Water DamsMost dams are designed to serve a variety of functions, including flood control, flat water recreation, hydropower electricity generation, and water supply . Although these seem like good reasons for the existence of dams, this type of construction has more negative effects than positive ones. The "environmental effects of dams include loss of land and biological resources due to flooding, reservoir sedimentation, and downstream erosion, and unfavorable hydrologic changes to many native or desirable species." Dams simply strangle rivers and the perfect example of the damage dams cause to rivers is what is happening to the Mekong River in Asia. The Mekong River covers more than 4500 kilometers across 6 countries. It passes through China's Yunnan province, borders Burma, divides Thailand and Laos, crosses Cambodia, crosses South Vietnam and finally ends in the China Ocean. The Mekong supports 100 million people, who depend on this river not only for food or water, but also for irrigation, travel and sometimes just for entertainment. The Thais call it the “Mother” of rivers. Today, like many rivers in the world, the Mekong is in danger. The reason is the massive and not well-planned construction of dams. These constructions have begun to threaten the river's ecosystem, as well as the livelihood of dozens of communities along its banks. These dams, mostly built in the last decade, supply energy to southwest Asia. But they also block the natural migration of fish, affect their reproduction and alter water levels and quality. Some people who live around the river refer to the construction of the dams as an evil and say that ... middle of paper ... fishermen have moved to Bangkok in search of inferior jobs. The study stated that if the Moon project were to be evaluated for construction today, it would not be accepted. For this reason it is believed that dam construction in Thailand will not be accepted for now. A director of Terra, an environmental group, says these dams pose only one threat to the Mekong River. Like the Mekong River, many rivers around the world are being strangled by dams. Although they may seem like useful constructions to improve the economic development of countries, in the end the resulting negative effects entail more costs than gains. Countries should carry out more in-depth studies on the impacts of dams on their ecosystem before embarking on construction. Without proper study, headaches are the only thing countries will get from dams and the Mekong River is the perfect example.