over 3,200 kilometers from its origins on the Tibetan Plateau to its delta at the Andaman Sea in Burma. It is the second longest river in Southeast Asia and is one of only two undammed rivers in China. Yet the Chinese government has plans to build up to 13 dams on one of China's last free-flowing rivers. This fact sheet outlines the potential impacts of the dams, alternatives to the dams for meeting China's energy needs and what you can do about it.

Salween River Dams

Burma’s repressive military dictatorship, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), the state-owned Energy Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT), and the Chinese state-owned enterprise Sinohydro Corporation are pushing ahead quickly and secretively with plans to build a series of large dams in civil war zones on the Salween River in Burma.

Damming the Sesan River: Impacts in Cambodia and Vietnam

Tuesday, October 1, 2002
More than 55,000 people in Cambodia and Vietnam have suffered severe impacts to their livelihoods because of the Yali Falls Dam in Vietnam. Dam operation has altered the hydrology and water quality of the Sesan River, causing deaths to villagers and livestock and the flooding of rice fields and vegetable gardens. Affected communities have not received compensation for their losses, and there are no plans to provide them with compensation for past or future impacts. Despite the unresolved issues, the government of Vietnam has embarked on an ambitious plan to build up to five more dams on the Se

Lancang River Dams: Threatening the Flow of the Lower Mekong

Thursday, August 1, 2013
The Mekong River, known as the Lancang in China, is the heart and soul of mainland Southeast Asia. While countries in the lower stretch of the river have yet to complete a dam on the mainstream Mekong, China has already built six dams on the Lancang. At least 14 more dams are in the pipeline to be completed in the next five to 10 years. Despite concerns over hydrological impacts, sedimentation, water security and fish migrations, China has yet to share any significant information on how the Lancang dams are affecting its downstream neighbors.

Navigation Project Threatens Livelihoods, Ecosystem

Tuesday, October 1, 2002
Blasting of rapids for a planned shipping channel on the Upper Mekong River threatens to undermine people’s livelihoods and destroy the complex river ecosystem. The Upper Mekong Navigation Improvement Project, funded by the Chinese government, is part of a grand scheme to allow large ships to freely navigate from Simao, China to Luang Prabang in Laos. The first stage of the project has destroyed 10 major rapids and 10 scattered reefs along a 331-kilometer section of the Mekong from the China-Burma border to Ban Houayxai in Laos. This 2002 Fact Sheet describes the project and its impacts.

Damning the Zambezi: Risks Outweigh Benefits of Proposed Mphanda Nkuwa Dam

Monday, July 31, 2006
A 4-page fact sheet on the project, produced in October 2006. Download the English version Download the Portuguese version

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