The Mekong is one of Asia’s most important rivers, supporting 60 million people in Southeast Asia. But for the second consecutive year, the lower Mekong basin has hit a record low water flow, affecting irrigation, rice production and fisheries, all vital to the region’s food security. The drought has also damaged habitats for turtles, reptiles and other critically endangered species.

Beijing launched a Mekong water cooperation initiative called Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Framework Earlier this year, a different report linked the Mekong’s lowest water level in half a century last year to its dam operations. China denied the findings, saying low rainfall was also recorded in the upstream. China has also been criticized for releasing spotty information about river flows. It provides its water level and rainfall data only during the flood season from two of its many stations on the Upper Mekong, an amount that is “insufficient” for water management purposes, according to the commission.