According to SIWRP, the flood in the upper Mekong River reached its peak on October 16. At Tan Chau station on the Tien River, it reached 3.09m, 0.41m lower than BĐ 1 and 0.81m lower than the average flood peak of many years; compared to the flood peak in 2022, it is 0.55m lower. The flood peak in the West has passed and the river water level is currently on a downward trend.
2023 flood in the West is especially low
At Chau Doc station on Hau river, it reached 2.93m, 0.07m lower than BĐ level 1 and 0.58m lower than the average flood peak of many years; compared to the flood peak in 2022, it is 0.41m.
Low flood due to low water volume from the upper Mekong River. Specifically, the total water volume at Kratie station in Cambodia from June 1 to October 19, 2023 reached over 249 billion cubic meters; compared to the average of many years in the same period, it is about 32 billion cubic meters lower and about 24 billion cubic meters lower than in 2022. The capacity of Tonle Sap Lake as of October 19 reached nearly 42 billion cubic meters, 10.5 billion less than the average of many years.
Due to the impact of the El Nino weather phenomenon, most of the upper Mekong River has had little rain. In addition, upstream hydropower dams have increased water storage. According to MDM (Mekong Dam Monitoring Project), during the week from October 9 to 15, upstream hydropower dams have stored about 1.3 billion cubic meters of water. Of which, the two dams of Nuozhadu in China and Ubol Ratana in Thailand alone have stored more than 1 billion cubic meters of water. This water storage significantly reduces the flood pulse of the Mekong River and impacts fishing, agricultural production and communities living along the river.
MDM experts analyzed: The total flow of the Mekong River to Stung Treng (Cambodia) in September, on average for many years, reached about 99 billion cubic meters.
However, this year, due to less rain than usual, the estimated water volume is only about 86 billion cubic meters. However, in the past, the hydroelectric dams in the upper stream have held back about 10.6 billion cubic meters of water; the water volume through this station has decreased to just over 75 billion cubic meters. Further upstream, near the hydroelectric dams, the shortage is even greater. These are examples of how dam operations exacerbate climate-related impacts on the Mekong River.
Previously, the Mekong River flood peak usually appeared in late September, but from 2022 to this year it has lasted until mid-October. This shows that the natural law of the Mekong River has been changed by upstream hydropower dams.
SIWRP also noted that although the flood peak in the West has passed, the central and coastal areas of the Mekong Delta are still at risk of flooding in the coming time due to high tides, especially the high tides in late October, November and December.
In the coming time, the West will face severe drought and saltwater intrusion.
Source link
Comment (0)