Laos Environment - 2024

Environment - current issues

unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; loss of biodiversity; water pollution, most of the population does not have access to potable water

Environment - international agreements

party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Climate

tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April)

Land use

agricultural land: 10.6% (2018 est.)

arable land: 6.2% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 0.7% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 3.7% (2018 est.)

forest: 67.9% (2018 est.)

other: 21.5% (2018 est.)

Urbanization

urban population: 38.2% of total population (2023)

rate of urbanization: 2.99% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Revenue from forest resources

1.48% of GDP (2018 est.)

Air pollutants

particulate matter emissions: 21.15 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)

carbon dioxide emissions: 17.76 megatons (2016 est.)

methane emissions: 9 megatons (2020 est.)

Waste and recycling

municipal solid waste generated annually: 351,900 tons (2015 est.)

municipal solid waste recycled annually: 35,190 tons (2015 est.)

percent of municipal solid waste recycled: 10% (2015 est.)

Major rivers (by length in km)

Mènam Khong (Mekong) (shared with China [s], Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam [m]) - 4,350 km
note – [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth

Major watersheds (area sq km)

Pacific Ocean drainage: Mekong (805,604 sq km)

Total water withdrawal

municipal: 130 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

industrial: 170 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

agricultural: 7.05 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)

Total renewable water resources

333.5 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)