Conversations on Vietnam Development
Water levels have fluctuated sharply with testing, but some are encouraged that China gave warning of its plan.
![People along the Mekong are struggling with sharply fluctuation water levels as China tests dam equipment. This Thai woman said her garden on the river bank was damaged by flash floods as water was released from the upstream dam [International Rivers via Al Jazeera]](https://www.aljazeera.com/mritems/imagecache/mbdxxlarge/mritems/Images/2020/1/12/eddfd6d2107149b2bb16d84b2343fdce_18.jpg "Mekong communities struggle as China tests dam equipment")
Phnom Penh, Cambodia – Water levels on the Mekong River, which flows through China and five other countries before emptying into the South China Sea, have dropped once again after Beijing revealed it was testing equipment at one of its 11 dams in the upper reaches of the vital waterway.
Tiếp tục đọc “Mekong communities struggle as China tests dam equipment”
“Chúng không chết nhưng cũng không lớn nổi”, Hủ nói, ném lại những con tôm bé hơn ngón tay út xuống hồ. Đó là lần thả lưới thứ ba trong ngày, mới có vài con tôm vướng lưới.
Như nhiều nông dân khác ở Đồng bằng sông Cửu Long, Trần Văn Hủ đã từng chuyển đổi từ hai vụ lúa sang một vụ lúa một vụ tôm, rồi cuối cùng chuyển hẳn sang quảng canh tôm. Đất nhiễm mặn, cây lúa cho năng suất thấp. Nước ngọt ngày càng khan hiếm mà cây lúa lại tiêu tốn nhiều nước. Tiếp tục đọc “Hạ nguồn Mekong trong cơn khát vô tận của Bắc Kinh”
TĐH: We don’t hear discussion on the VNese media about this China-pushed five-year development plan at all. I wonder if Vietnam will have a public discussion about this plan, or whoever attending the LMC summit will just simply approve the plan on behalf of Vietnam?
scmp: Five-year development plan, including construction of hydropower dams, is expected to top agenda at Mekong River nations’ conference in Cambodia
When China and the leaders of nations along the Mekong River meet on Wednesday at the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation summit in Cambodia, a top item will be mapping out a five-year development plan that would include building hydropower dams and other projects for the region – pointing to its importance in China’s ambitious belt and road infrastructure plan.
Concern is growing that the potential for causing ecological damage will make the Mekong a flashpoint for China and Southeast Asia’s territorial disputes – effectively creating a new South China Sea.
China pledges billions to Mekong River countries in bid to boost influence and repair reputation
Amid the backdrop of the river’s importance in connecting Europe through Southeast Asia and beyond in the grand infrastructure programme launched by President Xi Jinping, Chinese delegation leader Premier Li Keqiang will be looking to bolster China’s influence in the Mekong region as he faces his counterparts from Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, Laos and Myanmar.
Here are five key things to know about the summit and the significance of the Mekong River:
1. The river’s significance for China and Southeast Asia
Tiếp tục đọc “Five things to know about the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation summit”
CGIAR (consultative Group in Agriculture Research)
Link to Mekong Hydropwer Map and Portal
Series of “State of knowledge” on Mekong:
1. The Impact of Dams on the Mekong
2. Mekong sediment basics
3. Corporate social responsibility in Mekong hydropower development
4. China’s Influence on Hydropower Development in the Lancang River and Lower Mekong River Basin
CVD 