Participation and politics in transboundary hydropower development: The case of the Pak Beng dam in Laos

Abstract

Hydropower development in the lower Mekong Basin is being rapidly developed. Taking the Pak Beng hydropower project in Laos as a case study, this paper looks at participation and politics in transboundary hydropower development, how the latter is revealed by multiple, parallel institutional architectures in hydropower decision‐making across scales, and its implications for transboundary environmental governance. We look at the institutional disjuncture in hydropower decision‐making, how it is (re)produced by powerful, albeit conflicting narratives at respectively national and transboundary levels, power relations shaping these narratives, and how these translate into local community's limited ability to convey their voices and represent their development needs. Conceptually, the paper sheds light on the underlying politics in transboundary environmental governance by bringing to light the structural factors that prevent participation, including how these factors are justified, sustained and to a certain extent reproduced as an integral part of legal, policy, and institutional landscapes that govern hydropower decision‐making across scales (e.g., local to transboundary).

Hybrid governance, environmental justice, and hydropower development in the Mekong transboundary commons

“…Even within national governments, less‐influential environmental ministries are marginalized as dam developers liaise directly with energy ministries who drive hydropower development agendas and projects (Wells‐Dang et al, 2016). Even where project information is disclosed, it may be perceived as biased in favor of state interests, an act of information dissemination as opposed to meaningful consultation, and lacking accountability around compensation for transboundary environmental harm (Suhardiman & Geheb, 2021; Yong, 2021).…”

“…There is also a need to critically assess the contested ways in which transboundary environmental publics, stakeholder consultations, and scalar categories are brought into being (Yong, 2021). These issues are exacerbated by "institutional disjuncture" whereby dam developers remain largely dislocated from consultative processes and deal directly with the energy ministries (Suhardiman & Geheb, 2021), therefore contributing towards a perceived lack of accountability in these engagements.…”

Transboundary environmental governance: Emerging themes and lessons from Southeast Asia

“…Addressing questions of scale, Suhardiman and Geheb (2022) argue that institutional disjuncture in hydropower decision‐making impede meaningful participation in transboundary water governance. Taking the case of the Pak Beng hydropower dam project in Laos, the authors show how institutional disjuncture constitutes a form of scalar disconnect that limits the ability of grassroots stakeholders to articulate their needs and aspirations for sustainable development through formal channels.…”

“…Taking the example of transboundary hydropower governance in the Mekong River Basin, she illustrates the tendency among powerful state and private sector actors to deploy claims to social inclusiveness as a means of obtaining legitimacy for less-than-democratic decision-making processes, alongside mundane state practices that limit opportunities for participation. Drawing from semi-structured interviews and event ethnography conducted in Thailand and Cambodia, Yong makes her case by comparing and contrasting two types of transboundary environmental publics in the Mekong that entail divergent visions of what public participation means through varying interpretations of publics, place, scale, and temporality.Addressing questions of scale,Suhardiman and Geheb (2022) argue that institutional disjuncture in hydropower decision-making impede meaningful participation in transboundary water governance.Taking the case of the Pak Beng hydropower dam project in Laos, the authors show how institutional disjuncture constitutes a form of scalar disconnect that limits the ability of grassroots stakeholders to articulate their needs and aspirations for sustainable development through formal channels. Unless efforts are made to overcome such institutional disjuncture-that results from unequal power relations between national government and private sector actors on the one hand, and riparian communities and local governments on the other hand-then the environmental costs of restricted hydropower decision-making are likely to continue to accumulate to the detriment of the latter Marks and Miller (2022).…”

Urgent call for protection and use of transboundary watercourses. Some legal reflections

“…Remarkably, even though there are some forms of the presence of joint water institutions, the increasing demands on the exploitation of water resources, together with the negative impacts of climate change has accelerated the challenges in performing international legislative water agreements and making progress in transboundary watercourses cooperation (Chapeyama & Mhlanga‐Ndlovu, 2016). The present occurrence calls for more strengthened governance frameworks to formulate the required capacity in order to sustainably manage all the activities of the implementation of the legal joint‐resources exploitation of transboundary watercourses (Sindico, 2016; Suhardiman & Geheb, 2022).…”