Category Archives: China “Going Out”

Myitsone cancellation sends a message to China

(October 22, 2011) The recent suspension of the Myitsone dam in Myanmar shows just how unpopular China’s international dam-builders are becoming. In recent years, China has built a spate of new hydropower projects on rivers outside its borders, without much concern for their ecological and economic impacts downstream. Myitsone is a sign of growing resistance to these projects. Continue reading

Posted in China "Going Out", China's Dams | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Dam postponement seen as rebuke to Beijing

Myanmar’s announced cancellation of the Myitsone dam on the Irrawaddy River has brought long-standing tensions with China into the open – including setting off conflicts with the Kachin Independence Organization in the north of the country. “It may be that the Myanmar government sees Chinese investment, in particular the Myitsone dam, as a destabilising force,” said Patricia Adams. Continue reading

Posted in China "Going Out", China's Dams, Probe International in the News, Rule of Law | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Joy amid caution as Burmese halt Chinese mega-dam

(October 8, 2011) The Burmese president announced that the controversial Chinese-financed Myitsone dam on the Irrawaddy River would be suspended. Now the Chinese government is threatening legal action if the rights and interests of its state enterprises aren’t protected. Continue reading

Posted in China "Going Out", China's Dams, Mekong Utility Watch, Probe International in the News | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi urges Burma to save the Irrawaddy

(August 16, 2011) Burma’s pro-democracy leader and Nobel Peace laureate, Aung San Suu Kyi, has called for a reassessment of Burma’s massive 6,000 MW Irrawaddy Myitsone dam project. Continue reading

Posted in China "Going Out", Dams and Landslides, Mekong Utility Watch | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Sinohydro denies Malaysian dam unsafe

(June 20, 2011) The practice of adding excessive water to cement – regarded as unsafe by the construction industry – was endemic in the building of Malaysia’s biggest dam, a new exposé claims. Continue reading

Posted in China "Going Out" | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

China and the Cascading Geopolitics of Lower Mekong Dams

(May 10, 2011) Much has been written on the downstream impact of China’s dams on the Lancang-Mekong River, which flows through or along the borders of five other countries after exiting China. Most of the discussion relates to the hydrological impact of impounding water in the eight dams along the mainstream Lancang Jiang in Yunnan Province. Continue reading

Posted in China "Going Out", China's Dams, Mekong Utility Watch | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ethiopia: The Politics of Ethiopian Grand Millennium Dam

(March 26, 2011) Several days ago, an acquaintance called to invite me to participate the next day in a panel discussion prepared by Deutsche Welle’s Amharic service program. The panel was to discuss about the Ethiopian Grand Millennium Dam (GMD). I was told that I was approached because of my training and practice in Water Resources Engineering. Continue reading

Posted in China "Going Out", Three Gorges Probe | Tagged , | Leave a comment

China outsources its pollution

(March 25, 2011) In an effort to reduce air pollution, the Chinese government has found a way to outsource its problem. Continue reading

Posted in China "Going Out", Mekong Utility Watch | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments