Written by: Thin Lei Win
BANGKOK (AlertNet) - A planned hydropower dam in northeast Cambodia could displace around 5,000 people, create health problems from poor water quality and sharply reduce fish stocks which would lead to a rise in poverty and hunger for tens of thousands of villagers, campaigners and academics said.
Vietnam has said it will invest $600 million to build two hydropower plants on the lower Sesan river in neighbouring Cambodia, which are expected to produce over 500 MW of electricity.
The Cambodian government, which sees hydropower development as a top priority, is currently studying feasibility plans for the dams. Once completed, the Lower Sesan 1 and 2 plants will feed several areas in Cambodia and Vietnam, one of the region's most fastest-growing economies.
The NGO Forum on Cambodia (NGOF) says the 75-m Lower Sesan 2 plant may have a negative effect on fisheries as far downstream as the Mekong Delta in Vietnam -- the rice bowl of the country -- and as far upstream as Laos and Thailand in a report it launched on Wednesday.
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