Finally, people harvest the flora and fauna that grow along the Mekong, especially the fish.
The Mekong is becoming increasingly polluted. Plastics pollution, garbage and toxic waste are dumped upstream and flow down the river, impacting the communities that live on the river. We are testing the water quality as we travel down the river in order to learn more about these problems. Another challenge people face is the construction of dams. Dams are installed to create a source of power, but it can negatively impact the environment, especially the fish. We learned that fishermen are seeing less fish because of a new dam in Cambodia.
Ecotourism is a great way to preserve the environment of the river. People who live here are starting to develop more tourism around the Mekong River in order to generate income. Maybe someday you will come to Cambodia and paddle along this river!
