World’s oldest termite mounds discovered in South Africa – and they’ve been storing precious carbon for thousands of years

First Published June,16,The Conversation The landscape along the Buffels River in South Africa’s Namaqualand region is dotted with thousands of sandy mounds that occupy about 20% of the surface area. These heuweltjies, as the locals call them (the word means “little hills” in Afrikaans), are termite mounds, inhabited by an underground network of tunnels and nests of the southern harvester termite, Microhodotermes viator. I’m part of a group of earth scientists who, in 2021, set out to study why the groundwater in the area, around 530km from Cape Town, is saline. The groundwater salinity seemed…

Africa’s Largest Hydroelectric Power Plant Surpasses Expected Electricity Generation: Contributes to 16% of East Africa’s Total Electricity Output

The Ethiopian government has noted that Africa’s largest hydroelectric power plant has surpassed expected electricity output. The government disclosed that the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) has generated more than 2,700 gigawatt hours (GWh) of electricity during the past 10 months. The Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP) said the mega hydroelectric power plant has surpassed its initial planned power generation targets in the past 10 months of the current 2023/2024 Ethiopian fiscal year. Its fiscal year started on July 8, 2023. According to data from EEP, the dam has registered a 26 per…

Tanzania SGR Operations Approach as the Country Launches East Africa’s First Electric Train

The Republic of Tanzania has made a significant step in the rail transport sector as the country launched its first electric train on Saturday, which got to transport a total of 1,400 passengers from the coastal city of Dar es Salaam to Morogoro which is located in the in the western part of the country on its maiden journey, covering a total distance of 300 kilometers (186 miles)  as the Tanzania SGR Operations are expected to commence from next month. Moreover, comprising of state-of-the-art electric and signaling systems, the Tanzania…