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  MRC defends China over Thai floods: Mekong basin flooding worst in 100 years

Bangkok Post. Saturday August 16, 2008

APINYA WIPATAYOTIN

The Mekong River Commission (MRC) defended China's dam operations
yesterday which have been blamed by environmentalists for being a
cause of the severe flooding in Thailand's north and northeastern
provinces. The flooding is said to be the worst in 100 years in the
Mekong river basin.

''The current water levels are entirely the result of the
meteorological and hydrological conditions and were not caused by the
release of water from the Chinese dams, as their storage volume was
far too small to affect the flood hydrology of the Mekong,'' according
to an MRC statement released yesterday.

The flooding, which has wreaked havoc in Luang Prabang and Vientiane
in Laos, and in Chiang Rai, Nan, Loei, Nong Khai, and Mukdahan
provinces since early this week, was due to the above-average rainfall
during the first months of the monsoon season which saturated the
river catchments, providing a bigger flood runoff.

''These conditions resulted in high river levels than usual and were
compounded by tropical storm Kammuri between Aug 8-10,'' said the MRC
_ a river basin organisation.

The commission's member countries include Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam.

The commission's statement backs Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej and
the Water Resources Department's theory that the Mekong flooding had
nothing to do with the Chinese dams.

Mr Samak said yesterday that he believes the water runoff was caused
by an excessive amount of rainfall, not discharge from Chinese dams.

China has built three large-scale dams on the Mekong river_Manwan,
Dachaoshan, and Jinghong, which was just completed in June.

Locals and environmentalists here suspect the dams and the blasting of
the Mekong islets to clear the way for Chinese cargo ships navigating
up and down the Mekong was causing extreme highs and lows in the
Mekong.

Water Resources deputy chief Thanade Dawasuwan said a massive increase
in the water volume worsened the runoff and inundated the communities
along the Mekong, which is fed by many tributaries.

''Blaming China [for the floods] without solid evidence would only
hurt relations between the two countries,'' said Mr Thanade.

However, he admitted that the department only had little information
on Chinese dam operations.

''China is not a member of the MRC, so the agency cannot compel them
to disclose information. However, we will seek their cooperation and
reveal whatever information we can,'' he said.

Montree Chantawong, campaign coordinator of the Bangkok-based Towards
Ecological Recovery and Regional Alliance (Terra), said the current
flooding was proof that Chinese dams could not prevent flooding
downstream as the Chinese government had claimed.

Although it can't be said for sure if the Chinese dams were to blame
for the inundation, they are certainly contributing to the ecological
and hydrological changes in the river.

Meanwhile, the disaster prevention office in Nong Khai yesterday
declared three districts disaster zones after water from the Mekong
flooded the districts, causing damage to residential and agricultural
areas.

The Royal Irrigation Department reported that floodwaters in Chiang
Rai, Nan, and Loei were receding, but the situation in Nong Khai was
still very bad.

The department expects the situation to improve within a few days.
 
 

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