Toxic Mining in Myanmar Blamed for Mekong River Pollution

[geovalin]

Image Ecological Alert and Recovery–Thailand.

 

A surge in unregulated mining in Myanmar’s Shan State is being blamed for dangerous pollution in the Mekong River, threatening the health, livelihoods, and food security of communities across Laos and Thailand.

 

Fishermen along the Mekong are reporting alarming declines in fish stocks, with diseased catches and disappearing species. Local markets in northern Laos, once rich with river produce, now sit half-empty. The cause, say environmental experts and locals alike, is toxic runoff from a growing number of rare earth and gold mines upstream in Myanmar—operations flourishing in a lawless border zone.

 

“There used to be giant fish here,” said Vilasai, a former fisherman turned taxi driver in Houayxay. “Now the river gives us little. Even the water for irrigation—people are scared to use it.”

 

Testing by Thailand’s Pollution Control Department has found elevated levels of arsenic, lead and nickel in Mekong tributaries like the Ruak and Kok rivers. The contamination has breached World Health Organization safety thresholds, sparking regional health alerts. The Mekong River Commission recently described the situation as “moderately serious.”

 

The pollution is believed to originate in Myanmar’s southern Shan State, where at least 20 illegal mines have emerged in the past year alone. With Myanmar’s military embroiled in a civil war, armed ethnic groups like the United Wa State Army and Restoration Council of Shan State control the area. Experts say Chinese traders are also involved, exploiting the chaos.

 

“Myanmar’s junta can’t regulate mining or enforce environmental protections, but they still take a cut,” said Professor Zachary Abuza of the National War College in Washington.

 

But pollution is only part of the Mekong’s crisis. A growing network of hydropower dams—from China to Laos—is altering the river’s natural flow. “The river used to be predictable,” said Hom Phan, a 67-year-old fisherman. “Now we don’t know when it will rise or fall.”

 

With one in five Mekong fish species at risk of extinction, and millions dependent on the river for food and income, calls for regional action are growing louder. Still, on the waters of Houayxay, Khon the fisherman remains quietly resilient. As night falls, he says simply: “We try again tomorrow.”

 

 

-2025-08-02