While Implementation of the proposed hydropower schemes on the mainstream Mekong brings potential opportunities for economic development, mainly with improved electricity supply and navigation, the projects will inevitably be accompanied by major risks in the four Member Countries. Some of these may include:
Any mainstream development, such as the proposed 11 mainstream hydropower dams, are subject to rigorous prior consultation that aims at arriving at an agreement by the Joint Committee of the MRC. The National Mekong Committees are the submitting parties. The PNPCA process is triggered when the preparation of a mainstream dam advances to the stage where the Member Country makes a submission to the MRC. It will be applied to each project.
As part of the process of helping Member Countries understand
the long-term potential impacts of hydropower,
the MRC is helping to assess the balance between opportunity
and risk for these proposed projects to highlight a range
of key issues that need to be considered by developers at
the project design stage; as well as by MRC Bodies, government
line-agencies and other stakeholders when any proposed hydropower
scheme is submitted for the MRC prior
consultation process. This preliminary
guidance includes a range of minimum standards, performance
targets and best practices for reducing the environmental
and social risks posed by hydropower schemes. Read
the design guidance report »