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{{Infobox dam
| name                 = Kariba Dam
| image                = kariba_dam.jpg
| image_caption        = The dam as seen from Zimbabwe
| name_official        =
| dam_crosses          = [[Zambezi River]]
| location             = [[Zambia]]<br>Zimbabwe
| dam_type             = Arch dam
| dam_length           = {{Convert|579|m|abbr=on}}
| dam_height           = {{Convert|128|m|abbr=on}}
| dam_width_base       =
| spillway_type        =
| spillway_capacity    =
| construction_began   = 1955
| opening              = 1959
| demolished           =
| cost                 = US$480 million
| owner                = [[Zambezi River Authority]]
| res_name             = [[Lake Kariba]]
| res_capacity_total   = {{Convert|180|km3|acre.ft|abbr=on}}
| res_catchment        = {{Convert|663000|km2|abbr=on}}
| res_surface          = {{Convert|5400|km2|abbr=on}}
| res_max_length       = {{convert|280|km|abbr=on}}
| res_max_depth        = {{Convert|97|m|abbr=on}}
| plant_operator       =
| plant_turbines       = '''North:''' 4 x {{convert|150|MW|abbr=on}}, 2 x {{convert|180|MW|abbr=on}} Francis-type<br />'''South:''' 6 x {{convert|111|MW|abbr=on}} Francis-type
| plant_capacity       = '''North:''' 960 MW<br />'''South:''' 666 MW<br />'''Total:''' {{convert|1626|MW|abbr=on}}
| plant_annual_gen     = {{convert|6400|GWh|abbr=on}}
| plant_type           = 
| plant_commission     =
| location_map         = 
| location_map_caption =
| website              =
| extra                =
}}
The '''Kariba Dam''' is a hydroelectric dam in the [[Kariba Gorge]] of the [[Zambezi]] river basin between [[Zambia]] and Zimbabwe. The dam stands {{Convert|128|m}} tall and {{Convert|579|m}} long.<ref>{{cite web
|url=http://www.questia.com/library/encyclopedia/kariba-dam.jsp?l=K&p=1
|title=Kariba Dam
|publisher=Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th Ed.
|accessdate=2007-07-31
}}
</ref> The dam forms [[Lake Kariba]] which extends for {{convert|280|km}} and holds {{convert|185|km3|acre.ft}} of water.

== Construction ==
The double curvature concrete arch dam was designed by Coyne et Bellier and constructed between 1955 and 1959 by Impresit of Italy<ref name="spurwing">[http://www.spurwing.co.zw/facts_kariba.htm Spurwing facts]  {{wayback|url=http://www.spurwing.co.zw/facts_kariba.htm |date=20091105204805 }}</ref> at a cost of $135,000,000 for the first stage with only the Kariba South power cavern. Final construction and the addition of the Kariba North Power cavern by Mitchell Construction<ref>Indictment: Power & Politics in the Construction Industry, David Morrell, Faber & Faber, 1987, ISBN 978-0-571-14985-8</ref> was not completed until 1977 due to largely political problems for a total cost of $480,000,000. During construction, 86 men lost their lives.<ref name="spurwing"/><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.industcards.com/hydro-africa-southern.htm | title=Hydroelectric Power Plants in Southern Africa | publisher=Industry Cards | work=Power Plants Around the World Photo Gallery | accessdate=20 February 2014}}</ref>

== Power generation ==
The Kariba Dam supplies {{convert|1626|MW}} of electricity to parts of both [[Zambia]] (the [[Copperbelt]]) and Zimbabwe and generates {{convert|6400|GWh}} per annum. Each country has its own power station on the north and south bank of the dam respectively. The south station belonging to Zimbabwe has been in operation since 1960 and has six generators of {{convert|111|MW}} capacity each for a total of {{convert|666|MW}}.<ref>{{cite web
|url=http://www.dams.org/docs/kbase/studies/cszzmain.pdf
|title=Kariba Dam, Zambia and Zimbabwe; Final Report: November 2000
|page=VI
|publisher=World Commission on Dams
|year=2000
|accessdate=2010-11-17
}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.industcards.com/hydro-africa-southern.htm | title=Hydroelectric Power Plants in Southern Africa | publisher=IndustCards | accessdate=17 July 2014}}</ref>

On November 11, 2013 It was announced by Zimbabwe's Finance Minister, Patrick Chinamasa that capacity at the Zimbabwean (South) Kariba hydropower station would be increased by 300 megawatts. The cost of upgrading the facility has been supported by a $319m loan from China. The deal is a clear example of Zimbabwe's "Look East" policy which was adopted after falling out with Western powers.<ref>[http://www.thezimbabwemail.com/zimbabwe/18478-no-more-relations-with-the-west-zimbabwe.html 'No talks with the West' - Zimbabwe] Zimbabwe Mail,10 May 2013</ref> Construction on the Kariba South expansion began in mid-2014 and is expect to be complete in 2019.<ref>{{cite news|title=Zimbabwe: Kariba South Power Expansion On Course|url=http://allafrica.com/stories/201508170583.html|accessdate=31 December 2015|agency=The Herald|date=17 August 2015}}</ref>

