Laos builds third hydropower dam, threatening Mekong River in VNVietNamNet Bridge - Vietnam needs to find solutions to the increasing number of hydropower dams being built in regional countries, according to Dr Vu Trong Hong, chair of the Vietnam Water Resources Association, and former Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. Laos is preparing to build the third hydropower dam on Mekong mainstream early next year, despite warnings.The expert imagines a gloomy future for Mekong once countries continue building hydropower plants on it. What Vietnam needs to do is to adapt to the new circumstances, by storing water in flood season to be used in dry season. “Mekong will die, step by step,” he said.“In dry season, hydropower developers will store water to generate electricity. The ecological current helps wash away toxins and bring salinity into the sea.However, in the future, when Laos runs its hydropower plants, the current capacity would reduce to several hundreds of cubic meters per second only.This would turn Mekong into a dead river.

Source: VietNamNet News July 27, 2016 00:22 UTC