The Stream, April 3: Mega Water Projects in Asia

India’s proposed mega project to link more than 30 rivers and divert waters from wet to dry areas has triggered worries in neighbouring countries, according to the BBC.

Energy-hungry Nepal has approved the China Three Gorges Corp.’s controversial $US 1.6 billion hydropower project after the Chinese state-owned company threatened last month to withdraw its investment, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Meanwhile, China has broken ground on yet another hydropower station on the Yangtze River, this time near the megacity of Chongqing. A massive cascade of at least 14 dams is now slated for construction between the Tiger Leaping Gorge and Three Gorges Dam in the Yangtze River Basin. To complete the mammoth project, China has hurried to move a national reserve’s boundaries. Foreign Policy looks at the region’s damming legacy.

The government of South Australia has jumped on a new report that says the Murray-Darling River Basin draft plan falls short on protecting the environment, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.

Mining giant BHP Billiton has declared force majeure at coal mines in eastern Australia as production was hit by industrial action and heavy rains, AFP reported.

Saudi Arabia has awarded contracts worth $US 145 million to develop water and sanitation projects in the kingdom, Bloomberg News reported.

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