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Good practice Imported

Beoung Tompoun & Cheung Ek Wetlands — Phnom Penh's Natural Flood Buffer, Lost to Satellite-City Infill

Cambodia · Phnom Penh · See the Cambodia profile · See the Phnom Penh profile

Evidence: Observational / pre–post Top 89% 27/100 · Ask Evidence Copilot about this practice

Since 2004, Cambodia's largest development has filled in the Beoung Tompoun and Cheung Ek wetlands, which once absorbed 70% of Phnom Penh's rain and wastewater, putting over 1 million residents at greater flood risk despite published evidence of their pollutant-removal function.

44%
Nitrate reduction through wetland
99.97%
E. coli reduction through wetland
1,000,000+
Residents at increased flood/pollution risk

Details

Promoter
Government of Cambodia / ING Holdings (developer); documented by Equitable Cambodia, Sahmakum Teang Tnaut, Licadho & Cambodia Youth Network
Period
2004–ongoing
Keywords
urban wetlands, flood mitigation, wastewater treatment, land-use governance

Context

Since 2004, ING Holdings' ING City development has progressively filled the Beoung Tompoun and Cheung Ek wetlands south of Phnom Penh, which historically absorbed about 70% of the city's rain and wastewater.

Results

A peer-reviewed study measured pollutant-concentration reductions of 44% (nitrate) to 99.97% (E. coli) through the wetlands; a 2020 investigation found a planned treatment plant would handle under 2% of the displaced wastewater, putting over 1 million residents at greater flood/pollution risk.

Implementation
Indicative cost
Very high (> €5M)
Time to results
Long (> 3 years)
Staffing & skills
ING Holdings development team, Government of Cambodia land-use authorities

Conditions for success

  • independent evidence of ecosystem-service value acted upon by land-use decision-makers
  • adequate wastewater treatment capacity sized to actual displaced flows

Common failure modes

  • officials dismissed a documented investigative report without rebuttal data
  • government-backed infill continued despite measured ecosystem-service value

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Data sources

Where this practice's information was retrieved from, and when.

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