161 ships stuck in place! The golden waterways on which China and the United States rely heavily suffered from drought and dry water, and the traffic capacity fell sharply
You may have heard of the Panama Canal, an artificial waterway that connects the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, known as the "Bridge of the World" and "One of the Seven Engineering Wonders of the World." Its completion has greatly shortened the shipping distance and time, and promoted global trade and economic development. But what you may not know is that this golden waterway is now facing an unprecedented crisis – drought and water scarcity.
Yes, you heard it right, the Panama Canal is in drought. This is not a joke or a headline party. This is a real and serious problem, which has affected the normal operation of the canal and brought great losses and challenges to the shipping industry. So, why is the Panama Canal arid? What problems does the drought bring to the canal? What is the Canal Authority doing in response? Today, we're going to unravel the mystery for you.
First of all, we need to understand the basic situation of the Panama Canal. The Panama Canal is 81.3 kilometers long, with a width of 304 meters at its widest point and 152 meters at its narrowest point. It consists of three locks, two artificial lakes and an artificial channel. Locks are devices used to regulate the rise and fall of ships between different water levels, and they are located at the ends and middle of the canal. Artificial lakes are waters used to store water and provide waterways, they are Lake Gatun and Lake Miraflores, respectively. Artificial waterways are waterways that connect locks to artificial lakes, namely the Caribbean Sea entrance, the Gaillarde section, the Culebra section and the Pacific Ocean entrance section.
The design principle of the Panama Canal is to use the principle of gravity and water level difference to control the flow of water by opening and closing the gates without using any pump equipment, so that ships can pass smoothly on the water at different heights. This saves energy and reduces environmental impact. But it also means that the canal is very dependent on water resources. Every time a ship passes through a lock, a large amount of fresh water flows into the ocean, causing water depletion. Therefore, the canal needs to be constantly replenished from the artificial lake to ensure its normal operation.
So the question is, where does the water source of the artificial lake come from? The answer is rainfall. Panama has a tropical rainforest climate with two seasons: rainy and dry. The rainy season generally runs from May to December and the dry season generally runs from January to April. During the rainy season, rainfall is very abundant and can provide sufficient replenishment for the artificial lake. During the dry season, rainfall decreases significantly, but normal water levels in artificial lakes can still be maintained. In this way, under normal circumstances, the canal can maintain a balanced water supply and demand relationship.
This year, however, things have changed. Panama suffered an unusual drought due to the effects of El Niño. El Niño is an unusual increase in sea temperatures in the eastern Pacific Ocean, causing changes in global climate and ocean currents. When El Niño occurs, rainfall decreases significantly in the Panamanian region and evaporation increases, leading to water shortages. According to statistics, this year's rainfall in the rainy season is 20% less than usual, and the rainfall in the dry season is 60% less. As a result, the water level of the artificial lake began to drop, approaching the design minimum level.
This had a serious impact on the operation of the canal. As the water level dropped, the canal's channel depth and width were reduced, which meant that both the draft and carrying capacity of ships were limited. Draft refers to the depth at which a vessel sinks in the water, and carrying capacity refers to the weight of cargo that a vessel is capable of carrying. If the draft of the ship exceeds the depth of the channel, or the carrying capacity of the ship exceeds the width of the channel, then the ship cannot pass through the canal. Therefore, in order to ensure the safety and efficiency of the canal, the Canal Authority had to take a series of restrictive measures.
These measures include: suspending the acceptance of new requests for passage reservations and only processing vessels that have already been reserved; Adjust the lock operation time and frequency according to the water level; Develop different draft limits depending on vessel type and size; Arrange the order of passage according to the number and priority of vessels; Fines or cancellation of reservations for vessels that exceed the draft limit or fail to arrive at the reservation location on time, etc. Although these measures can alleviate the congestion of the canal, they also bring huge losses and challenges to the shipping industry.
It is reported that at present, there is a large backlog of ships waiting for passage at the mouth of the canal, which has far exceeded the normal situation of the rainy season. These vessels have to wait adrift at sea, paying high daily berthing and fuel costs. Moreover, due to the limitation of passage time and carrying capacity, these ships cannot complete the cargo transportation on time, which brings great losses and inconvenience to cargo owners and customers. Some ships even had to abandon the canal and instead detour the Strait of Magellan at the southern tip of South America or the Bering Strait at the northern tip of North America, adding thousands of kilometers and weeks of time. This is a disaster for ships transporting perishable or badly needed cargo.
