Panama Canal is one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World and the most famous artificial lock-type waterway that connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
The Panama Canal, strategically located, is crucial for international trade, facilitating over 12,000 transits and 350 million tons of goods annually, reducing shipping costs and facilitating efficient commodity transportation. Due to its strategic location, the Panama Canal is an integral part of the worldwide transportation network and is vital for international trade. Without the canal, ships would have to travel an additional 8,000 miles to reach other countries because they would have to circumnavigate the southern tip of South America.
Over 12,000 transits and 350 million tons of goods are transported through the Panama Canal annually. By facilitating more effective commodities transportation, the canal lowers shipping costs and fosters international trade.
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Panama canal
Table of Contents
The Panama Canal is an artificial 82-kilometer waterway connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans in Panama, serving as a maritime trade conduit. It uses locks to lift ships to Gatun Lake, a freshwater lake, and lowers them, using an average of 200,000,000 L of water per passing.
The first known mention of a canal across the Panamanian Isthmus dates back to 1534, when King of Spain and Holy Roman Emperor Charles V commissioned a survey for a passage through the Americas to facilitate shipping between Spain and Peru. The goal of the Spanish was to outmaneuver the Portuguese militarily.
“Some Isthmus have been eaten through by the Sea, and others cut by the spade; and if the policy would permit, that of Panama in America was most worthy of the attempt, being just a few miles over, and would open a shorter cut unto the East Indies and China,” conjectured Sir Thomas Browne, an English physician and philosopher, in his encyclopedic work Pseudodoxia Epidemica in 1668.
The Panama Canal is a complex engineering project that reduces ship travel time between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Initially controlled by Colombia, France, and the US, it was opened in 1914 and handed over to Panama in 1977. The Panam canal government took control in 1999, and it is now managed by the Panama Canal Authority.
The Panama Canal, a major international shipping route, has seen a significant increase in annual traffic, from 1,000 ships in 1914 to 14,702 vessels in 2008. The canal’s locks, which are 33.5 meters wide, allow passage between Panamax and Neopanamax ships. The canal is considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World.
History
In 1534, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, ordered a canal survey to ease the voyage between Spain and Peru. In 1668, Sir Thomas Browne suggested that Panama’s canal, being a few miles over, would open a shorter cut to the East Indies and China.
Panama’s strategic location and narrow isthmus separating two oceans led to attempts at trade links, including the unsuccessful Darien scheme in 1698. Americans suggested building a canal in 1788, believing it would be a safer route and that tropical ocean currents would widen it. Alessandro Malaspina outlined plans for the canal construction.
In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, the Erie Canal and the Spanish Empire’s collapse in Latin America sparked American interest in building an inter-oceanic canal. US officials began negotiations with Gran Colombia, but Bolivar and New Granada officials declined due to independence and government intrigue.
In 1843, Great Britain attempted a canal across Panama’s Isthmus of Darien, but it was never completed. The Mallarino-Bidlack Treaty granted US transit rights. Gold discovery in California in 1848 sparked interest in a canal crossing the Atlantic and Pacific.
The Panama Railroad, constructed in 1850 by the United States, became a crucial piece of Western Hemisphere infrastructure, facilitating trade. In 1855, William Kennish surveyed the isthmus and proposed a route for a Panama Canal.
In 1876, French Navy officers and engineers, including Lucien Napoléon Bonaparte Wyse, explored routes in the Darien-Atrato regions. In 1878, Wyse signed a treaty with the Colombian government to build an interoceanic canal through Panama, showcasing the potential of a canal to connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
Efficiency and maintenance
Panamanian control has improved the Panama Canal, with Canal Waters Time (CWT) ranging between 20-30 hours in the 2000s.
Accident rates remain stable, with 10–30 accidents per year. The Panama Canal Authority invested nearly $1 billion in modernizing the canal, aiming to increase capacity by 20%.
