Killing the Mekong

We watched a very powerful film by our friend, Tom Fawthrop, "Where have all the fish gone, Killing the Mekong Dam by Dam".  Tom packs a great deal of information into this 23 minute documentary.  Dams on the Mekong in China are already causing changes on the Mekong and planned hydroelectric dams in Laos and Cambodia will very likely wreak ecological damage.  Cambodians are dependent on fish from the Mekong and Tonle Sap for much of their protein.  Annually during the rainy season, the powerful Mekong forces the Tonle Sap river to reverse flow and the Great Lake, the Tonle Sap, enlarges to 4-5 times its size during low water.  Thousands of fish ponds are created.  These fish then swim down the Tonle Sap and up the Mekong.  Land surrounding the Tonle Sap is enriched with sediment from the river.   All that will likely dry up if planned construction of dams along the Mekong continues.  Many fish species, including the iconic Mekong River catfish, will become extinct.  The revered Irrawaddy dolphins at Kratie will disappear.  Go to www.savethemekong.org for more details and see how you can help.  "Save the Mekong coalition urges the Mekong governments to keep the Mekong flowing freely to save this critical source of food, income and life for present and future generations".