nam theun mega dam: bad news for
laotian farmers
friends of the earth france
nature that will
be impacted by the Nam Theun dam
|
Large dam projects have acquired a bad
reputation over the years.There is good
reason for this: the World Commission on
Dams found that some 40-80 million people
have been resettled for dam projects.
According to their 2000 report, “Indigenous
people and women have suffered
disproportionately from the impacts of dams
while often being excluded from the
benefits. Resettlement has caused extreme
economic hardship, community
disintegration, and an increase in mental
and physical health problems. Millions of
people living downstream of dams have also
suffered devastating impacts as a result of
disease, altered river flow, and loss of
natural resources such as fisheries. The
benefits of dams have largely gone to the
rich while the poor bear the costs.”
Yet the lure of huge financial projects
remains, and the World Bank, the European
Investment Bank and the Asian Development
Bank have pledged to fund the controversial
Nam Theun 2 project in Laos despite public
outcry.
|
The dam
is predicted to have enormous
consequences for the whole Mekong river
basin. Some 6,200 people will be
displaced when the reservoir is
flooded, and the livelihoods of more
than 100,000 local farmers are at risk.
Experience from other hydropower
projects in Laos shows that replacing
subsistence livelihoods is extremely
difficult. Villagers are being provided
with small plots of land, but reports
say that the soil is poorly suited for
crop production and high inputs of
fertilizer will be needed. There will
be insufficient land for grazing
villagers' livestock, including their
prized herds of buffalo.For downstream
communities, the project plans to
replace freshwater fisheries with
aquaculture. |
The people that
will be impacted by the Nam Theun
dam.
|
However, experiences in Laos and
elsewhere suggest that adoption of
aquaculture is a slow and gradual process
with environmental and social costs, and
that the poorest people often lack the
necessary land and capital resources.
Friends of the Earth, International
Rivers Network and others have been
campaigning to persuade funders not to
touch the project. According to Sebastian
Godinot of Friends of the Earth France ,
“This risky and complex project will not
benefit poor people, but rather the
country's elite and foreign companies.”
more information:
the
press
release
Les Amis de la Terre (in French):
www.amisdelaterre.org
International Rivers Network:
www.irn.org
