Khmer Times

In Cambodia’s Prey Veng province, villagers living along the lower Mekong River are sounding the alarm as aggressive sand dredging continues to erode riverbanks, swallow farmland, and threaten homes. Despite years of protest, the practice persists—now intensified by booming exports to Vietnam.

 

Residents of Peam Chor district say the extraction, carried out by licensed firms such as Chaktumok and Global Green, has become relentless, especially during the rainy season. “We’ve lost nearly ten metres of land,” said Bou Phorn from Odong village. “I can’t sleep at night, worrying my house will collapse into the river.”

 

Sand from the Mekong is a prized commodity, fuelling Vietnam’s construction sector and generating revenue for Cambodia. Yet villagers argue the cost is far too high. Without formal land titles, many fear displacement without compensation. “We report it constantly,” said one Koh Chek resident, “but nothing changes.”

 

According to a report obtained by local media, between 30 and 50 vessels now ferry sand daily across the border. Vietnamese firms have imported over 10 million cubic metres since 2024, with barges often exceeding their legal capacity by up to 25%. This overloading, critics say, accelerates erosion and undermines environmental safeguards.

 

The Ministry of Mines and Energy insists the dredging is regulated and environmentally sound. It attributes riverbank collapse to natural causes and maintains that Cambodia’s sand reserves—estimated in the billions of cubic metres—are being responsibly managed.

 

But villagers remain unconvinced. “We see the barges every night,” said Chin Sophal, Bou Phorn’s husband. “We know what’s happening. And we know we’re losing everything.”

 

As sand continues to flow south, so too does the stability of life along the Mekong. For the families of Prey Veng, the river that once sustained them now threatens to take it all away.

 

 

-2025-09-10

Nothing to do with the sound mining practice's, nope, it's all to do with climate change.

Follow the money 

It's all to do with insatiable greed and corruption. 

Since they have no rights to the land they will continue to be exploited. Not just Cambodia.