McElwee quoted on Vietnam's decision not to build cable car in world's largest cave
The Vietnamese government seems to have backed off from its proposal to build a gondola lift in Son Doong, the world’s largest cave, after it came into stiff opposition from civil society, conservation groups and tourists.
Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai signed off February 8 on a master plan for the Phong Nha – Ke Bang National Park, home to Son Doong Cave, in Quang Binh Province. The document does not mention construction of the cable car that envisaged opening up Son Doong to mass tourism, ferrying 1,000 visitors an hour to the cave.
The document highlighted the need to “strictly safeguard” protected areas, including Son Doong Cave. It calls on related authorities to develop high-quality tourism in those areas and “restrict the number of daily visitors”.
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Experts say the case is emblematic of conflicts brewing across Vietnam’s protected areas.
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At the end of the day those rare environmental victories just show that “on difficult tradeoffs between conservation and development, local authorities and the ministries don’t have a good system in place to weigh public opinion and evaluate environmental costs and benefits,” Pamela McElwee, an assistant professor of human ecology at Rutgers University who has extensively researched Vietnam’s protected areas, told Thanh Nien News.