The Mekong

Jul 11, 2007
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Hello David,

Amazing from your previous pics of April. Wish it would be as magnificent in 2 months time.

Any fresh news about the bridge opening?

Cheers, Lung Jack.
 

DavidFL

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The Mekong R211, Nong Khai - Chiang Khan.
28 November 2013

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DavidFL

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Davidfl;255096 wrote: 1st APRIL 2010. On the way back from Vietnam.

ROUTE 211 Nong Khai - Chiang Khan.

Hot 'n dry & little water in the 'Khong.

The Don Chan Palace hotel, from Sri Chiang Mai.
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FURTHER DOWNSTREAM & The 500 baht question - where is this / taken from?
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Chiang Khan & the "dry" Kaeng Khut Ku rapids
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where are the rapids?

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The beach upstream from the rapids
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A comparison from the GTR Mekong Boat Trip Part 3.
24th MAY 2014

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Wat Pha Tak Suea

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from where these pics below were taken

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The Kaeng Khut Ku rapids in the dry

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& sailing through on 24th May 2014

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See the full GTR Trip Report here
enjoy, the Mekong is a magnificent river to sail, ride & just watch.
 
Last edited:
Feb 8, 2009
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The Mekong 10 km before Pakbeng

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The ferry near Pakbeng ( Laos)

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Pakbeng

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Between Xieng Kok and Xieng Dao ( North Laos)

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Down to the ferry near Luangprabang

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The ferry to LPB.

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And somtimes you see this. A man killed in China or Laos, Burma ?? Fix on a bamboo raft ( see the string over his ass ) But this is a crazy story - coming later.
 
Feb 8, 2009
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Part 2
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Sunset at the riverside LPB

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Sunset Vientiane

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Sunset Thakhek ( Laos ) with a lot of trash

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On the other side Nakhon Phanom (Thailand)
 

DavidFL

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23 August 2015
Huai Sai Mann viewpoint

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The Golden Triangle from the Lao side

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DavidFL

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Luang Prabang 20 December 2015

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The Mekong Luang Prabang

the best sunset views are from the Viradesa Riverside Sunset restaurant

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Luang Prabang Sunset from the Viradesa Riverside Sunset

21 December 2015 - as good as it gets!

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Luang Prabang Sunset from the Viradesa Riverside Sunset

downstream the Ock Pop Tok has a nice sun deck at their handicraft centre

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Ock Pop Tok, Luang Prabang

22 December 2015. An Ock Pop Tok view upstream

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a sensational downstream view from Ock Pop Tok

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Ock Pop Tok, Luang Prabang

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Ock Pop Tok, Luang Prabang
 
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DavidFL

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Chiang Khong February 2017

The bridge downstream from Pak Ing
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Houei Xai
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A timeless village water life
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On the 5th Feb they had a small protest in Chiang Khong against the (Chinese) proposed blasting of all the river rapids & rocks between Chiang Saen & Chiang Khong
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Riverside village elders conducted a spirit ceremony to bless the Mekong.
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There was loads of info (in Thai) on the value of saving the Mekong rocks & rapids.
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One excellent chart listed all the different species of fauna & fish that inhabited the various sections of the river & the list is truly amazing.
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There was plenty of media coverage
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The finale for the day
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Some media articles on the proposed destruction of the river rocks & rapids.

Mekong projects must take impact on environment into account - The Nation

The soul of the Mekong is in serious trouble

Tom Fawthrop's excellent article
https://scroll.in/article/828460/me...the-river-to-make-way-for-chinese-cargo-boats

Tom's Eureka Film on the Mekong dams
 

DavidFL

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Chiang Khong February 2017

The bridge downstream from Pak Ing
GTR%20-%20IMG_8318.jpg


GTR%20-%20IMG_8309.jpg


Houei Xai
GTR%20-%20IMG_8288.jpg


A timeless village water life
GTR%20-%20IMG_8322.jpg


On the 5th Feb they had a small protest in Chiang Khong against the (Chinese) proposed blasting of all the river rapids & rocks between Chiang Saen & Chiang Khong
GTR%20-%20IMG_8297.jpg


16406897_10155116145713755_319128108470197877_n.jpg


GTR%20-%20IMG_8298.jpg


Riverside village elders conducted a spirit ceremony to bless the Mekong.
GTR%20-%20IMG_8304.jpg


There was loads of info (in Thai) on the value of saving the Mekong rocks & rapids.
16473859_10155115518483755_8868778574156432635_n.jpg


One excellent chart listed all the different species of fauna & fish that inhabited the various sections of the river & the list is truly amazing.
BBBB16426056_10155115518163755_2781060436518483369_n.jpg


There was plenty of media coverage
16473568_10155116146228755_7024984266980824807_n.jpg




The finale for the day
16473715_10155116146253755_6303576716281441408_n.jpg


Some media articles on the proposed destruction of the river rocks & rapids.

