Zambia's Environment

Named after the Zambezi River, Zambia is a landlocked country located between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Equator, covering about 752,610 square kilometres.

Most of the country lies at an elevation of between 1000m and 1600m. Only a few areas lie below 500m, most being rift-valleys, while the highest mountain peaks are in the northeast and exceed 2000m (6600ft).

The Zambezi River drains much of the western part of the country and forms most of Zambia's southern border. It also feeds Lake Kariba (formed by the Kariba Dam - the country's main power source) and cascades over the mighty Victoria Falls in the south, before continuing on through Mozambique to the sea. The major tributaries are the Kafue in the west, the Luangwa in the east; and the Luapula and Chambeshi in the north.

In the north of Zambia is the Copperbelt. Rich mineral veins containing major deposits of copper, cobalt and other minerals are of great economic importance to the country.

As long as 2,000-million years ago Zambia's oldest rocks were laid down in what is known as the Basement Complex. After being eroded and covered by sediments over a period of millions of years they eventually formed the Katanga system which is found just below the surface and produces the sought-after minerals.

This era was followed by further deposits of sedimentary rock - sandstones, mudstones and coal. Finally, molten lava seeping up through the crust covered vast areas of western Zambia in layers of basalt, visible in the gorges below Victoria Falls.

Above ground, Zambia is covered mostly in savannah-type vegetation, typified by grasses interspersed with trees. The sand that covers most of western Zambia was most likely blown in from the Kalahari Desert several million years ago during an extremely dry period on the sub-continent.

In the southwest you will find Teak forests and in the north there are the Bangweulu swamps with extremely high concentrations of wildlife.

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