Hydrological perspectives of the Lower Mekong

The development of a reservoir and hydro power cascade on the Lancang Jiang (Upper Mekong) at Yunnan in China will have a major impact on the seasonal cycle of flow in the Lower Mekong in its catchment areas of Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. Seven key sites on the Lower Mekong are identified. The geography of the Mekong catchment area, existing and planned reservoir storage on the Mekong, the proposed Lancang Jiang cascade and the hydrological context are described. The effects on flow regimes of the proposed cascade were studied; details of the predicted percentage changes in mean monthly discharge at the seven key sites are given.