advancing sustainability in

the Mekong region: role of

assessment tools and standards

Kate LazarusSenior

Operations Officer

Sustainable Business Advisory

Vientiane, Lao PDR

Efforts to advance sustainability of the hydro sector

• Build a constituency for improved hydropower governance and wider testing of hydropower assessment tools (e.g the Protocol e.g. IFC standards)

• Support changes in the way hydropower companies design, construct and operate their hydropower projects, to take into account social and environmental factors

• Contribution by developers to wider Mekong discussions on hydropower, the ways in which it can be improved and environmental and social impacts minimised.

• Provide space for dialogue and discussion on hydropower governance - upstream/downstream

Bu

• (re

Key message 1: Creation of knowledge is essential to building awareness and

understanding

Key message 2: Fostering neutral multi-stakeholder dialogue spaces on critical aspects

of sustainable hydropower is fundamental

• Vietnam

• Cambodia

• Lao PDR

• Thailand

• China

• Sustainability Assessment of Electricity Planning: Using Section 1 of the 2009 Hydropower

Sustainability Assessment Protocol in Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam

Key message 3: Pilot testing and using unofficially contributes to greater understanding

of multiple uses of Protocol (China and Laos)

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Key message 4: Building constituents for improved hydropower governance in Mekong Region gets the word out and

more likely to lead to greater use

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Key message 5: In rivers with cascades of

hydro or in transboundary

situations, taking a basin-wide approach is

necessary to addressing cumulative

impacts and identifying

management options

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Key message 6: No need to compare apples to oranges: Protocol & IFC

Performance StandardsProtocol Performance Standards

Assessment Tool Standard

Industry specific voluntary scoring tool

Cross-cutting risk management framework

Wider application including governance, political risk, financial viability

Focus on environmental and social (IFC’s overall credit/investment assessment covers all)

E&S issues

Principle of avoid, minimize, mitigate, compensate

Stakeholder engagement at core

Cross-cutting issues: climate change, human rights

Recognition of need to focus in integrated manner

www.ifc.org/EHSguidelineswww.ifc.org/sustainability

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Session questions

• What have been the Mekong’s experiences with sustainability assessment tools (e.g. HSAP and RSAT), and how do they contribute to sustainability?

• How do the methods and approaches employed in these assessment tools along with internationally accepted environmental and social standards contribute to advancing sustainability of the hydropower sector in the Mekong region…or not?

Practical applications or efforts to use the tools and standards and explore options for advancing sustainability will be shared.

Thank you

Kate Lazarus, klazarus@ifc.org

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Bus Stop Discussion

• Group 1: Defining sustainability and its meaning in the Mekong region

How is hydropower sustainability defined? Are their examples of how sustainability has been addressed or assessed by your organisation? How can sustainability assessments be improved?

• Group 2: Considering risk management How can we manage risks of hydropower development in a

sustainable manner? What are the various values (e.g. business/economic) needed to manage risks in the long-term?

• Group 3: Challenges to adopting a sustainable approach to hydropower development in the Mekong region

What are the barriers to ensuring hydropower development in the Mekong is sustainable? Do the sustainability tools and approaches make a contribution and what are the challenges to their application?