Progress Report 2006

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Environment Programme

The immediate objective of the Environment Programme is to ensure that the riparian governments have the capacity to secure a balance between economic development and protection of the environment to ensure a healthy Mekong River Basin capable of supporting the natural resource diversity and productivity which are central to the livelihoods of the people.

The Environment Programme has a two-pronged approach in that it is aiming to assist the Member States in fulfilling the articles in the 1995 Agreement related to the protection of the environment and maintaining the ecological balance of the basin. It is also supporting the other programmes through provision of environmental data and development of tools for environmental planning and management.

Assessment and monitoring of water quality and ecosystem health form an important basis for data provision. The programme also aims to improve environmental policy and management through advice to and promotion of cooperation among environmental agencies, directly supporting the BDP process.

Through compilation of existing knowledge and facilitation of research activities it also promotes a better understanding of the environmental and ecological aspects of the Basin.

The programme has five components:

• Environmental Monitoring and Assessment.
• Environmental Decision Support.
• People and Aquatic Ecosystems.
• Environmental Knowledge.
• Environmental Flows Management.

In 2006 the Environment Programme continued development of a water quality index based on its accumulated water quality monitoring network data. The Quality Assurance and Quality Control (QA/QC) system for the water quality monitoring network's laboratories' analytical accuracy is fully operational. As part of its ecological health monitoring work, the Environment Programme completed the second part of the three-year rotation covering the flood plains of Cambodia and the delta region, undertaking a water quality assessment which will be published in 2007.

The first part of the social impact monitoring, was completed 2006, will be complemented by field work in 2007. The framework of the guidelines for transboundary Environmental Impact Assessment (TbEIA) was essentially completed, and work on guidance and institutional support is continuing. The Programme undertook transboundary Environmental Risk Assessments (TbERA) for Chiang Rai/Bokeo area (Thailand/Lao PDR) and for Takeo/Chao Doc area (Cambodia/Viet Nam). The TbERA focused on water quality and the results will be finalised in early 2007. Upon request from the Cambodia National Mekong Committee the EP initiated a transboundary impact diagnostic study for the Sesan, Sre Pok and Sekong sub-basins in Cambodia, Lao PDR and Viet Nam. The results from the 2004-2005 monitoring of the water quality in the Sesan River were presented to government officials, NGOs and local residents at a workshop held in Rattanakiri, Cambodia. The results showed the water quality was still good, albeit it did not measure pathogens or filamentous algae.

The EP also took the lead in coordinating awareness raising and capacity development in conflict management and mitigation, which has now become part of the capacity building at the MRC Secretariat and which the EP together with other programmes will build on in 2007.

Information on wetland economic values was collated and added to the wetland database, which will be linked to the wetlands maps and will be combined with the wetland valuation as a tool for BDP Phase 2. The vulnerability assessment continues focussing on spatial aspects of dependence on aquatic resources.

Work on the environmental impact of tourism was also initiated in 2006 under this component. The Environment Programme Annual Technical Meeting for 2006 was held in January 2007 in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The delay was due to clashes with other important meetings in late 2006. The meeting heard reports on water quality, ecological health, wetland valuation and Integrated Basin Flow Management (IBFM). The proceedings will be ready in early 2007.

Based on identified knowledge gaps, IBFM work in 2006 focused on improving hydrological modelling, sediment and geomorphology and fisheries studies. The IBFM team also initiated development of a database-driven expert tool for Environmental Flows Assessment in the Mekong River Basin, called "The Mekong Method". The IBFM work included modelling, research and field investigations guided by feedback from stakeholder consultations, which were undertaken in parallel to the research programme. A set of easy-to-read and understand booklets and a brochure on the IBFM initiative was prepared and will be disseminated in early 2007.

The flow assessments possible through the IBFM tools together with development and management plans developed based on such assessments will ensure that longer term impacts are anticipated and a proper trade-offs analysis can be performed contributing to sustainable development under the Mekong cooperation.

The Environment Programme is funded by the governments of Denmark, the Netherlands, Sweden and the United Nations Development Programme.