Starting in Tibet and finishing up in Vietnam, the Mekong river affects the lives of around 60 million people, amongst the poorest individuals on the face on the earth. One of the world’s longest rivers, Mekong also runs through China, Burma, Laos and Thailand. This precious wetland serves for various vital activities such as irrigation, fishing, transportation, industrial and domestic supply of water. Navigation often becomes hazardous and difficult due to continuous weather alternations and the presences of rapids and waterfalls. The Mekong river foster one of the most important areas of biodiversity on earth.
Along the course of the Mekong river, one has the pleasure to discover sediments of history that are still partly living today; from the Tibetan nomad culture to the ancient Kingdom of Siam, the river fosters an incredible quantity of fish species that assure the survival of most of the local communities from the six different countries. The river is also the home of the world’s largest freshwater fish, “ the Mekong giant catfish that is distinguished by the near-total lack of whisker-like barbells, the absence of teeth and its gigantic size” (Source: http://www.worldwildlife.org/what/wherewework/mekong/species.html). This unusual specie that can reach 600 pounds and grown the size of a grizzly bear, can feed an entire village for at least a week. The future of this unique specimen is at risk, due to the various flood control schemes, dams and other changes created by human kind in order to gain control over the river. Another endangered species living in the pool of the Mekong River is the Irrawaddy dolphin that is often known as the “river dolphin”. This slow swimmer’s life is at risk, and its population is “estimated to be as low as 70 to 100 individuals” (Source: http://www.worldwildlife.org/what/wherewework/mekong/species.html). The dolphin is in high demand in zoos and aquariums that often seem to forget that even limited trade is now prohibited because the specie is so endangered. You can adopt a toy Mekong Dolphin in order to help raising money for their survival at http://www.worldwildlife.org/ogc/species_SKU.cfm?gid=68&sc=AWY1100WC900.
These two species are only a tinny examples of all the treasures buried inside this long river. The cultural, social and commercial value of this wetland is gigantic; courted by many stakeholders the future of the Mekong River is at risk without a proper conservation plan.
For this reason, on 5 April 1995, was founded The Mekong River Commission (MRC), an official agreement between Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam. These states signed The Agreement on the Cooperation for the Sustainable Development of the Mekong River Basin in order to come up with a joint management plan to share water resources and the development of the river. This association aims at promoting regional cooperation and its goals are also to “promote and support coordinated, sustainable and pro-poor development, to strengthen basin-wide environmental monitoring and impact assessment and to strengthen the Integrated Water Resources Management capacity and knowledge base on the MRC bodies “ (Source: http://www.mrcmekong.org/). In addition to this organization, the WWF is also working hard in order to address the threats facing the long-term sustainable survival of the river and all its precious resources. Indeed, the WWF Living Mekong Programme is working in partnership with the MRC in order to achieve a set of goals that comprehend: sustainable river basin management, the conservation of freshwater ecosystems while raising awareness on these issues amongst the local populations and all the interested stakeholders.
A strong interest for hydropower development in the lower part of the basin is dividing many invidious stakeholders around the world amongst private and public companies. In order to mitigate the demand, the MRC has launched the Initiative on Sustainable Hydropower (ISH) in order to study the potential side effects of a large-scale hydropower development and to come up with a basin management strategy. This initiative serves as a fundamental funnel for ideas and proposal where dialogue and communication is much needed in order to compromise economical interests with the ones of the conservation of the river and all its ecosystems.
Any sort of development and action plant taken to modify the course of the river, the balance of its rich biodiversity could have a life-changing impact on the lives of 60 million people and on the survival of various precious endangered species. This rich wetland is worth a lot from an economical standpoint. States need to remember that a violent over-exploitation could but an end to all the precious resources the river has to offer. Nature is generous only if it is treated with respect and dignity.