The north station belonging to Zambia has been in operation since 1976, and has four generators of {{convert|150|MW}} each for a total of {{convert|600|MW}}; work to expand this capacity by an additional {{convert|360|MW}} to {{convert|960|MW}} was completed in December 2013. Two additional 180 MW generators were added.<ref>{{cite web
|url=http://www.engineeringnews.co.za/article/dbsa-provides-105m-for-zambia-hydropower-expansion-2010-11-05
|title=DBSA provides $105m for Zambia hydropower expansion 
|publisher=Cramer Media's Engineering News
|date=2010-11-05
|accessdate=2010-11-17
}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.lusakatimes.com/2013/12/04/president-michael-sata-commissions-kariba-north-bank-extension-hydro-power-station/ | title=President Michael Sata commissions the Kariba North Bank extension hydro power station | publisher=Lusaka Times | date=4 December 2013 | accessdate=17 July 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://eng.sinohydro.com/index.php?m=content&c=index&a=show&catid=125&id=195 | title=Zambia, Kariba Hydropower Plant, North bank extension | publisher=SinoHydro | accessdate=17 July 2014}}</ref>

== Choice of location ==
[[File:Zambezi.svg|frame|right|Zambezi river basin]]
The Kariba Dam project was planned by the government of the [[Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland]], or Central African Federation (CAF). The CAF was a semi-independent state within the Commonwealth in southern Africa that existed from 1953 to the end of 1963, comprising the former self-governing British colonies of [[Northern Rhodesia]] and Southern Rhodesia and the former British protectorate of Nyasaland. Northern Rhodesia had decided earlier in 1953 (before the Federation was founded) to build a dam within its territory, on the [[Kafue River]], a major tributary of the [[Zambezi]]. It would have been closer to Zambia's [[Copperbelt]] which was in need of more power. This would have been a cheaper and less grandiose project, with a smaller environmental impact. Southern Rhodesia, the richest of the three, objected to a Kafue dam and insisted that the dam be sited instead at Kariba. Also, the capacity of the Kafue dam was much lower than that at Kariba.<ref>{{cite web
|url=http://www.dams.org/docs/kbase/studies/cszzmain.pdf
|page=9
|title=Kariba Dam, Zambia and Zimbabwe; Final Report: November 2000
|publisher=World Commission on Dams
|year=2000
|accessdate=2010-11-17
}}</ref> The Kariba Dam is now owned and operated by the [[Zambezi River Authority]], which is jointly and equally owned by Zimbabwe and [[Zambia]].<ref>{{cite web |ref={{harvid|Legal Status}} |url=http://www.zaraho.org.zm/legal-status.html
 |title=Legal Status |publisher=Zambezi River Authority
 |accessdate=2012-09-23}}</ref>

Since Zambia's independence, two dams have been built on the Kafue River: the [[Kafue Gorge Dam]] and the [[Itezhi-Tezhi Dam]].

== Environmental impacts ==

=== Population displacement and resettlement ===
{{multiple image
 | align            = left
 | direction        = horizontal
 | header           =
 | header_align     =
 | header_background=
 | footer           = The dam under construction in the 1950s, showing the dangers faced by the workers.
 | footer_align     = center
 | footer_background=
 | width            =
 | image1           = Kariba Dam Construction.jpg
 | width1           = 150
 | caption1         =
 | image2           = Kariba Dam Construction 2.jpg
 | width2           = 150
 | caption2         =
}}

The creation of the reservoir forced resettlement of about 57,000 Tonga people living along the Zambezi in both [[Northern Rhodesia]] and Southern Rhodesia.<ref>{{cite web|last=Terminski|first= Bogumil |year=2013|title=Development-Induced Displacement and Resettlement: Theoretical Frameworks and Current Challenges|publisher= Indiana University|url=http://dlc.dlib.indiana.edu/dlc/handle/10535/8833?show=full}}</ref>  
From "The Shadow of The Dam", a first-hand account written by David Howarth in the 1960s, referring to the situation in Northern Rhodesia:- "Everything that a government can do on a meagre budget is being done. Demonstration gardens have been planted, to try to teach the Tonga more sensible methods of agriculture, and to try to find cash crops which they can grow. The hilly land has been plowed in ridge contours to guard against erosion. In Sinazongwe, an irrigated garden has grown a prodigious crop of pawpaws, bananas, oranges, lemons, and vegetables, and shown that the remains of the valley could be made prolific if only money could be found for irrigation. Cooperative markets have been organized, and Tonga are being taught to run them. Enterprising Tonga have been given loans to set themselves up as farmers. More schools have been built than the Tonga ever had before, and most of the Tonga are now within reach of dispensaries and hospitals."<ref>Howarth, David, ''The shadow of the dam'', Collins, 1961</ref>

