No sand exports since 2017, says Mines Ministry

• 18 February 2020
• Local News
• 3358 Views

The Ministry of Mines and Energy has claimed that there have been no exports of sand from Cambodia since 2017 due to both environmental issues as well as the increase in domestic demand given the current construction sector boom.

The claim comes in response to research done by the University of Southampton in the UK, which discovered that the Mekong riverbanks, especially in Cambodia, are prone to collapsing due to excessive sand mining driven by the high demand for sand in the construction sector. (Read more)

Ung Dipola, Deputy Director-General of the General Department of Mineral Resources, exclusively clarified with Construction & Property Magazine that the ministry had revoked all export licenses since 2017 due to both market and environmental factors.

“A few years ago, Cambodia used to export sand, but now all the exportation licenses have been revoked after the incident at Koh Kong lake. We found out that it was extremely damaging on biodiversity, as well as the collapsing of the lakeside due to excessive mining,” said Mr Dipola.

“Besides, the domestic demand of sand is also rising due to the ongoing construction growth; thus, the sand is better used within the kingdom. Nowadays the mining is only for the local construction, which is an ongoing rising field,” he added.

Mr Dipola added that sand plays a crucial role in the country’s development, in particular for the infrastructure sector.

“Sand is the second most-consumed resource on the planet after water. It is very vital for the country’s infrastructure development; roads, bridges, residences, and high-rises, for instance. Without sand, we will have none of these,” said Mr Dipola.

According to data from the Ministry of Mines and Energy, Cambodia extracts between 7 and 8 million cubic metres of sand each year from the Mekong River, which according to Mr Dipola, is less than the amount of sand that is replenished by the river’s natural processes.

Due to this high potential of sand extraction from Mekong, according to Mr Dipola, the Ministry of Mines and Energy may reconsider exporting sand, but any change will be subject to strict regulation.

“Even though sand boosts the nation’s economy, extracting the mineral from Cambodia is a sensitive topic. Therefore, issuing the exporting licenses will not be done unless all relevant parties carefully discuss all possible concerns along with the establishment of appropriate policies and regulations to avoid any potential harm,” said Mr Dipola.

Photo Credit: ak6

• Policy and Strategy