The Panama Canal is one of the most important sea lanes in the world, with more than 14,000 ships transporting 518 million tons of cargo annually, contributing $2.5 billion to Panama's finances. It plays a vital role in Central America, North America, South America, Europe, Asia and other regions. But it appears powerless in the face of drought and water scarcity. El Niño is expected to intensify by the end of this year.
So why is there such a problem with the Panama Canal? Are there other factors besides the decrease in rainfall and increased evaporation caused by El Niño? The answer is yes. According to expert analysis, the drought and water scarcity of the Panama Canal are also related to the following aspects:
- Canal expansion project. To accommodate larger vessels and more shipping demands, the Panama Canal completed a decade-long expansion in 2016 with the addition of a pair of new locks and a new artificial channel. While this project increased the canal's capacity and revenue, it also increased the canal's water consumption. It is estimated that each time a ship passes through a new lock, it consumes about 200 million liters of fresh water, equivalent to the amount of water in 80 Olympic-sized swimming pools. And, because the new locks had a rolling door design instead of the original parallel door design, this also led to more water loss.
- Climatic change. Global warming has led to climate change, altering rainfall patterns in the Panamanian region. In the past, rainfall in the Panamanian region was concentrated mainly during the rainy season and less during the dry season. However, in recent years, rainfall during the rainy season has become erratic and unpredictable, while the dry season period has become drier and longer. As a result, artificial lakes cannot store enough water during the rainy season and face more pressure during the dry season.
- Population growth and urbanization. Panama is a developing country and urbanization is accelerating with economic development and population growth. This means that more people need more water to meet their domestic and industrial needs. Moreover, changes in land use and forest cover brought about by urbanization also affect the hydrological cycle and water resource management. According to statistics, about 10% of Panama's forests are cut down or degraded every year, which leads to problems such as soil erosion, reduced runoff, and falling groundwater tables.
To sum up, the drought and water shortage of the Panama Canal is a complex and multifaceted problem, involving natural, social and economic aspects. Solving this problem will not happen overnight, and will require long-term and sustained efforts and resources. So, what are the current possible solutions? We can explore from the following aspects:
- Construction of new water source projects. In order to increase the water supply capacity of the canal, new reservoirs, aqueducts, cisterns and other projects can be considered to collect and store more rainfall and surface water. For example, in 2019, the Canal Authority launched a project called "Third Water Source", which plans to build a new reservoir near the canal to provide about 190 million cubic meters of water. The project, which is expected to be completed in 2023, will provide more water security for the canal.
- Improve the efficiency of water use. In order to reduce the water consumption and loss of the canal, consideration can be given to improving the efficiency of water use to save and recycle more water resources. For example, in the expansion project, the Canal Authority used a technology called "water recovery tanks" to recover and reuse part of the water flow during the operation of the locks, saving about 60% of the water resources. In addition, water efficiency can be further improved by improving lock design, optimizing channel management, and increasing vessel load ratios.
- Strengthen the protection and management of water resources. In order to protect the quality and quantity of water sources in the canal, consideration can be given to strengthening the protection and management of water resources to prevent and reduce pollution and damage to water resources. For example, the pollution of water sources caused by industrial wastewater, agricultural fertilizers, and urban garbage can be prevented by strengthening laws and regulations, increasing supervision and law enforcement, raising public awareness, and promoting environmental protection technologies. At the same time, water conservation areas and watershed environments can be protected by restoring forest vegetation, protecting ecosystems, and controlling land development.
- Introduction of new energy sources and technologies. In order to reduce the dependence of the canal on water resources, the introduction of new energy sources and technologies can be considered to achieve the sustainable development of the canal. For example, the canal can be powered by using renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, and biomass. At the same time, it can also provide intelligent and efficient services for the canal by using advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, and big data.
In short, the Panama Canal is a world-class engineering marvel that has contributed greatly to global trade and economic development. However, it also faces serious challenges and crises in the face of drought and water scarcity. To solve this problem, the joint efforts and cooperation of all countries and circles around the world are needed to achieve the sustainable development and prosperity of the canal.