The consultation process for Laos' proposed Don Sahong dam, held in Bangkok yesterday, ended with the Department of Water Resources declaring it would oppose the project on behalf of many Thais.
Residents of Ubon Ratchathani's Phibun Mangsahan district protest against the controversial Don Sahong dam in Laos during a forum held at the Army Club on Vibhavadi Rangsit Road yesterday. Patipat Janthong
Department chief Chatuporn Buruspat, who chaired the consultation meeting at the Royal Army Club in Bangkok yesterday, said the dam could result in severe impacts on the ecological system and fishing culture along the Mekong River, which is why most people in Thailand oppose it.
A major concern of Thai stakeholders is the dam will destroy fish migration routes in the river, threatening the supply of food for people living along the banks, he said.
No clear trans-boundary impact assessment of the project has been done, and this is where the Laos government has failed to defend its project.
A study showing the trans-boundary impacts covering environmental, economic, cultural and living conditions for communities who depend on the river was needed, he said.
Nor was there any study showing the impacts which building the dam on the upper Mekong will have, he added.
The department has been working with Kasetsart University to study the ecological impacts of dams on the Mekong River, which it plans to use as evidence to back its argument.
At the forum yesterday, locals and activists questioned how the department and Mekong River Commission (MRC) plan to take responsibility for the impacts which the dams will have on people's lives and whether the Thai government has a rehabilitation scheme to help locals.
They also asked whether an international law can be cited to stop the project.
They said the consultation process should be changed to receive actual responses from stakeholders.
Members of the Pak Moon dam's Assembly of the Poor, who attended the forum, expressed their disappointment with the department's consultation process, saying locals who are directly affected by the dam did not attend the meeting.
Moreover, they said representatives from Laos should have been invited to answer any questions which the Thai authorities could not answer.
Kritsakorn Silalak, of the assembly, asked the department to extend the period of consultation until a trans-boundary impact study had been completed.
"There is no need to hurry, if the department wants to protect the country, because the impacts from the dam are immense," he said.
He also urged the Thai government to oppose the Don Sahong dam, adding local people would also submit a letter of protest to the Lao government over the planned project.
The Lao government plans to construct the run-of-the-river dam at Don Sahong, which is home to many fish in the river.
Mr Chatuporn said the department welcomes additional suggestions by stakeholders.
Their views will be included in the final report which will go to the MRC after Jan 24, the deadline for the end of the consultation procedure.
He insisted the department has done its best to protect the country's interests and people.
Activists asked the department to extend the consultation period until a study of the ecological impacts and affect on their livelihood was completed.
The request was turned down.
The Lao government earlier disagreed that a prior consultation procedure should be carried out by the MRC but it eventually decided to conduct the procedure in Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia after heavy pressure.