There are many different perspectives on how much resettlement aid was given to the displaced tribe.  According to anthropologist Thayer Scudder, who has studied these communities since the late 1950s, "Today, most are still 'development refugees.' Many live in less-productive, problem-prone areas, some of which have been so seriously degraded within the last generation that they resemble lands on the edge of the Sahara Desert."<ref>{{cite web
|url=http://209.200.101.189/publications/csq/csq-article.cfm?id=971
|title=Pipe Dreams: Can the Zambezi River supply the region's water needs?
|publisher=Cultural Survival Quarterly
|accessdate=2007-07-31 }}
</ref>

A 2005 book, "Deep Water" by Jacques Leslie focused on the plight of the people resettled  by the dam, and found the situation little changed. Kariba remains the worst dam-resettlement disaster in African history.<ref>{{cite web
|url=http://www.cjr.org/issues/2005/5/Vanderbilt.asp
|title=When Elephants Fight
|publisher=Columbia Journalism Review
|accessdate=2007-07-31
|archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20070930023600/http://www.cjr.org/issues/2005/5/Vanderbilt.asp <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = 2007-09-30}}
</ref>

Over 6000 large animals threatened by the rising water were rescued by ''[[Operation Noah (Kariba)|Operation Noah]]''.

==== Basilwizi Trust ====
[[Image:KaribaDam.jpg|thumb|right|The dam as seen from Zimbabwe]]
In a quest to restore their lives and find justice, the Tonga formed their own advocacy group in 2000, the Basilwizi Trust.<ref>{{cite web
|url=http://www.basilwizi.org.zw/
|title=Basilwizi: Promoting Development in the Zambezi Valley
|publisher=Basilwizi
|accessdate=2007-07-31
}}
</ref>

=== River ecology ===
The Kariba Dam controls 90% of the total runoff of the Zambezi River, thus changing the downstream ecology dramatically.

=== Wildlife rescue ===
From 1958 to 1961, '[[Operation Noah (Kariba)|Operation Noah]]' captured and removed around 6,000 large animals and numerous small ones threatened by the lake's rising waters.

== Recent activity ==
On the 6th of February 2008, the BBC reported that heavy rain might lead to a release of water from the dam, which would force 50,000 people downstream to evacuate.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7231154.stm Floodgates to open in Mozambique]</ref>
Rising levels led to the opening of the floodgates in March 2010, requiring the evacuation of 130,000 people who lived in the floodplain, and causing concerns that flooding may spread to nearby areas.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/8569309.stm Zambia opens dam to alleviate flooding]</ref>

In March 2014 at a Zambezi River Authority organized conference, engineers warned that the foundations of the dam had weakened and there was a possibility of dam failure unless repairs were made.<ref>{{cite news|last=IRIN|title=Kariba Dam and Zim disaster preparedness|url=http://www.newzimbabwe.com/news-15220-Kariba+Dam+and+Zim+disaster+preparedness/news.aspx|accessdate=10 April 2014|newspaper=New Zimbabwe|date=9 April 2014}}</ref>

On 3 October 2014 the BBC reported that “The Kariba Dam is in a dangerous state. Opened in 1959, it was built on a seemingly solid bed of basalt. But, in the past 50 years, the torrents from the spillway have eroded that bedrock, carving a vast crater that has undercut the dam's foundations. … engineers are now warning that without urgent repairs, the whole dam will collapse. If that happened, a tsunami-like wall of water would rip through the Zambezi valley, reaching the Mozambique border within eight hours. The torrent would overwhelm Mozambique's Cahora Bassa Dam and knock out 40% of southern Africa's hydroelectric capacity. Along with the devastation of wildlife in the valley, the Zambezi River Authority estimates that the lives of 3.5 million people are at risk.”<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-29441074 |title=The marooned baboon: Africa's loneliest monkey |publisher=BBC |date=3 October 2014|accessdate=3 October 2014}}</ref>

On January 18 2016 It was reported that water levels at the Kariba dam had dropped to 12% of capacity. Levels fell to 477.25 metres, just above the minimum operating level for the hydropower dam. Low rainfalls and overuse of the water by the power plants at the reservoir have left it near empty, raising the prospect that both Zimbabwe and Zambia will face water shortages.<ref>{{Cite web|title = Kariba dam drops to record low 12%, and Zimbabwe, Zambia stare at a nightmare|url = http://mgafrica.com/article/2016-01-20-kariba-dam-drops-to-record-low-12-and-zimbabwe-zambia-stare-at-a-nightmare|website = MG Africa|date = 2016-01-20|access-date = 2016-02-18}}</ref>

==Related videos==
{{columns-list|2|
*{{#ev:youtube|https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSwmBPM3nnw|420||Kariba Dam: 1958 Short Report|frame}}
*{{#ev:youtube|https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mE3_0EvXHY|420|| Opening of Kariba Dam 17 May 1960 |frame}}
}}

== See also ==
* [[Nyami Nyami]]
* [[List of crossings of the Zambezi River]]

== References ==
{{Reflist|35em}}

[[Category:Natural resources of Zambia]]
[[Category:Dams in Zambia]]
[[Category:Zambezi River]]
[[Category:Lake Kariba]]
[[Category:Hydroelectric power stations in Zambia]]