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5 Reasons Why Myanmar is Environmentally Unfriendly

By greenexpander ⋅ October 19, 2007 ⋅  Email This Post ⋅  Print This Post ⋅ Post a comment

The wealth of a nation is its people, its cultural heritage, its environment and its natural resources. Obviously, this is not the case.

1. In a world that’s rapidly declining and where most of us are trying to give a helping hand, Myanmar is doing the exact opposite. Everyday, illegal timber crosses the country’s border or vendors of bear paws, tiger skins and elephant tusks try to make a dishonest buck.
2. One of Asia’s purest rivers is also endangered by the military regime that is planning to build a dam to allow gold and gem mines to function. This could only mean, besides the quick cash Myanmar’s regime is trying to make pollution and destruction of the habitat around the river.
3. Foreign investments were used not for the improvement of this worrying situation, but for doubling the military troops. Now, more than 400,000 soldiers are offering easy access these mining products and energy to China and Thailand to feed their ever growing economies.
4. In the past two decades, over 20 dams have been made or are in the process of being built to help companies from the two neighboring countries. Villagers were uprooted because they stood in the way of the dams that provide energy for China and Thailand. One is threating the Salween’s habitat, one of Southeast Asia’s last untamed rivers.
5. The road to recovery is long and strenuous. There is no profit from the timber exports to China, since 95% of them are illegal. The treasury loses $250 million a year due to these illegal activities. A large part of the profits go to Chinese firms and regional military commanders or ethnic guerrilla groups

“Given the high demand and extent of the trade in Myanmar, many species will be lost,” said Chris Shepherd, a senior program officer for conservation group Traffic. “Rhinos in Myanmar are probably already extinct due to trade. Tigers are on a huge decline. Elephants are in huge decline. The list goes on and on.”