There are several social concerns attached to this project:

• The dam is likely to flood seven villages in four communes. Approximately 4,574 people comprising 1,052 families will then have to be resettled into new locations.

• At least 38,675 people, including a large number of indigenous peoples, included in at least 86 villages located along the Sesan and Srepok Rivers and in the reservoir area would lose access to the vast majority of their fisheries resources due to the dam blocking fish migrations from the Mekong and Sekong Rivers up the Sesan and Srepok Rivers. In addition, at least 87 villages in Cambodia located along tributaries of these two rivers would also lose access to migratory fish. In total, at least 78,000 people living above the Sesan 2 dam site are expected to lose access to migratory fish

• 1,290 ha of agricultural land will be lost equalling approximately 25% of total agricultural land in the Sesan district.

• 3,000 workers are expected to be employed to build the dam and many of these people are likely to come from outside provinces which may lead to problems and impacts to communities and local cultures.

• If people lose their livelihood they may have to migrate outside of the community to work resulting in families and communities breaking down.

• The amount of useable or drinkable water will decline.

• Health problems may also arise. If a free flowing river suddenly becomes a stagnant reservoir this will signal a change in water quality and an increase in health problems: increase in mosquito breeding habitat, Malaria, Dengue Fever, toxic algae, skin rashes, respiratory problems, and other illnesses

• There will be a massive loss of the number and quantity of different fish species, as the dam will block fish passage to upstream Sesan and Srepok Rivers. People in Cambodia typically rely on fish as their food staple and main source of protein. If there are not sufficient fish in the rivers nutritional and other health issues may increase.

The list of human rights concers are as follows:

• The knowledge of communities who will be directly affected by the LS2 dam is very limited as they have had limited opportunity to be involved in the planning process.

• Community opposition to the project is evident. Indigenous community in Ratanakiri have sent statements and letters to local and national authorities, governing bodies, and the dam developers themselves.

• Independent research (refer Baird 2009) conducted with villages in the project area concluded that 100% of the people who participated in village meetings clearly indicated that they are opposed to the LS2 dam.

• There currently exists no clear information regarding resettlement and compensation plans for the LS2 dam and affected communities. According to a presentation given by PECC1 and KCC during 2008 (the company who conducted the environmental impact assessment), affected communities will be provided with a new wooden house, some farmland, and some infrastructure. It remains to be seen if the government or companies will meet their resettlement requirements. People are worried about impacts to their livelihoods, which are difficult to replace.

• Cambodia does not have a resettlement law. There is currently a draft version of the law but this has not yet been approved by the National Assembly indicating that there are no clear guidelines to follow. In this respect the policies of the company will likely be used rather than national guidelines meaning that resettlement is often unfair and compensation is not based on the full replacement value.

• Experience in Cambodia shows that most EIA reports are not public or performed in a transparent manner and it is difficult to know if an EIA has even been completed.

Some of the gender concerns are as follows:

• Responsibility to collect water and food preparation falls to the women in the household so if water quality decreases and becomes inadequate for consumption, health impacts will be experienced by women first.

• Also if there is less water in the river, or if the relocation areas are farther from the river, then women will have to travel further to collect water.

• Children are also at risk because they spend a lot of their time playing in, and beside the river.

There is a list of environmental concerns as well:

• The dam site is very flat and therefore the height of the dam will be 75 metres above sea level. The reservoir area of the dam will be extensive and also shallow and will flood 33,560ha of land.

• Much land will be lost when the reservoir floods:

  • 305km² of forests, which are used to collect non-timber forest products

  • 7km of the National Road #78

  • 7,086ha of forest in the new resettlement area

  • Since March 2013 there have been reports of a lot of illegal logging taking place outside of the dam's demarcation zones by Cambodia's Ang & Associates Lawyer Group (a company owned by Royal Group's Kith Meng).  Logging was halted in late 2013 following the order of a government investigation, however, it is reported that the investigation never took place and illegal logging has since continued.
    

• Rare and endangered species of flora and fauna will be lost

• The river's water flow in terms of quantity and quality will forever be altered

• There will be a massive loss of the number and quantity of different fish species, as the dam will block fish passage to upstream Sesan and Srepok Rivers. Over 100 fish species are found in the river and 66% of these fish are migratory species therefore if the dam is built, most of these species will disappear from upstream locations.  A 2012 study by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science stated that the project would led to the destruction of 9.3% of the Mekong River Basin's fish biomass and led to the extinction of more than 50 fish species.

• The dam will block much needed sediment and nutrient flows to downstream water users, experts have estimated that between 6 to 8% of the Mekong River Basin's sediment flows would be blocked.

After 25 to 30 years of operating a dam, the sediment loads in the reservoir will steadily build making the reservoir shallower. This will also reduce the capacity of the dam to produce electricity and reduce the financial viability of the dam and may cause financial problems in the future.

Overall, if the Lower Sesan 2 project goes ahead, it will cause serious negative environmental, social, and health impacts.

The Lower Sesan 2 dam is a big project; 400MW and 75 metres high and estimated to cost USD816 million indicating that this is a developers dream, but independent research and lessons learned from other hydropower projects in the region show that this will become a community's nightmare.