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CIAO DATE: 11/05
River at risk: the Mekong and the Water Politics of China and Southeast Asia
Milton Osborne
August 2004
Abstract
By the middle of March 2004 there was growing concern in Thailand, Laos and Cambodia about the level of the Mekong River. Poor rains in the wet season of 2003 and a subsequent protracted dry period appeared to be largely to blame for the sharply lower level of water in the Mekong by comparison with 'normal' years. But the unusually dry season may not have been the only factor at work. Offi cials in Thailand have claimed that Chinese authorities have endeavoured to limit the fl ow of water out of the dams already built on the Mekong in China's Yunnan province, as they undertake new dam construction and continue work to clear the river of obstacles to navigation. At the same time, Thai offi cials suggest that unusual volatility in the river's fl ow refl ects the manner in which China has been closing its dam gates. Gates are closed for three days, before opening them for one day to allow Chinese cargo vessels to travel to and from river ports in the southern Yunnan province and northern Thailand.
