Washington, April 9 (ANI): The construction of a large hydroelectric dam in Laos might endanger the existence of the Mekong giant catfish, which is the worlds largest catfish species.
According to a report in National Geographic News, the Don Sahong dam, being constructed at Khone Falls in Laos, would permanently alter one of the most pristine areas in Southeast Asia.
The dam is one of several being planned on the mostly untouched Mekong River, which meanders through six countriesChina, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam.
The Don Sahong dam, which is one of five dams that Laos is planning along the Mekong, will block the deepest channel on the section of the river that migratory fish pass through when the water level is at its lowest, according to conservationists.
One of those migratory fish is the critically endangered Mekong giant catfish, which holds the record as the largest freshwater fish ever caught.
The record catch, made in northern Thailand in 2005, tipped the scales at 646 pounds (293 kilograms).
An impassable dam at the falls could cause the extinction of the Mekong giant catfish species, said Zeb Hogan, a fisheries biologist at the University of Nevada in Reno.
According to Hogan, giant catfish were once plentiful throughout the Mekong River basin, but in the last century, the population has declined 95 to 99 percent.
Though fishermen do not target the massive fish, it is sometimes caught as a bycatch. In Cambodia, where the largest population of giant catfish is found, eight of the giant fish were caught last year.
Although fishing is the biggest immediate threat to the giant catfish in the Mekong, dams and habitat fragmentation could disrupt the animals ability to reproduce, said Hogan.
Hogan indicates that there is only one known spawning ground for Mekong giant catfish, which is in northern Thailand.
Until we know better, we have to assume that fish from Cambodia may migrate to Thailand to spawn, he said.
The construction of the Don Sahong dam, which is slated for completion in 2010, would make that migration impossible, Hogan added.
The dam will block Hoo Sahong, the deepest channel and the only one that migratory fish can pass through at the peak of the dry season, in April and May, when the Mekong is at its lowest.
From a migratory fishs perspective, there is nothing worse than a dam, said Hogan. (ANI)
i sincerely think that developing hydroelectricity in laos is a good thing. Hydroelectricity is one of the less bad way to produce electricity (cheap and can be not too bad for environement)
But i also think no one should never build a dam directly over mekong river, because in this case, the environmental impact can be tremendous and all people living along the mekong can suffer a lot from this change.
Hydroelectricity is far far from being perfect, so developping hydrolectricity reasonably is ok, but launch too big and or too many project chan have dramatic consequences!
I am getting sick of the dam construction business, it's now 21st century. Can't Lao government find a better technology to use rather than building the dams, dams will have devastated affects to everything, the fish, the forests, the animals, the local people lively hood and people who live further down the river. Laos is only a very small country, how many hydroelectric dams do we need? The government slogan is: (pa tait Lao hung mee tem pai duoy puu par parr mi) Laos is rich of mountains, cliffs and forests, now there are only mountains and cliffs, not much trees left to be seen. I guess since there isn't much trees left, there's no more income for the country, they have to do something to sell to other countries.
Dams are very expensive to build but it is renewable energy. It's not good for people that live around the area and it can also harm the natural environment. Ecosystems are altered and these giant cat fish are rare. I think that we need to find a way to help preserve these rare species of catfish. Why dont the Lao Gov. build wind turbines instead, its cheaper and plus its still renewable energy.
solar panel is the future of energy, especialy for Laos who have lot of sun! New generation of solar panels will be soon much much cheaper than previous ones... much more interesting on an economical point of view
