Olifants River (Limpopo)

Coordinates: 24°6′44″S 32°38′25″E / 24.11222°S 32.64028°E / -24.11222; 32.64028
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This article is about the tributary of the Limpopo River. For other rivers, see Olifants River (disambiguation).
Olifants River
Olifantsrivier, Rio dos Elefantes
Limpopo and Gaza
Physical characteristics
SourceNear Bethal
 • locationMpumalanga, South Africa
 • coordinates26°20′33″S 29°49′47″E / 26.34250°S 29.82972°E / -26.34250; 29.82972
 • elevation1,800 m (5,900 ft)
MouthLimpopo River
 • location
Gaza Province, Mozambique
 • coordinates
24°6′44″S 32°38′25″E / 24.11222°S 32.64028°E / -24.11222; 32.64028
Basin size54,570 km2 (21,070 sq mi)
Basin features
Tributaries 
 • leftLetaba River
 • rightSteelpoort River
[2]
Course and catchment of the Limpopo River. The Olifants joins the Limpopo from the right, some 190 kilometres from the Indian Ocean.

The Olifants River, Lepelle,

Drainage basins of South Africa
. The historical area of the Pedi people, Sekhukhuneland, is located between the Olifants River and one of its largest tributaries, the Steelpoort River.[5]

Course

The Olifants River has its origin between

Limpopo Province through Witbank Dam and then the Loskop Dam and is forced east by the Transvaal Drakensberg, cutting through at the Abel Erasmus Pass and then flowing east further across the Lowveld to join with the Letaba River. It crosses into Gaza Province, Mozambique, after cutting through the Lebombo Mountains by way of the Olifants Gorge, becoming the Rio dos Elefantes, and finally joining the Limpopo River after 40 km before it enters the Indian Ocean at Xai-Xai north of Maputo.[7]

Water quality

sulphate levels were attributed to coal mining and industry in the upper catchment.[10]

Tributaries

The Olifants River's largest tributaries are the

Bronkhorstspruit, rise in the Highveld grasslands.[13] The Shingwedzi River flows close to the northeastern side of the Massingir Dam reservoir and joins the left bank of the Olifants about 12 km downstream from the dam wall.[14]

Dams

Thirty large dams in the Olifants River Catchment include the following:

South Africa

Mozambique

See also

  • List of rivers in South Africa
  • Water Management Areas

References

  1. ^ Transvaal Indigenous Place Names Archived 2008-10-31 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ "State of Rivers Report - The Olifants River System". Council for Scientific and Industrial Research. Archived from the original on 2007-07-03. Retrieved 2009-02-19.
  3. ^ Olifants River now called Lepelle
  4. ^ Transvaal Indigenous Place Names Archived 2008-10-31 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ "The Ba Pedi". Archived from the original on 2012-03-14. Retrieved 2012-03-14.
  6. ^ Major rivers and streams within the Limpopo River Basin
  7. ^ Key rivers of South Africa Archived 2012-07-10 at archive.today
  8. ^ The Olifants River System Archived 2007-07-03 at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ Contaminated Olifants River Running Out of Time
  10. ISBN 978-1-4312-0358-1
    . Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  11. ^ Luvuvu Lethaba WMA 2
  12. ^ Major rivers and streams within the Limpopo River Basin
  13. ^ Olifants river WMA 4
  14. ^ Shingwedzi River: why is it the most polluted river in the KNP?
  15. ^ Massingir Dam & Flooding of Olifants Gorge

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Olifants River (Mpumalanga).
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