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The Panama Canal has a big problem, but it’s not China or Trump
Climate change is causing drought conditions that are making it harder to operate the waterway and more expensive to pass through.
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Tourists watching a cargo ship transit through the Panama Canal in Panama City on Dec 23.
PHOTO: AFP
Dennis M. Hogan
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In 2023, on a research trip to Panama, I booked a day tour of the Panama Canal. I expected to hear the usual story about the canal’s epic construction, importance in world trade and successful expansion to allow for larger modern ships. What I did not expect was the overwhelming sense of concern, even panic, among people who depend on the canal for their livelihoods.
It was July, the middle of Panama’s rainy season. But the rains had been sparse, and water levels in the canal had sunk to troubling lows. Without freshwater from rain, our guide explained, the locks on the canal could not operate.
