Reports

Report: China’s Overseas Dam Industry

A message from Peter Bosshard, policy director of International Rivers:

Announcement: New Guide to China’s Overseas Dam Industry

International Rivers announces the publication of a new report which will assist communities affected by Chinese dams around to world to engage with Chinese dam builders and financiers.

Chinese companies and financiers are involved in hundreds of new dams around the world, particularly in Southeast Asia and Africa, but also in countries like Pakistan and Albania. The Chinese government has issued policies and guidelines on the environmental and social impacts of such projects. While they do not always reflect international environmental standards and are not always implemented in practice, they provide opportunities for affected communities to assert their rights.

The new publication is entitled, The New Great Walls: A Guide to China’s Overseas Dam Industry. It offers advice on how affected communities can protect their rights and the health of their rivers in Chinese overseas dam projects. It covers the following topics:

• A “who’s who” among Chinese companies and financiers;
• Information about policies and commitments Chinese companies and financiers should follow, and the decision-making processes regarding overseas dams;
• A map of China’s major overseas dam projects;
• Analysis of the reasons behind the global expansion of China’s dam industry;
• An action guide for how to address problematic dams built by Chinese companies and financiers, and how to engage Chinese actors in such cases;
• A sample letter to a Chinese dam building company.

The guide is 40 pages long and can be downloaded for free at www.internationalrivers.org/en/node/3160. Hard copies can be ordered from Katy Yan at katy@internationalrivers.org. For any other questions contact Nicole Brewer at nicole@internationalrivers.org.

Early feedback on the new guide:

Sai Sai, Burma Rivers Network: “Right now in Burma, companies from China are involved in building more than a dozen large dams on major rivers. This Guide contains important information for us and has already been helpful for educating new activists about how we can stop these dams.”

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