An intergovernmental organization says water levels in the Mekong River have dropped to “worrying levels” since the start of 2021. The drop was partly caused by a restriction on flows from a hydropower plant in China’s Yunnan province, the Mekong River Commission (MRC) said in a recent statement. The MRC includes Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam. The important waterway has turned blue along the Thai-Laos border, from its usual cloudy brown color, signaling lower water and reduced levels of sediment. Lower levels of sediment could be the result of outflow restrictions from China’s Jinghong hydropower station, the organization said. The statement said other reasons for the drop were lower rainfall, flow changes upstream and hydropower operations in Mekong tributaries.
Title: Mekong River Drops to ‘Worrying’ Levels
Content: <div id='article-page'><div id='article-content' data-media-url='//news-app-staging.s3.amazonaws.com' data-base-url='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/C.wav' data-capture-url='//staging.analytics.lingraphica.com/events/capture_news' data-article-title='Mekong River Drops to Worrying Levels' data-article-id='5445'><script src='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com/javascripts/getscripts.js'></script><link rel='stylesheet' href='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com/stylesheets/article.css' type='text/css' /><div class='article'><p><span data-start-time='0' data-end-time='14021'>An intergovernmental organization says water levels in the Mekong River have dropped to “worrying levels” since the start of 2021.</span> <span data-start-time='14021' data-end-time='30063'>The drop was partly caused by a restriction on flows from a hydropower plant in China’s Yunnan province, the Mekong River Commission (MRC) said in a recent statement. </span> <span data-start-time='30063' data-end-time='37688'>The MRC includes Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam.</span> <span data-start-time='37688' data-end-time='53021'>The important waterway has turned blue along the Thai-Laos border, from its usual cloudy brown color, signaling lower water and reduced levels of sediment. </span> <span data-start-time='53021' data-end-time='66042'>Lower levels of sediment could be the result of outflow restrictions from China’s Jinghong hydropower station, the organization said.</span> <span data-start-time='66042' data-end-time='80063'>The statement said other reasons for the drop were lower rainfall, flow changes upstream and hydropower operations in Mekong tributaries.</span> </p></div><div class='control-buttons-sticky' style='display:none;'><div class='control-buttons'><button title='Back' class='back' disabled='disabled'></button><button title='Play' class='play' disabled='disabled'></button><button title='Pause' class='pause' style='display:none;'></button><button title='Forward' class='forward' disabled='disabled'></button><button class='finished-reading' style='display:none;'>Done</button></div></div></div><div id='article-media'><div id='media-image'><img src='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/C.jpg'/></div></div><div id='question-content' style='display:none;'><div class='vocabulary_question question-container' data-question-id=16905 data-hint-location='37688' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/what_is_sediment.wav'>What is sediment?</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='matter that settles to the bottom of a liquid'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/a_dry_riverbed.wav'><span>a dry riverbed</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/matter_that_settles_to_the_bottom_of_a_liquid.wav'><span>matter that settles to the bottom of a liquid</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/an_attitude_or_feeling.wav'><span>an attitude or feeling</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/a_property_deed.wav'><span>a property deed</span></div></div></div><div class='multiple_choice_question question-container' data-question-id=16906 data-hint-location='30063' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/what_country_does_not_border_the_mekong_river.wav'>What country does NOT border the Mekong River?</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='India'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/thailand.wav'><span>Thailand</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/india.wav'><span>India</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/laos.wav'><span>Laos</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/cambodia.wav'><span>Cambodia</span></div></div></div><div class='sentence_completion_question question-container' data-question-id=16907 data-hint-location='0' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/mekong_river_water_depth_has_dropped_to_worrisome_levels_since_the_start_of__blank_.wav'>Mekong River water depth has dropped to worrisome levels since the start of <span class='blank'>2021</span>.</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='2021'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/2020.wav'><span>2020</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/2021.wav'><span>2021</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/1980.wav'><span>1980</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4921/1999.wav'><span>1999</span></div></div></div><div class='question-buttons'><button class='skip-button'></button><button class='hint-button'></button><button class='speak-button'></button></div></div></div>
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