Fears that dams cause or exacerbate unseasonal flooding prompt Chinese embassy in Bangkok to issue statement.

By Probe International

Flash floods and mudslides across 10 provinces in Thailand since mid-August have prompted the Chinese embassy in Bangkok to deny water releases from the country’s upriver Jinghong Dam were involved.

Heavy monsoon rains have wreaked havoc in Thailand’s north and south, causing widespread damage, killing 22 people and injuring 19. Flooding along the banks of the Mekong have once again raised concerns about the proliferation of hydropower dams along China’s stretch of the river, known as the Lancang.

During a visit to a flooded area in the northern province of Chiang Rai, former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra suggested unusually high water levels in the Mekong River could have resulted from China releasing excess water due to its own flooding concerns.

The Chinese embassy’s denial, while not directly addressing Thaksin’s comments, clarified that recent floods in Thailand were not influenced by water discharges from the Jinghong Dam. Embassy representatives noted various state agencies had confirmed that Chinese rivers and reservoirs were at normal levels for this time of year. “The average daily outflow from Jinghong Dam has decreased by 60% compared to August last year,” the embassy stated. “No additional water has been released recently.”

Accusations that China’s dams cause unseasonal flooding, as well as droughts, are frequent. The Jinghong dam in the province of Yunnan, with its close proximity to the Thai border, is a particular target of such fears.

Kru Tee, known as Teacher Tee, a Mekong educator and activist awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize in 2022 for his efforts to stop the China-led Upper Mekong River rapids blasting project, has tracked the river’s changing fortunes for decades. In an interview with Radio Free Asia, he said he noticed the river “dry up” when the Manwan dam in Yunnan province (China’s first mainstream hydro project on the Mekong) first filled its reservoir in 1993. When the Jinghong dam was completed in 2009, unseasonal flooding downstream culminated in a 13-meter surge, scouring away riverbank homes and gardens. In 2011, when the Mekong again ran dry, Kru Tee went to investigate for himself. Officials, he said, blamed climate change. The Salween (also known as the Nu and Thanlwin), a transboundary river shared by China, Myanmar (Burma) and Thailand—the longest undammed river in mainland Southeast Asia—remained full, he said. The only difference between the Salween and Mekong: dams.

“The fish can’t stay. This is becoming something other than the Mekong River,” Kru Tee told RFA. “If the Mekong has so many dams, then maybe its name is no longer Mekong. Maybe we need a new name, the ‘Me Nam Can Kwam Tay,’ or the death of a river.”

Beyond the shared rivers of the Mekong and Salween, Thailand is of strategic importance to China’s ambitions for the South China Sea (SCS). The Strait of Malacca, the shortest shipping route connecting main Chinese ports to European and Middle Eastern markets, lies adjacent to the Thai coast. A strong relationship with Bangkok is part of Beijing’s strategy to secure its influence in the SCS region. Meanwhile, Thailand’s trade in goods (the lion’s share of the country’s GDP) relies on ease of navigation through these waters.