Mekong projects must take impact on environment into account - The Nation

The soul of the Mekong is in serious trouble

Tom Fawthrop's excellent article
Mekong in crisis: Thailand plans to blast isles in the river to make way for Chinese cargo boats

Tom's Eureka Film on the Mekong dams

Tom Fawthrop was one of the journalists at the protest.
Here is another good article from Tom on the Mekong & the dams.

Killing the Mekong dam by dam - The Nation

Killing the Mekong dam by dam
Will it bring economic benefits or will the losses outweigh the gains?

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Down the ages the mighty Mekong has beguiled explorers and locals alike with its swirling rapids, rocky inlets and dotted islets. Currents, reefs and rocks have repeatedly thwarted attempts at smooth navigation since French colonial times.

But today the natural landscape and rich biodiversity of the region’s longest river are under serious threat from both commercial plans for rock-blasting and a cascade of hydro-dams, which would combine to transform a free-flowing river into a series of reservoirs linked by canalisation.

Marc Goichot, chief water resources expert for the World Wildlife Fund Mekong region, sums up the river’s acute crisis: “Today, water quality is degrading fast. The drought in 2015 was the worst on record, floods are more frequent, fish catches are declining and the entire riverbed and river bank are eroding. The Mekong delta is literally sinking and shrinking.”

The river is reeling under the impacts from two new dams under construction on the lower Mekong in Laos – the Xayaburi and the Don Sahong dams. And a Chinese project at Pak Beng in Laos will be launched by the end of this year, in addition to the seven existing dams upstream in China.

The rush to unleash an unregulated cascade of 11 dams on the lower Mekong is inflicting irreversible harm on the region’s most important river.

Water resources and river governance
A recent WWF report sought to remind governments and the business sector that it is not only the ecology that will be destroyed. In the long-term there will be serious losses to the economy as well.

“Economic growth in the Greater Mekong region depends on the Mekong River, but unsustainable and uncoordinated development is pushing the river system to the brink.”

Meanwhile a Finnish study reports that hydrology of the river has suffered major changes from Chinese dams. The annual flood pulse during the monsoon season has been seriously disrupted by reduced water flow.

Fisheries experts have warned that this will erode food security for the 60 million people living in the Mekong basin.

The lack of good governance and riverine regulation has led to excessive sand-mining for the construction industry in China, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. This deprives the Mekong of essential sediment needed for the preservation of a healthy river.

These business decisions take place without any prior consultation with environmental agencies, local communities or any knowledge of the damage being done to the river.

Stuart Orr, a co- author of the WWF report says: “Governments, companies and communities in the Mekong region must come together to develop joint solutions to water governance challenges”, instead of the current fragmentation of decision-making between the Mekong River countries, investors and planners.

At its inception in 1995, it was hoped that the Mekong River Commission (MRC) would achieve a spirit of cooperation for the common good of all stakeholders and protection of the river’s ecology. But its lack of regulatory powers, and lacklustre leadership has spurred a passive response to the fate of the region’s longest river, and over-exploitation for commercial development.

China’s grand plan to remove all obstacles to navigation – rocks reefs and rapids – has gained general approval from Thailand, without any prior study of the importance of the river’s biodiversity. Goods do not have to be transported by the waterway, since there are already viable alternative road routes while major rail lines through Laos and Thailand are in the pipeline. But wild birds, fish and other species that thrive on the islets of a free-flowing river have no alternatives. This biodiversity, once gone, is irreplaceable.

Mekong experts say that in order to forge a consensus on responsible business and more ethical investment, companies should be offered economic incentives with taxes and compliance offsets to foster integrated economic planning that is sensitive to environmental impacts, prior to any major investment decision being taken.

Current practice permits governments and investors to build a dam first and consider the environmental consequences later.

In the case of the Xayaburi and Don Sahong dams in Laos, the decision on construction was taken prior to any consultation with riparian neighbours, resulting in a seriously weakened MRC-consultation process. The other Mekong stakeholders were merely invited to offer suggestions on how to limit the environmental damage – and denied any voice on the more substantive issue of whether the dam projects should go ahead or be stopped.

The fundamental flaw in this approach is the peremptory dismissal of the stand taken by millions of Mekong citizens living downstream in Cambodia, Vietnam and eight Thai provinces bordering the river, who did not believe the developers’ claim that construction would bring only minor impacts.

Most debate on the future of the Mekong has turned on such arguments as “trade-offs” between the ecology and the economy, based on an unproven assumption that environmental harm and fisheries can be easily mitigated.

Natural Mekong fisheries in the four MRC countries are worth a total $11 billion per year. If we incorporate fish farming, that figure increases to $17 billion.

But can the world’s most valuable freshwater fisheries, on whom 60 million people depend for food security, survive the threats posed by the dams?

Dr Martin Mallen-Cooper, a fisheries specialist and research professor at Australia’s Charles Sturt University, is sceptical: “Assessment and mitigation of impacts are not a priority for developers of Mekong dams and impacts are often poorly understood.”​
 
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Jurgen

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Sad story for the Golden Triangle backbone ... and globally down to the Delta. It is just published after the Chinese government decided to protect a large part of their own country...after looting the neighbors