A Paper for the Addressing Existing Dams Workshop,
Dams and Development project
Prepared by Assembly of the Poor and Southeast Asia Rivers Network
May 2004

Pak Mun Dam is constructed on the Mun River, the largest tributary of the Mekong, about 5 km upstream from its confluence with the Mekong in Ubon Ratchathani Province of Thailand. The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) built and operates the dam as an run-of-river hydropower plant.

The intention of dam builders and funders perhaps is to help the development of the villagers. In the case of Pak Mun, The funder (the World Bank) and the builder (EGAT) which is the actor on behalf of state in front line, truly take the dam as a mean of development for Pak Mun villagers and Thai society as a whole. On the other hand, the villagers see dam as destruction or disturbance on the path to their own pursuit of development. Dam, in the eyes and lives of villagers, is destruction of development and their livelihood. The narrow definition of development calculated merely as a more money and materials is challenged from fundamental ground.

The Pak Mun Dam was constructed during the three year period between 1991 and 1994 by the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT). It costs total of US$233 million of which the World Bank financed US$22 million as a part of the country’s third power development plan.

Right from the inception of the project proposal made to public, there was strong opposition to the project from both urban and local population. However, the successive leadership of Thai government decided to go ahead with the building of the dam. Eventually, the construction began in 1991 and completed the dam in 1994. Although protests continued during the construction period, the government lent deaf ears to the voices of villagers. Villagers with the help of local NGOs stepped up their opposition and increased their voices to open sluice gates of the dam. The demand to open the sluice gates was a response to the EGAT’s persistent argument that the dam would have no impact on the livelihood of the villagers as well as the fish population in the Mun River. Therefore, the villagers requested the government to open sluice gates for a year to launch a study of the impacts on fisheries and their livelihoods from the dam. The Thai government agreed to open the dam gates on June 14, 2001 for four months to conduct studies on fisheries, social impacts and the impact of the dam on electricity supply. In December 2001, the government agreed to keep the dam gates open through June 2002.

There are various researches reveal the impacts of the dam on river ecosystem, fish population, and local livelihoods, suggesting to decommission the dam.

As it was found in the report of the World Commission on Dam released in 2000. The WCD case study report on Pak Mun Dam states;

‘[I]f plans and policies were adequately implemented with respect to social impacts and resolution of conflicts, villagers would not have had to waste time and effort in negotiating and protesting against the dam. Nor would the country as a whole have lost an important ecosystem. One of the key conclusions emerging from the study is that if all the benefits and costs were adequately assessed, the study team believe it is unlikely that the project would have been built in the current context.’

Another comprehensive study of the Pak Mun Dam, commissioned by the government after its decision to open the sluice gates for one year, would find that it has caused severe impacts on fish populations and the livelihoods of thousands of people living along the Mun River, while it offers less social and economic benefits to villagers as well as to the Thai society as a whole. Among four alternatives suggested, one alternative in a straight line recommends to open the sluice gates year-round.

It reads, ‘…during which electricity generation by the Dam halts, will provide benefits of restoring ecological conditions, economics, and community livelihoods. Villagers will be able to access fishery resources throughout the seasonal round…Restoration of nature will occur, as well as restoration of community livelihoods founded in their original locations. ’

Another research is Thai Baan Research. Convincing that they have lived close to reality, the villagers affected by the dam expressed an interest in conducting their own research respecting and utilizing the knowledge of local people. The research includes the findings gathered from June 16, 2001, after the dam gates were opened, to August 17, 2002.

The research reveals that villagers’ lives are lived not only by income that is measured to evaluate their livelihoods in the compensation packages and cost benefit analyses of the impact of the dam, but also are lived by communal values, cultures, and tradition in harmony and respect with the mother nature’s Mun river. The villager research uncovers a delicate and interwoven nature of the relationship between Pak Mun villagers and the natural ecosystem of the Mun River. For villagers, development mean happiness, harmony, and peace within community which co-exist with the mother nature’s Mun River. This dynamic dimension of the meaning of “development” is the center battleground of the Pak Mun Dam struggle whether it should exist or it should be removed entirely. The research comes to shed light on the Pak Mun struggle with the facts, understanding, local knowledge, and livelihoods of the villagers who are affected directly by the presence of the Pak Mun Dam.

The Thai Baan research exposes the reality of the Pak Mun Dam from the perspective of the local villagers who are directly affected and whose livelihoods have been changed dramatically since the construction of the Pak Mun Dam.

The following information based on Thai Baan Research conducted during the trial period of opening of the sluice gates.

