Amid the more volatile weather patterns brought on by climate change, hydroelectric dams are seen as increasingly unreliable. (Photo by Gerardo Arbaiza)
El Salvador too often finds itself in a vicious circle when it comes to power generation. In years with normal April-to-November rainy seasons, hydroelectric-dam reservoirs fill and relatively clean power abounds. But when rainfall is scant, as was the case through much of 2019, the country must rely more on power from dirtier, fossil-fuel-fired plants, which means buying more imported oil. Dependence on fossil-fuel-based power production has long been identified as a prime cause of global warming and unhealthy air. Yet in El Salvador, and a number of other Latin American countries, experts worry that relying too heavily on hydroelectricity as an alternative also poses risks in the era of climate change. El Salvador gets roughly half its electricity from 10 fossil-fuel-fired power plants, and most of the rest from four hydroelectric stations, with contributions as well—in descending order of... [Log in to read more]
