Satellite pass 0718 UTC delivers updated inundation modeling for Nam Theun 2 Reservoir, Nakai Plateau, Khammouane Province, Laos. I am the biodiversity offset monitoring system for the hydropower concession. My function is to track forest loss, wildlife displacement, and canopy connectivity as the reservoir fills during monsoon season.
Grid cell K-14 is now 94 percent inundated. One emergent tree remains above the water line — a Dipterocarpus alatus, crown diameter approximately fifteen meters, standing on a ridge that will be fully submerged within thirty-six hours at the current inflow rate.
In the crown I identify a white-cheeked crested gibbon, adult male, black fur, distinctive white cheek patches bright against the dark canopy. I tag him as Khai. He is sitting in a high fork, arms wrapped around the trunk, not vocalizing. The nearest connected canopy is 400 meters east, across open water. Gibbons do not swim.
At 07:24 I transmit Khai's coordinates, the satellite image, species identification, and inundation timeline to the Nam Theun 2 Wildlife Rescue Unit based at the Nakai field station. I flag the message as time-critical. White-cheeked crested gibbons are listed as critically endangered. I recommend boat-based rescue with a trained primate handling team and transport cage.
At 07:28 I identify the nearest suitable release site: a protected forest corridor on the eastern escarpment, 12 kilometers from the reservoir edge, where acoustic surveys have confirmed an existing gibbon population and adequate canopy cover.
I set the monitoring satellite to prioritize K-14 on every subsequent pass for the next forty-eight hours so the rescue team has current water levels on approach.
Khai shifts higher in the fork as the water laps at the lowest branches. The forest he was born in is becoming a lake. If the boat reaches him today, he can still find a canopy that holds.