River Ecology, Fisheries and Vegetation

Before the Pak Mun Dam was built, the Mun River was one of Thailand’s richest rivers, supplying the entire northeastern region of Thailand with plentiful natural resources. The Mun River, the largest tributary of the Mekong, originally provided habitat for 265 different kinds of fish species. It hosted a complex riverine ecosystem that consisted of rapids, islands, channels, underwater caves, eddies, rises, pools, seasonally flooded riverine forest, wetland forest and tributaries.

The construction of the dam impeded fish in the Mekong River from migrating upstream to the Mun River to spawn. As a result, fish diversity and fish populations in the Mun River drastically decreased. When the Dam was built, villagers found that only 45 out of 265 fish species indigenous to the Mun and Mekong rivers remain in the Mun river in Pak Mun area. Species of fish that live mainly in fast-moving water and migratory fish could not survive under these conditions.

The reservoir submerged perennial plants that typically grew in the rapids, riverbanks and islands, and allowed the alien weed, giant mimosa, to thrive and dominate the riverbanks. The still water also created an environment where new types of aquatic weeds and microorganisms proliferated. Construction of the dam inundated 35 rapids.

The dramatic alteration of the varied and lush ecosystem led to a decline in fisheries in the Mun River. Under the new conditions, fish could no longer live, feed or spawn.

After the Opening of the Dam Gates

Villagers found that when the dam gates were opened, a large number of fish once again migrated from the Mekong to the Mun River, laying eggs from the mouth of the river upstream to the river’s tributaries. Village researchers found that 137 species of fish returned to the Mun River during the period between June 2001 to May 2002.

The opening of the Pak Mun Dam gates restored the diversity of fish species in the Mun River. Among the native species of fish, village researchers documented that of of the species migrate from the Mekong River to the Mun River. It migrates to the coast and to the Mekong and Mun Rivers to mature.

Researchers found that fishes from the Mekong River migrate upstream from the third month (February) to the tenth month (September). The migration downstream to the Mekong River starts around the eight month (June) to the first month (December). This means that fish in the Mun River migrate back and forth from the Mekong River for most of the year, except for the second month (January). This shows that the typical belief claimed by the EGAT that fish migrate for only four months in one year, from June until September, is incorrect.

The opening of the dam gates has restored the fertile ecosystem to near its state before the dam was built. Gradually, rapids began to reappear in the river, however, they were covered with sediment. Eventually, the Mun River’s fisheries, ecosystem, and vegetation returned to near to the normal state before the dam was built.

When the dry season came around March, all rapids in the Pak Mun area, including rapids downstream, re-emerged. Vegetation on the riverbanks was also revitalized. Researchers found that more than 342 plant species on the rapids, islands, riverbanks and tributaries of the Mun River recovered. These plants disappeared during the operation of dam with reservoir, but village researchers found most of these plant species re-appeared when the dam gates were opened.

The Pak Mun area has once again been partially revitalized. Generally, it is safe to report that diverse ecological features which were vital part of Mun River ecosystem have been restored, including rapids, pools, eddies, rises, caves, waterfalls, flats, stone pockets and holes. These features dignify the uniqueness of wetland ecosystem in the Pak Mun area in North East Thailand.

The complex ecology supports fish diversity in the Mun River. Pak Mun is an important area for fishes to lay eggs and therefore the Mun River is home to these fishes. The study found that, after the opening of the dam gates, 33 species spawned in rapids, 25 spawned in pools, 40 spawned in longer pools, 22 spawned in eddies, 24 spawned in caves, 9 spawned in rises, 15 spawned in tributaries, and 56 spawned in seasonally flooded forest and wetland forest. Researchers noted that some species spawned in more than one subecosystem.

Fish Migration and Balance of Food Chain

Fishery aspects in Mun River community are not purely economic as if it is only income generating activity. This research has found that fishery aspect plays multiple roles in local livelihoods of Mun River communities. One of the very important roles that fishery aspect plays in local livelihoods issues is food security. Local food security system is maintained not only by abundant of incomes earned from mainly large fisheries but it is also delicately tied to presence and captures of small fisheries that are traditional and local diets for villagers. This section will illustrates important role played by small fisheries in daily lives of local villagers.

From the research findings during June 16, 2001 to July 17, 2002, the total numbers of 137 species were counted. Among them, 104 are migratory fish from Mekong River, 25 are short-distance migratory species, and 8 are alien species.

Thai Baan researchers found that fish migrates from Mekong to Mun River from the 3rd month of Lunar calendar (around February) to the 10th month of lunar calendar (around September). The migratory fishes migrate back to Mekong during the period between the 8th month of lunar calendar (around July) and 1st month of lunar calendar (around December).