In December 2010, record-breaking rainfall caused an access road to the Centenario Bridge to collapse, causing the first canal closure since the U.S. invasion of Panama. The closure lasted for 17 hours.
United States asset
US President Roosevelt and the Senate debated canals across the isthmus, with some favoring Nicaragua and others advocating French interests in Panama. Bunau-Varilla accepted $40 million, and in 1902, the US Senate favored the Panamanian option.
The Hay-Herran Treaty, signed in 1903, granted the US a renewable lease in perpetuity from Colombia for a proposed canal. However, the Senate of Colombia rejected it due to concerns over compensation, sovereignty, and perpetuity.
Roosevelt later supported Panama’s separation from Colombia, signing a treaty with the new Panamanian government.
In November 1903, US warships blocked sea lanes to prevent Colombian troop movements from putting down the Panama rebellion. Panama declared independence on November 3, 1903. The US recognized the new nation, and by the time Colombia launched a response, US troops had already entered the rebelling province.
Colombian troops were hastily assembled conscripts with little training, unable to defeat the US army troops supporting the rebels. The US acted as an arbitrator between the two sides, and the peace treaty ended the “Thousand Days War.”
In 1903, Panama’s ambassador to the US, Philippe Bunau-Varilla, signed the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty, granting the US rights to build and administer the Panama Canal Zone and its defenses.
This agreement was criticized by Panamanians as an infringement on their national sovereignty, leading to a contentious diplomatic issue among Colombia, Panama, and the US. The US maneuvers are considered a classic example of gunboat diplomacy in Latin America. Panama became a US protectorate until 1939.
In 1904, the US purchased French equipment and excavations for $40 million, including the Panama Railroad. In 1921, Colombia and the US entered the Thomson-Urrutia Treaty, agreeing to pay $25 million, grant Colombia special privileges, and recognize Panama as an independent nation.
Panama canal construction
The US took control of the Panama Canal property in 1904 and inherited a depleted workforce and poor infrastructure from the French. The Isthmian Canal Commission (ICC) was established to oversee construction and report to Secretary of War Taft.
President Roosevelt appointed John Findley Wallace as chief engineer, but Wallace resigned in 1905 due to disease and bureaucracy. Theodore P. Shonts replaced Wallace, and John Frank Stevens became chief engineer, bypassing the ICC and directing demands to the Roosevelt administration.
Stevens built infrastructure for incoming workers in Panama, including housing, cafeterias, hotels, and water systems. He recruited Afro-Panamians from the US and other areas, ensuring safety and comfort. Stevens also re-established and enlarged the railway, crucial for transporting soil from mountains to dams.
Colonel William C. Gorgas, appointed chief sanitation officer of the canal construction project in 1904, implemented measures to minimize the spread of diseases like yellow fever and malaria. Despite opposition from the commission, Gorgas’ efforts led to the nearly elimination of mosquito-borne diseases. However, around 5,600 workers died from disease and accidents during the US construction phase.
The Roosevelt Medal, designed by Victor D. Brenner and featuring the then-current president, was awarded to American citizens working on the Canal for two years of service, with additional bars added for subsequent years.
In 1905, a US engineering panel recommended a sea-level canal for President Roosevelt. However, Stevens argued against this, arguing for a lock-and-lake canal. He proposed a canal using a lock system to raise and lower ships from a large reservoir, creating the largest dam and human-made lake in the world.
Water would be taken from Gatun Lake through gates and valves and connected to the Pacific through the Gaillard Cut. Stevens convinced Roosevelt of the necessity and feasibility of this alternative scheme.
The construction of a canal required over 17 million cu yd of material, surpassing the 30 million cu yd excavated by the French. The Americans replaced old French equipment with new construction equipment, including shovels, cranes, hydraulic rock crushers, concrete mixers, dredges, and pneumatic power drills.
The railroad was upgraded with heavy-duty rails, and a new line was constructed above Gatun Lake’s waterline.
