The Panama Canal Authority will reduce the number of daily ship transits through the waterway starting in September due to rainfall shortages linked to the El Nino weather phenomenon.
Daily transits through the 80-kilometer maritime corridor will be cut from 36 to 34 vessels of all types on September 3, and reduced further to 32 ships on September 15, according to an announcement by the Panama Canal Authority, officially known as the Autoridad del Canal de Panama.
The canal is managed by an autonomous public organization that oversees the strategic shipping lane connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans across the Isthmus of Panama. About five percent of global maritime cargo volume passes through the waterway, with the United States and China standing as its principal commercial users.
Falling reservoir levels
Authority officials explained that rainfall across the canal hydrographic basin had dropped lower than initial forecasts. They noted that additional measures would be required to ensure the long-term viability of shipping operations.
The canal system relies on fresh rainwater collected in two artificial reservoirs, Gatun Lake and Alajuela Lake. Water levels in both lakes have declined significantly as a result of adverse conditions brought on by El Nino.
The management agency had already introduced initial conservation steps months earlier, including reductions in ship draft limits to restrict water usage.
Previous drought restrictions
Severe weather driven by El Nino previously forced administrators to restrict canal traffic in 2023, when daily vessel transits were slashed from 38 to 22 as lake levels dropped to critical lows.
El Nino is a naturally occurring climate phenomenon that takes place every two to seven years. Equatorial surface waters in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean warm up, triggering months of major global changes in wind patterns, atmospheric pressure, and rainfall.
Meteorological forecasting models project that this year's El Nino event will be exceptionally strong, with several models indicating it could be the strongest ever recorded.
Central American drought alerts
Drought conditions linked to the weather pattern are affecting wider regions of Central America. On Wednesday, the government of Honduras placed nearly 80 percent of its national territory on alert, including the capital city of Tegucigalpa, due to severe drought caused by El Nino.
