The Mekong it is the longest river in Southeast Asia. Its route extends through China, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam, with a length of 4,350 km and a basin that drains 810,000 km², being surpassed only by the Yangtze and Ganges rivers on the continent..
It ranks as one of the most productive inland fisheries in the world, as its basin supports a population of 60 million people. This richness is due in part to the large amount of nutrient-rich sediment that flows downstream, supporting fish and having a positive impact on rice production in Cambodia and Vietnam..
One of the signs of the importance of this river for the countries in the area, especially Vietnam, is that the rice grown in the Mekong delta represents more than half of the production of this food..
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The Mekong River is constituted as a fundamental pillar of the economy of Southeast Asia, where through its natural benefits work, transport and recreational activities are developed.
Its characteristics have a direct impact on the development of the population are due to its geographical position and interrelation with the labor groups that inhabit the riverbanks..
The water that fills the channel of the Mekong River comes mainly from the rain brought to its lower basin with the monsoon winds. In April the flow is at its lowest point. The monsoon winds arrive in the area between May and June from the south loaded with water, in this period the flow increases from August to September to the north and until the end of October to the south.
Rice cultivation is impossible to apply without irrigation during the dry period, therefore the river waters become more important for agricultural production. Due to this reason, the annual flood season is a priority in the lower Mekong basin, since it generates the necessary conditions for the state of the environment and for the productive development of its inhabitants..
Floods are also important for fish, which migrate to deep pools for shelter during the dry season. Then, during flood season, they migrate back to nutrient-rich spawning and feeding grounds found in floodplains..
The main economic activity of the people living along the Mekong is agriculture, with rice being the most important crop.
Farmers in the lower basin have learned to manage water by artificially controlling floods to increase economic productivity. In the absence of water control, only one crop per year can be obtained, in the wet season.
However, the development of techniques and technology for water control allows it to be stored and used during drought to produce additional crops..
Rice cultivation provides more than half of the daily caloric intake in the countries of the region. The Mekong River produces 4.5 million metric tons of fish per year, contributing approximately 80% of the protein consumed in households in the region..
In addition to rice and fishing, the Mekong has enormous hydroelectric potential. It has more than 50 dams installed and more than 120 in project to cover the energy demand of the region.
The river has an elaborate canal system in the delta. Small sea boats can sail upstream to Phnom Penh, and 5-meter boats can reach Kâmpóng Cham at high tide.
Continuous transportation is blocked by barriers at Khone Falls and other waterfalls. Between 1866 and 1868, French explorers sailed upriver and discovered that the Mekong had too many rapids and waterfalls to be useful for navigation..
The beauty of the daily life of the traditional villages, the images offered by the glorious sunsets, as well as the historical and cultural richness that comes to life with the riverbed and its banks as protagonists, make it one of the main attractions Tourists in the area.
Its landscape dotted with rice fields, fish farms and fruit orchards make the perfect contrast with the great biodiversity of flora and fauna found in its center of ecological and tourist development..
The first settlements on the Mekong date back to 2100 BC. Through excavations, coins from as far away as the Roman Empire have been discovered. About 700 years ago, the Thais escaped from southern China across the Mekong to form the kingdom of Siam (now Thailand), and the river protected them from invasions..
In 1540, the Portuguese explorer Antonio de Faria was the first European to tour and report his discoveries on the Mekong. By then, it was already considered a wonder of nature by its first inhabitants.
The Mekong rises in China, specifically in the autonomous region of Tibet at an altitude of 4,900 meters, between the Salween and Yangtze rivers. Its name varies depending on the territory through which it moves. In Tibet he is known as “Dzachu”, in China “Lancang Jiang”, in Cambodia “Mékôngk”, in Laos “Mènamkhong” and in Vietnam “Cuu Long”. These names are closely related to their behavior and the impressions they make on their way..
The most picturesque of these names is the Vietnamese "Cuu Long" which translates as "the river of the nine dragons", a title attributed to it because in that country the river is divided into nine arms..
From its source on the Tibet Plateau to its mouth in the South China Sea, south of Ho Chi Minh City, the Mekong is the only Asian river that runs through six countries..
On its descent it passes through the territory of the Tibetan plateau towards the Yunnan province in China. From there it moves towards the golden triangle, a name that receives an area of 950 kmtwo corresponding to the territories of Burma, Laos and Thailand, serving as a landmark to first demarcate the border between Burma and Laos, and then the borders between Laos and Thailand.
It flows through Laos and Cambodia. Near Phnom Penh (capital of Cambodia) begins the delta of the Mekong River that extends forming a huge fertile plain in southern Vietnam, until its mouth in the South China Sea.
Its route is divided into two parts clearly differentiated by its relief and its climate: upper Mekong or upper and lower Mekong.