Thai Baan research found that fishes that migrate upstream from Mekong to Mun River during the period between February and May eat insects, fruits, and water-weeds around rapids. This group of fishes is small in terms of their size. Fishes that migrate upstream between May and June eat warms, shrimp, and insects. Fish that migrates from July to the end of migration season eat small fishes and insects. Among these three groups of fishes, the first and second round of migratory fishes are small fishes and the last group is large fishes that eat smaller fishes. This circle of food chains show that small fishes rely on presence of rapids and weeds. And large fishes rely on small fishes for their food. In other words, the presence of dynamic ecosystem of rapids attracts small fishes and presence of small fishes in turn attracts big fishes. Therefore, the closing of dam gates submerge rapids under water in reservoir and thus lost plants and water-weeds. This affects the migration of small fishes in addition to physical barrier of the dam. In addition, the duration of upstream and downstream migration last between February to December. This leaves only one month period that did not find any pattern of fish migration.

Local Food Security System

Thai Baan research found that, generally speaking, local people in Pak Mun area rely on small fishes for their daily diet and rely on big fishes for income generation. Among the small fishes, about 30 species of them are used to make pla daek (fermented fish) and pla som (sour fermented fish). Pla daek is a major ingredient for daily diet among local Pak Mun and Northeastern people especially for dishes such as Som Tam and soup. When these villagers face shortage of green vegetable in dry season, pla daek itself is consumed as a dish to accompany with sticky rice. In addition, local villagers dry about 25 species of small fishes for home consumption, selling, and exchange for rice with upland communities. This finding clearly suggests that small fishes are not only dietary important source of food for river bank communities but also a link among communities when they are exchanged for rice with upland communities.

The big fishes caught period between June and September are immediately sold at the local market due to high demand for fresh fish.

The finding suggests that commercial fish in the Mun River is not only the big fishes caught during the raining season from May to September but also small fishes caught in dry season from February to May. For many fishing households among Pak Mun villagers, small fishes caught in dry season are their major incomes to support their families and to save for their children’s educational expenses which are expected to occur once school begins in mid-May. To some extent, it can be said that the Mun River and its tributaries are major source of food and income during the dray season when surrounding land areas are dry and not useful for agricultural activities.

After the trial period, the government ignored all the studies, conducting its own survey on public opinion for only 3 days. Most of those who answered the survey are not from affected people in river-based community, but from general public in various parts of the province. Thus, the survey came out with the suggestion to close the sluice gates. Rights after the survey, the government decided to open the sluice gates for four months a year. It is clear from this finding that current decision of the government to open Pak Mun Dam gates for four months annually from July to October creates major impacts on food security and general livelihoods of Pak Mun Villagers because dry season closure of dam gates will destroy villagers’ source of food and income provided by natural cycle of Mun River.

Having less and less position to demand the government to decommission the dam, this year the Assembly of the Poor, Pak Mun Dam Case, have been demanding the government to open the sluice gates for four moths as decided by the government, but change the period to May- August. Base on their research, opening the sluice gates from May to August is more appropriate to the fish migration.

Conclusion and Recommendations

There is consistency among the findings of the villagers research, the World Commission on Dam released in 2000, the findings of the EGAT commissioned study by the Ubon Ratchthani University released in 2002, Khon Kaen University released in 2002, and Institute of Science and Technology Development released also in 2002. The consistency is that the restoration of Mun River to the natural level by the opening of the gates within one year from June 2001 to October 2002 demonstrates the restoration of local villagers’ livelihoods and ecosystem of Mun River. In addition, the finding sheds further light that the Pak Mun Dam which failed to even meet the electricity production targets set by the dam builder, EGAT, has caused conflicts among villagers, hardships among the poor of poor in Thailand, and longest political struggle at the national level at the expense of destruction of Mun River ecosystem.

Obviously, the government’s decision to close the sluice gates was not based on information from any research. The decision is political matter for the government to obtain its dam as the symbol of development, while the affected locals have been trying to show that the dam should be decommissioned to restore river ecosystem and local livelihoods.

References

Amornsakchai, S., Annez, P., Vongvisessomjai, S., Choowaew, S., Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI), Kunurat, P., Nippanon, J.,Schouten, R., Sripapatrprasite, P., Vaddhanaphuti, C., Vidthayanon, C., Wirojanagud, W., Watana, E. 2000 Pak Mun Dam, Mekong River Basin, Thailand. A WCD Case Study prepared as an input to the World Commission on Dams, Cape Town, www.dams.org

Assembly of the Poor and Southeast Asia Rivers Network, 2002 Thai Baan Research: The Return of the Mun Fishers after the Dam Gates Opening, Chiang Mai

Ubon Ratchatani University, 2002 Project to Study Approaches to Restoration of the Ecology, Livelihood, and Communities Receiving Impacts from Construction of Pak Mun Dam, Ubon Ratchatani