Cambodia's natural environment remains under threat, but there are measures everyday Cambodians can take to help it, an expert said Thursday.

Illegal logging, land theft, poaching, chemical fertilizer and pesticide abuse and other exploitive practices have diminished the environment, said Ngy San, vice chairman of the NGO Forum, as a guest on "Hello VOA."

Cambodia needs to develop better laws and other measures to protect the environment, he said, but people also need to realize the costs and benefits both of development.

He cited the example of a damn built in Vietnam that broke, flooding Cambodia, as an example of how a supposedly beneficial development could actually be harmful, even across borders.

Meanwhile, farmers should do their part to preserve the environment, by moving to natural fertilizers and pesticides, he said. "Of course, when peasants use pesticides or chemicals, their harvest increases," he said. "But let's think: if one cow dies [as a result], how much do they lose?"