This stretch runs from its source in the Yunnan Highlands to the Burma-Laos border. Some of the highest peaks on the Tibetan Plateau are glaciated and much of this stretch of the basin is covered in snow in winter..
It is 1,955 km long and flows through a rugged landscape. It runs through a long, narrow valley through the mountains and plateaus of southwestern China, running like a swift stream with the presence of waterfalls. In this map you can see the birth:
This area runs from the Burma-Laos border to its mouth through the delta in the South China Sea. Its section has a length of 2,390 km that runs through the Khorat plateau in northeast Thailand. In this map you can see the mouth:
It then continues through the west of the Laos and Vietnam mountain ranges to finally cross Cambodia before reaching the Delta Sea, located in southern Vietnam. There it covers an area of approximately 40,400 kmtwo and is dominated by floodplains.
The climate of the Lower Mekong Basin is classified as tropical monsoon. In March and April, their warmest months, the average temperature ranges between 30 ° C and 38 ° C.
The basin features many wetlands that have social, economic and cultural functions. They provide a productive environment for agriculture, aquaculture, capture fisheries, non-fish aquatic products, and tourism..
Natural wetlands mitigate floods by preventing disasters in the monsoon season. Thanks to the development of mangroves in coastal areas, they prevent erosion and trap nutrients that contribute to agricultural and fishing productivity..
In addition, urban and peri-urban wetlands filter agricultural, industrial and municipal wastewater before it re-enters the Mekong..
The Mekong River constitutes one of the pillars of the economic and social development of a population of approximately 60 million people, who make their lives and depend on the river for their subsistence.
This Southeast Asian giant touches the capitals of two of the territories it crosses: Vientiane, capital of Laos; and Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia and its largest city.
The waters of the Mekong bathe Cai Be, a city located in southern Vietnam with a small and picturesque floating market that represents one of its main tourist attractions. In southern Vietnam the Mekong also touches Vinh Long, sporting French colonial architecture. Its canals and its proximity to Ho Chi Minh (capital of Vietnam) make it a thriving ecotourism center in the region.
In the delta is Cu Lao Gieng, an island that is worth visiting for its architectural richness that contrasts with the surrounding jungle. Near the border with Cambodia also crosses Chau Doc, one of the most multicultural cities in Vietnam.
The influence of the different communities that cohabit is noticeable in its infrastructure. You can also enjoy a beautiful view from the mountains, where the temples steal your eyes.
Another small town on the banks of the Mekong is Angkor Ban, a rural community in Cambodia with centuries-old wooden houses, amazing landscapes and everyday life in a very enriching rural environment..
The Mekong River basin drains a total area of 795,000 km2. Among its main tributaries are the Tonlé Sap, Bassac, Tha, Nam On, Nam Song, Nam Khan, Kok, Songkhram, Xe Bang Fai, Tonle Sap, Kong, Tonlé San and Srepok rivers..
Currently different companies plan to establish a total of 11 dams on the Mekong riverbed and 120 dams on its tributaries. Scientists warn that hydroelectric overexploitation will endanger the fragile river system.
Stream flow affects many aspects of riparian ecosystems, including depth, velocity, temperature, nutrient transport, and sediment. The alteration of the flow negatively influences native species and ecosystems, irreversibly damaging their habitat.
The climate of the Mekong Basin ranges from temperate to tropical. The melting snow of the Tibetan plateau fuels the dry season flow of the river, especially in its middle reaches, while the rains provide the flow in the flood season..
The variation in height throughout the basin produces an immense richness in its vegetation. About 20,000 plant species have been documented. Throughout its basin there are wetland flora, mixed wet evergreen forests, dry evergreen forests, deciduous and montane forests, shrub lands and mangroves..
In the Mekong basin there are gray sedge, reed, different species of grasses from temperate regions and water lilies, as well as species of the family Flacourtiaceae, Lecythidaceae, Dipterocarpaceae Y Euphorbiaceae.
The specialists affirm that the basin is vulnerable to impacts produced by climate change, among them:
- Increase in the average temperature of approximately 0.8 ° C that will have the greatest impact on the colder northern areas in 2030.
- Regional increase in annual rainfall of 200 mm, which increases vulnerability to floods and drought, reducing agricultural productivity.
- Saltwater intrusion is expected in the Mekong Delta due to rising sea levels, which could cause the displacement of millions of people throughout the area..
The Mekong Riverbed is home to approximately 1,000 species of fish and hundreds of birds, reptiles, and mammals. It is recognized as one of the areas with the greatest biological diversity in the world, only surpassed by the Amazon River..
Its biodiversity is essential for the rural way of life based on natural resources to supply a population of 60 million people who live in the Lower Mekong basin..
Among the most representative species are the Indochinese tiger, the Mekong catfish, the saola antelope, the Irrawaddy dolphin, the panga, the Asian elephant and the Siamese mud carp, among many others..
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