There used to be lots of large trees in Vientiane, planted I understand, during the French rule, but around 2000 these were cut as part of road work funded by ADB. There was some community opposition but it had no effect. The timber was valuable and I guess had been priced into the construction bid.
Some years later, there was an attempt through development assistance to create a constructed wetland in the city. This faltered because of poor management of drainage water quality which resulted in strong bad odors and complaints from the public. I understand drainage was re-routed to the river.
Green infrastructure needs cross-disciplinary planning. A major impediment in Asian institutional arrangements is the structure of government agency responsibilities and the operation of the silo effect, preventing cooperation among agencies. The Ministry which might be appropriate to drive such planning and management, Natural Resources and Environment, does not have the political power to influence those responsible for urban planning and construction.
There used to be lots of large trees in Vientiane, planted I understand, during the French rule, but around 2000 these were cut as part of road work funded by ADB. There was some community opposition but it had no effect. The timber was valuable and I guess had been priced into the construction bid.
Some years later, there was an attempt through development assistance to create a constructed wetland in the city. This faltered because of poor management of drainage water quality which resulted in strong bad odors and complaints from the public. I understand drainage was re-routed to the river.
Green infrastructure needs cross-disciplinary planning. A major impediment in Asian institutional arrangements is the structure of government agency responsibilities and the operation of the silo effect, preventing cooperation among agencies. The Ministry which might be appropriate to drive such planning and management, Natural Resources and Environment, does not have the political power to influence those responsible for urban planning and construction.