Compiled by Bob Nixon
Africa's Kariba Dam faces disastrous hydroelectric power collapse
Big Tech's gig economy foreshadows Uber-like trouble
December 30, 2020
⢠For 11 years, Mexican migrant Jaime Solano worked in the low-wage food service industry in New York City. He delivered takeout for restaurants and worked as kitchen staff. He sent his savings to his family in the poor state of Guerrero in southern Mexico, until he died of COVID-19 over the summer. His death left his wife and family with little means of support.
⢠Africanâs largest man-made dam, the Kariba Dam built by European colonial powers in the 1950s is in trouble. The dam located on the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia has been struck by a destructive pattern of seasonal droughts which have cut off its 1,830 megawatt hydroelectric power supply to the region. Aging infrastructure is leading to the dam’s potential collapse. Over six decades of the watersâ rushing through it and tumbling over the dam have carved a pit at its base and erosion threatens its very foundation.