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Statement by Local People of Mong Ton Township, Shan State

By Local People of Mong Ton Township  •  April 6, 2015

1. Regarding the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Social Impact Assessment (SIA) for the Upper Salween (Mong Ton) hydropower project, which will involve building a dam and electricity generating plant on the middle section of the Salween River, 19 kilometers from Wan Sala village, the people of Mong Ton township have the following opinions:
   • a. We think that the timeframe to prepare for the EIA and SIA for the Upper Salween (Mong Ton) hydropower project, by July 2015, is too short, and it will not be possible to prepare fully during that time.
   • b. If the dam is built, many towns, villages and pagodas in the upper Salween area will be flooded.
   • c. The ceasefire signing is just starting, and now there is not yet peace. It is necessary to wait and see for two or three years whether there is really peace, before proceeding with anything.
   • d. Having suffered from war for years, local people in Shan State are happy about the ceasefire signing, but at the same time they are worried that towns and villages will be flooded by the Upper Salween (Mong Ton) hydropower project.
   • e. The flooding will especially impact Kunhing Township, which is situated along the Salween. Many houses, fields, and historical temples will be destroyed.
2. Therefore, local people of Mong Ton are opposed to the building of a dam and hydroelectric power plant 19 kilometers from Wan Sala village, as part of the Upper Salween (Mong Ton) hydropower project.

Contact persons:

Loong Sai San Nyunt                 (+95) 09 36191646
Loong Sai Aw Da                          (+95) 09 49025446
Nang Oon Ying                              (+95) 09 32045590

Tags: Dam, Environmental and Social Impact Assessment, Environmental Impact Assessment, Hydropower, Local People of Mong Ton Township, Mong Ton, Salween, Salween River

This post is in: Business and Human Rights, Ethnic Nationalities, Human Rights

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