Editing Zambezi (section)

===Effects of dams===
The construction of two major dams regulating the flow of the river has had a major effect on wildlife and human populations in the lower Zambezi region. When the Cahora Bassa Dam was completed in 1973, its managers allowed it to fill in a single flood season, going against recommendations to fill over at least two years. The drastic reduction in the flow of the river led to a 40% reduction in the coverage of mangroves, greatly increased erosion of the coastal region and a 60% reduction in the catch of [[prawn]]s off the mouth because of the reduction in emplacement of [[silt]] and associated nutrients. Wetland ecosystems downstream of the dam shrank considerably. Wildlife in the delta was further threatened by uncontrolled hunting during the civil war in Mozambique.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Zambezi River Tourist Information |url=https://www.touristlink.com/africa/zambezi-river/overview.html |access-date=2021-05-22 |website=www.touristlink.com |language=en-US |archive-date=28 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220128075009/https://www.touristlink.com/africa/zambezi-river/overview.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Isaacman |first1=Allen |last2=Sneddon |first2=Chris |date=2000 |title=Toward a Social and Environmental History of the Building of Cahora Bassa Dam |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/2637563 |journal=Journal of Southern African Studies |volume=26 |issue=4 |pages=597–632 |doi=10.1080/713683608 |jstor=2637563 |s2cid=153574634 |issn=0305-7070 |access-date=20 May 2021 |archive-date=20 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210520115757/https://www.jstor.org/stable/2637563 |url-status=live }}</ref>