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The Mekong River from the Tibetan Plateau in China to the Mekong through Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, to the Mekong Delta of Viet Nam. The seventh longest on the continent and the second largest tenth in the world with a length of about 4350 kilometers. The basin area is about 795,000 square kilometers and holds over 60 million people who live off its land.

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Mekong River (Asia)Transboundary Watershed Final Project

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Mekong River (Asia)Transboundary Watershed Final Project

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Mekong River (Asia)Transboundary Watershed Final Project.

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The Mekong River flows through the Tibetan Plateau, a region with an average altitude of over 5,000 meters above sea level. The river then flows through the different landscapes of the region, with a diverse range of landscapes, from mountains, forests and wetlands to fertile plains and wetlands, down to its final, lower plains in the Mekong delta, and out towards the South China Sea. One of the features of its flow is very pronounced seasonal variation which is based on the influence of monsoon - leading to the wet and dry seasons. For the low-nutrient inputs feeding the terrestrial and aquatic communities that enable the extensive floodplain agriculture and rich biodiversity within the region, the hydrology of the river is essential.

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The Mekong River Basin, second only to the Amazon, is one the most biodiverse areas on Earth. It is home to a wide range of species, alot of them rare or miniature, such as the Irrawaddy dolphin and the giant Mekong catfish. The river serves as the lifeblood for a range of ecosystem services including drinking water, irrigation water and industrial water to hundreds of millions of people; as well as more than a billion people with a protein source from fisheries; and provides water to an incredibly productive agriculture zone in the delta-that now faces severe challenges due to land subsidence, lack of sediment load, high nutrient input and heavy pollutant load.

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Physical Parameters:

The Mekong River basin is about 795,000 km2 large and includes parts of six countries (China, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam)

Annual rainfall ranges from 1,000 to 3,000 mm a year, which has strong seasonal variation influenced by the monsoons.

Climate models predict demographic changes and increased precipitation variability are Likely to lead to more severe droughts and floods.

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Projected Population Utilize the System: More than 60 million people earn a living from the Mekong River System, through agriculture, fishing, and tourism.

Major uses of water use: These include primarily agricultural applications, domestic consumption, processes in industries, and generating electricity through hydropower.

Water security has challenges of increasing population, rapid industrial activities, and climatic variations.

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Majority rice farming, with an emphasis on the lower basin.

Urban territory-ranking city (e.g., Phnom Penh, Ho Chi Minh City)

Important incoming cargo Group Product origin Forestry Large natural and plantation forest areas, especially in Natural and plantation forests in Laos, Cambodia. Construction of dams is also one of the reasons behind the differences of opinion of riparian states; specially China (serving as an up-stream state) and Vietnam along with Cambodia (down-stream states) in case of Hydropower Development. Conflicts over water rights and division of water, further complicated by the failure of a sustainable legal framework. The struggle in the basin of the Mekong.

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Habitat Loss: Deforestation, building of dams and clearing land for agriculture leads to loss of habitat. Decline in Species: Many species, such as the symbolic Mekong giant catfish, are threatened by overfishing, pollution and loss of habitat. Effects on Ecosystem Services: Displacement of nutrient cycling, sedimentation transportation, higher peaks prolong inundation of floodplains limiting agricultural productivity and decrease fishery yields.

Increased temperature and altered precipitation patterns affect fish migration, agriculture cycles, and water availability.

Impact on people more frequent and severe floods and droughts lead to the threat to food security, livelihoods, and infrastructure.

Water Availability, Access, and Quality:

Dams and Diversions: Upstream dams reduce water flow downstream, affecting agriculture and fisheries.

Pollution: Instances of industrial discharges, agriculture runoff, and urban wastes degrade the quality of water.

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Upstream dams reduce water flow downstream, affecting agriculture and fisheries.

Pollution, for instances of industrial discharges, agriculture runoff, and urban wastes degrade the quality of water.

Salinization, sea-level rise and reduced flow of fresh water increase salinity intrusion in the delta.

Hydropower, high reliance on hydropower as the major source of renewable energy, which is a controversial source due to ecological and social impacts.

Alternative Energy for potential solar and wind energy development to decrease the dependency on hydropower.

Agriculture and Food Security

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Food Production, it is crucial for regional food security; however, it is highly water intensive.

Fisheries: It has been a vital source of protein but is increasingly threatened by overfishing and habitat loss.

Climate Resilience: Climate-resilient agriculture practices are needed to ensure food security.

Mekong River Commission: it is an intergovernmental organization focused on the sustainable development and ensuring source management of the river.

National Policies: The nations bordering the river have dissimilar approaches to water management, with many policies not well coordinated and enforced.

Environmental Equity and Justice

Access to Resources: There has been an inequitable distribution of water resources and the benefit of the hydropower projects.

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Legal Frameworks - Binding agreements to mandate compliance and lead to fair resource sharing.

Climate-Resilient Practice Adoption:

Sustainable Agriculture: Introduction of drought-resistant breeds of crops, Improved irrigation methodologies.

Ecosystem Restoration: Expand reforestation and wetland restoration to improve natural water regulation and biodiversity.

Disaster Preparedness: Enhanced flood and drought early warning systems, as well as enhancing infrastructure to minimize the impacts of floods and droughts.

Leverage Points:

Governance Improvement: Making MRC and national laws work better.

At a Crossroads in Sustainable

Development: Hydropower and the Dilemma of the Amazon's "wild rivers".

Community Engagement: Making sure local communities can take part in water governance decisions.

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The nations bordering the river have dissimilar approaches to water management, with many policies not well coordinated and enforced. Environmental Equity and Justice

Access to Resources: There has been an inequitable distribution of water resources and the benefit of the hydropower projects.

Community Involvement: There has been limited participation of local communities in the decision-making processes.

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Integrated Water Resources Management

Environmental Sustainability: It ensures that water use is balanced, ecosystems are protected, and water is available in the long term.

Social Responsibility: It ensures that there is fair access to water resources and that the local communities engage in the management process.

Economic Vitality: It supports sustainable economic activities such as eco-tourism and sustainable agriculture.

Enhanced Regional Cooperation

Water Diplomacy: Enhance diplomacy in the transboundary water cooperation that is used to resolve conflicts and build trust.

Data Sharing: Enhance data collection and sharing between the riparian states to guide joint decision-making and management.

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MRC. (2020). Mekong River Commission. Available at: http://www.mrcmekong.org

United Nations. (2017). World Population Prospects: The 2017 Revision. Retrieved from: https://www.un.org/development/desa/publications/world-population-prospects-the-2017-revision.html.

ICEM. (2010). Strategic Environmental Assessment of Hydropower on the Mekong mainstream. Hanoi, Viet Nam. Available at http://icem.com.au/portfolio-items/mekong-mainstream-strategic-environmental-assessment-sea/