Costa Rica has announced measures to ration electricity due to dwindling water levels in its hydroelectric reservoirs, thus becoming the latest Latin American country to announce rationing due to water scarcity, reports Phys.org.
On Thursday, officials declared that the country would restrict access to electricity, a move prompted by the depletion of dams vital for hydroelectric power generation, exacerbated by the El Niño weather phenomenon.
Roberto Quiros, director of Costa Rica's ICE electricity institute, described the current El Niño as the most complex in the nation's history, emphasizing the strain it has placed on water resources. Rationing measures are scheduled to commence on Monday for an unspecified duration.
Costa Rica has announced measures to ration electricity due to dwindling water levels in its hydroelectric reservoirs
Costa Rica, known for its heavy reliance on renewable energy sources, particularly hydroelectricity, derives approximately 99 percent of its electricity from renewables, with about three-quarters originating from hydroelectric plants. Berny Fallas, a climate expert at ICE, remarked that the ongoing drought is unparalleled in the past half-century.
Echoing concerns raised by the World Meteorological Organization, which reported record-high temperatures in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2023, ICE highlighted the compounding effects of El Niño and climate change, attributing them to severe weather phenomena across the region. Central America witnessed widespread drought, leading Panama to impose restrictions on traffic in the Panama Canal.
This marks Costa Rica's first instance of electricity rationing since 2007, when a similar El Niño event disrupted water levels. Notably, essential services such as hospitals and basic infrastructure will remain unaffected by the rationing measures.
Elsewhere in the region, Ecuador has also resorted to electricity rationing due to dwindling water resources, while Colombia's capital, Bogota, faces water rationing amidst the ongoing crisis.
