Increase in Rainfall Due to Lake Kariba

Hutchinson, P.

doi:10.1002/j.1477-8696.1973.tb00816.x

Cited by 3 publications

(2 citation statements)

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“…Although Hutchinson (1973) indicated that Lake Kariba had affected rainfall patterns on the lake’s northern escarpment, the lake appears to have had no significant impacts on the local or regional climate. Some researchers, presuming higher humidity near the lake shoreline, speculated on the development of riparian forest fringe, akin to the riparian forest of the inundated Gwembe Valley..…”

Section: Environmental Impacts Of Lake Karibamentioning

confidence: 97%

Environmental state of Lake Kariba and Zambezi River Valley: Lessons learned and not learned

Magadza¹

2010

Lakes & Reservoirs

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Lake Kariba, still the largest reservoir in the world by volume, is 60 years old. It has undergone changes in its thermal properties, associated with global warming, which reflect in turn on its limnology. These changes include a shallower eipilimnion, higher heat content and increased tropicality to near equatorial status. The role of Lake Kariba with regard to its energy characteristics is discussed in light of global warming findings. The lake's water residence time has increased from 3.7 years to %5.7 years, attributable to a reduced inflow from the Zambezi River. The phytoplankton communities have changed towards a cyanophyceae-dominated community, leading to a decline in entomostracan zooplankton, and a near collapse of the planktivorous Limnothrissa miodon fishery. Prolonged use of pesticides to control Glossina has led to measurable ecosystem level impacts on both terrestrial and aquatic biota. The impacts of the forced relocation of the Tonga people were still evident during this study. Siltation from resettlement areas has led to the loss of habitat and biodiversity in the inflowing streams to the lake. Unplanned shoreline development in the early history of the lake poses health problems. It is projected that global warming will cause the lake temperature to rise by %4°C by the end of the century. Higher temperatures will be accompanied by windier conditions, thereby enhancing the risks from storms on the lake. The appropriateness of administrative structures intended to manage the Zambezi River Basin environment also is discussed herein. It is concluded that the management protocol is institutionally a non-inclusive process lacking the capacity to involve other stakeholders in managing the lake's resources, and even less so in the integrated management of the basin.

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Section: Environmental Impacts Of Lake Karibamentioning

confidence: 97%

Environmental state of Lake Kariba and Zambezi River Valley: Lessons learned and not learned

Magadza¹

2010

Lakes & Reservoirs

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“…Its economic value is higher if we also consider the touristic attraction that it represents in the Zambezi River Basin [17]. Because of its large superficial area and volume, Lake Kariba also influences the local rainfall regime, where one of the possible causes is the formation of a lake breeze system [28].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sixty years since the creation of Lake Kariba: Thermal and oxygen dynamics in the riverine and lacustrine sub-basins

et al. 2019

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The current boom of dam construction at low latitudes endangers the integrity and function of major tropical river systems. A deeper understanding of the physical and chemical functioning of tropical reservoirs is essential to mitigate dam-related impacts. However, the development of predictive tools is hampered by a lack of consistent data on physical mixing and biogeochemistry of tropical reservoirs. In this study, we focus on Lake Kariba (Southern Africa), the largest artificial lake in the world by volume. Kariba Dam forms a transboundary reservoir between Zambia and Zimbabwe, and therefore its management represents a socio-politically sensitive issue because the Kariba Dam operation completely changed the downstream hydrological regime. Although Lake Kariba represents a unique and scientifically interesting case study, there is no consistent dataset documenting its physical and chemical behaviour over time. This limits the scope for quantitative studies of this reservoir and its downstream impacts. To address this research gap, we aggregated a consistent database of in situ measurements of temperature and oxygen depth profiles for the entire 60 years of Lake Kariba’s lifetime and performed a detailed statistical analysis of the thermal and oxygen regime of the artificial lake to classify the different behaviours of the lake’s sub-basins. We demonstrate that the seasonal stratification strongly depends on the depth of the water column and on the distance from the lake inflow. Satellite data confirm these spatiotemporal variations in surface temperature, and reveal a consistent longitudinal warming trend of the lake surface water temperature of about 1.5°C from the inflow to the dam. Finally, our results suggest that the stratification dynamics of the lacustrine sub-basins have the potential to alter the downstream Zambezi water quality. Future research should focus on assessing such alterations and developing strategies to mitigate them.

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Dry season herbivore utilization of open grasslands in Lower Zambezi National Park, Zambia

Chomba¹

2011

J. Ecol. Nat. Environ.

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Increase in Rainfall Due to Lake Kariba

Cited by 3 publications

References 0 publications

Environmental state of Lake Kariba and Zambezi River Valley: Lessons learned and not learned

Environmental state of Lake Kariba and Zambezi River Valley: Lessons learned and not learned

Sixty years since the creation of Lake Kariba: Thermal and oxygen dynamics in the riverine and lacustrine sub-basins

Dry season herbivore utilization of open grasslands in Lower Zambezi National Park, Zambia

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