Development
In the 1930s, water supply issues led to the construction of the Madden Dam, which created Madden Lake. In 1939, construction began on a new lock set for larger warships, but was canceled after World War II.
In 1974, negotiations led to the Torrijos-Carter Treaties, signed in 1977 by President Jimmy Carter and Panama’s de facto leader, Omar Torrijos.
After WWII, US control of the Canal Zone and the canal became contentious, leading to increased tension between Panama and the US. Demands for the canal’s handover increased after the Suez Crisis in 1956, culminating in riots on Martyr’s Day in 1964.
This granted Panamanians free control of the canal, with Panama guaranteeing permanent neutrality. Effective December 1999, the Panama Canal Authority took control, and the canal remains a key revenue source for Panama.
Recent development (2024)
President-elect Donald Trump accused Panama of violating Torrijos-Carter Treaties by charging exorbitant fees for American ships and threatened to reclaim the Panama Canal on December 21, 2024.
port
The ports of Balboa (on the Pacific side) and Colón (on the Atlantic side) are the two most prominent ports in the Panama Canal Port network. These ports are essential hubs in the shipping and logistics sector because they enable the efficient passage of cargo through the canal. Both Balboa and Colón, the Pacific and Atlantic terminals, are ideally situated to manage the high volume of commerce that flows through this famous canal. on the Pacific side of United States of America.
The Panama Canal Port is a crucial global trade hub, reducing ship travel times and serving as a transshipment hub for products moving between Europe, Asia, and North and South America. It handles various commodities supporting the global economy, including coal, oil, containers, and agricultural items.
The operations of the Panama Canal Port were greatly impacted by the Panama Canal’s expansion, which was finished in 2016 with the inauguration of the third set of locks. “New Panamax” vessels, which are far larger than the conventional ones, may pass through the new locks, also referred to as the Third Lane.
Bigger Ships, Bigger Cargo: This enlargement makes it possible for ships to transport more cargo, which lowers shipping costs for businesses and improves customer service for clients around the globe.
New Trade Routes: Asia and the US East Coast have benefited greatly from the new trade routes made possible by the expansion. It has given Panamanian ports additional chances to act as distribution and transshipment centers.
Capacity
The canal, originally designed to handle 80 million tons per year, has grown significantly, reaching 340.8 million tons in 2015.
Improvements include an enhanced locks lighting system, construction of tie-up stations, widened Culebra Cut, improved tugboat fleet, carousel lockage system, vessel scheduling system, and deeding of navigational channels.
These improvements have expanded the canal’s capacity from 300 million PCUMS (2008) to 340 PCUMS (2012), complementing the new locks project.
length
The length of the Panama Canal is roughly 50 miles (80 kilometers). It connects the Atlantic (through the Caribbean Sea) and Pacific oceans by spanning the Panamanian isthmus. The canal greatly cuts down on the time and distance that ships must travel between the two oceans, making it an essential conduit for global marine trade.
The Design of the panama Canal is
The Panama Canal, which facilitates ship transportation between oceans, is a sophisticated network of locks and channels rather than a straightforward waterway. The canal is separated into three main locks: the Culebra Cut (a segment that passes through the Continental Divide), the Miraflores Locks on the Pacific side, and the Gatun Locks on the Atlantic side.
At one of the locks, ships start their voyage by being elevated to the level of the artificial reservoir known as Gatun Lake. Ships use the corresponding locks to fall into the opposite ocean after crossing the lake. The Panama Canal is a remarkable engineering wonder because of its complex water level system.
The Locks’ Function
The canal’s locks are its key.
cost
The Panama Canal was officially opened in 1914, a significant cost in American history, with American expenditures totaling $352,000,000 and French and American expenditures totaling $639,000,000. The construction took 34 years, involving over 80,000 people and 30,000 deaths. In 2014, the canal celebrated its 100th anniversary.
