Malaysian Borneo Fishermen Face Threat as Bakun Reservoir Polluted

In Long Jawe village on the banks of Malaysia’s Bakun Reservoir, fishermen are confronting an existential threat as the reservoir’s waters become increasingly polluted. The fish that sustain the community’s diet and income are dying, jeopardizing livelihoods that depend on the reservoir for transport, food, and commerce. The reservoir, created in the 1990s after flooding the surrounding landscape, has long been central to the village’s adaptation to a remote environment. Conservation Entangled host Izzy Sasada has traveled to Long Jawe to investigate the possible causes of the pollution and its impact on the community. The situation underscores the vulnerability of isolated communities to environmental degradation.