Environment and land

Tough water conservation measures for state agencies and households in Bangkok and surrounding areas could be introduced to address the water scarcity crisis.  The proposal comes amid criticism the government has forced farmers to bear the burden of the crisis by banning agricultural water use without substantial ...

The government plans to ask people to donate drinking water to drought-stricken residents, deputy government spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd says. The cabinet will discuss the donation campaign.  Water distribution points will be set up under an initiative of His Majesty the King in drought-hit areas in various ...

Hundreds of Chinese investors protested outside of the Fanya Metal Exchange, in the south of the country, after finding that the minor rare earth metals exchange was unable pay out on investment products. Keep reading ...

About 200 villagers involved in land disputes in three provinces have protested outside Cambodia’s parliament building in Phnom Penh, demanding that lawmakers resolve their cases and threatening not to vote for those who turn down their requests. The villagers from Sihanoukville, Svay Rieng, and Takeo provinces ...

Farmers in several drought-stricken provinces in the Chao Phraya River basin have spurned the government’s calls to halt pumping water for agricultural use. The move came as water discharges from four major dams in the Chao Phraya River basin are being gradually cut from 28 million cubic metres per ...

A local developer is proposing to the Lao government to convert BM Plaza into a specific economic zone in order to facilitate business operations and attract more investment, trade and tourism through the single window service. Representatives from BM Group yesterday met with officials from the ...

The arrest of several Chinese buyers for tax evasion and the weakening Chinese economy is hurting trade with Myanmar’s largest rice export market, said U Soe Tun, vice chair of the Myanmar Rice Federation. China is the destination for over half of Myanmar’s rice exports. This ...

Da Nang government, Vietnam, has threatened to shut down the factory of Coca-Cola if it is found to have violated environmental rules, according to media reports. Keep reading ...

Cambodia rice farmers have started planting for the 2015 main rice crop in May and will continue until July end. However, unusually high temperatures and low rainfall are raising concerns that this year’s paddy production will suffer significantly due to the drought-inducing El Nino weather ...

Provincial authorities in Phongsaly, Laos, are cautioning banana growers along the Nam Ou River in an attempt to stop them illegally discarding disused plastic banana bunch covers. Director of the provincial Natural Resources and Environment Department, Mr Khamchanh Sitthilath told Vientiane Times on 14 July that many ...