Logging operations uncovered at Cambodian senator’s dam in the Cardamoms

Construction on the 70-megawatt Stung Russei Chrum Kandal dam, begun in 2023 inside Phnom Kravanh National Park, is permitted to clear 2,898 hectares for its reservoir. Satellite imagery reviewed by Mongabay shows logging roads and a suspected sawmill extending up to 3 kilometers beyond that boundary, inside legally protected forest, with a similar pattern documented at the nearby Veal Thmor Kambot dam site.

A resident who asked not to be named described armed men in Royal Cambodian Armed Forces uniforms restricting access to areas locals once used for fishing, saying the troops were told to protect the forest but were set up by the company as security. Two independent forestry experts told Mongabay the imagery is consistent with selective logging targeting the most valuable timber.

Cambodia's environment minister, who has previously banned logging at other dam sites over similar suspicions, read but did not respond to questions about this one. Wildlife Alliance, the NGO overseeing the conservation project surrounding one of the dam sites, also did not respond.

The full dispatch is available from the source below.