Southern Africans are discovering that, in an era of climate change, some “renewable energy” may not actually be renewable, as talks at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) in Baku over how to fund climate action continue to stall.
A severe drought struck Zambia and Zimbabwe this year, wreaking havoc on both nations. Harvests were ruined, and water levels in the Zambezi River dropped to an all-time low.
For many years, the majority of Zambia’s and Zimbabwe’s energy was supplied by the Kariba Dam on the River. However, Zambian officials indicated in September that just one of the six turbines on their side of the lake might continue to run due to extremely low water levels.
For days at a time, entire cities have been without power.
