Despite local concerns and international opposition…citing...ecological repercussions and...humanitarian crises...construction of the Xayaburi dam has gone ahead…Construction of the dam started late last year and is now 10 percent complete...The Lao government and the heads of the Xayaburi project argue in favor of the benefits the dam will bring…Project directors also claim that they have addressed many of the environmental and humanitarian concerns…However, a recent meeting of scientists in the Thai capital has affirmed that dams…are the largest threat to the fisheries of the Mekong, which support the livelihoods of tens of millions of people [&]…intensify the negative effects of climate change on the Mekong…Speaking out against these projects can be dangerous, as environmental activists and NGO members have recently discovered.