Orange River Totally Explained

Everything about The Orange River totally explained

The Orange River (Afrikaans/Dutch: Oranjerivier), Gariep River or Senqu River is the longest river in South Africa. It rises in the Drakensberg mountains in Lesotho, flowing westwards through South Africa to the Atlantic Ocean. The river forms part of the international borders between South Africa and Namibia as well as between South Africa and Lesotho, as well as several provincial borders within South Africa. Although the river doesn't pass through any major cities, it plays an important role in the South African economy by providing water for irrigation, as well as hydroelectric power.

Course

The Orange rises in the Drakensberg mountains along the border between South Africa and Lesotho, about 193 km (120 miles) west of the Indian Ocean and at an altitude of over 3000m. While in Lesotho, the river is known as the Senqu and parts of it freeze in winter, because of the altitude there.
The river then runs westwards through South Africa, forming the south-western boundary of the Free State province. In this section the river flows into first the Gariep Dam (this largest in the country), and on to the Vanderkloof Dam. From the border of Lesotho to below the Van der Kloof Dam the river bed is deeply incised. Further downstream the land is flatter, and the river is used extensively for irrigation.
At the western point of the Free State, southwest of Kimberley, the Orange meets with its main tributary, the Vaal River, which itself forms much of the northern border of the province. From here the river flows further westwards through the arid wilderness of the southern Kalahari region and Namaqualand in the Northern Cape Province to meet with Namibia at the 20th degree of east longitude. From here it flows westwards for 550km The river was named the Orange River by Colonel Robert Gordon, commander of the Dutch East India Company garrison at Cape Town, on a trip to the interior. Gordon named the river in honour of William of Orange. A popular but incorrect belief is that the river was named after the supposedly orange colour of its water, as opposed to the colour its tributary, the Vaal River ('vaal' being Afrikaans for pale or grey). Since the end of apartheid, the original name, "Gariep" has had greater favour in official correspondence in South Africa, although the name "Orange" has greater international recognition. In Lesotho, where the river rises, it's known as the Senqu River.

Economy

The Orange River plays a major role in supporting agriculture, industry and mining. To assist in this, two large water schemes have been created, the Orange River Project and the Lesotho Highlands Water Project.
There are important deposits of alluvial diamonds along the Orange River and around its mouth.
Because of the lack of dangerous animals and high water levels during summer, the river is used for recreational canoeing.

Orange River Project

The Orange River Project (ORP) was one of the largest and most imaginative projects of its kind in South Africa was constructed by Verwoerd's government at the height of the apartheid era. The ORP was built to utilise the unused water of the Orange River — which, without the Vaal River, represents some 14.1% of the total runoff in South Africa — and in the process, to satisfy an increasing demand for water. The main objectives of the project were:

to stabilise river flow,

the generation and transmission of hydro-electric power,

to provide a reliable water supply for users in the Orange river basin, and

to give a new lease of life to water-deficient areas in the Eastern Cape such as the Great Fish and Sundays River valleys. The Gariep Dam near Colesberg, named the Hendrik Verwoerd Dam when built, is the main storage structure within the Orange River. From here the water is supplied in two directions: westward along the Orange River (via hydro-electric power generators) to the Vanderkloof Dam which was previously named the PK le Roux Dam, and southward through the Orange-Fish Tunnel to the Eastern Cape.

Hydro-electricity

Eskom operates hydro-electric power-stations at both the Gariep Dam and the Vanderkloof Dam. The hydro-electric power station at the Vanderkloof Dam was the first power-generation station in South Africa situated entirely underground. The towns Oviston and Oranjekrag were established to facilitate the construction and operation of the new infrastructure.

Irrigation

Irrigation in the vast area downstream of the Vanderkloof Dam, which has turned thousands of hectares of arid veld into highly productive agricultural land, was made possible by the construction of the Gariep Dam and the Vanderkloof Dam. Old, established irrigation schemes such as those at Buchuberg, Upington, Kakamas and Vioolsdrif have also benefitted because regulation of the flow is now possible.
In recent years the wine producing areas along the Orange River have also grown in importance. See the article Northern Cape wine.
Irrigation in the Eastern Cape has also received a tremendous boost, not only from the additional water that's being made available but also owing to improvement in water quality. Without this improvement the citrus farmers along the Lower Sundays River would almost certainly have continued to suffer losses of productivity.

Lesotho Highlands Water Project

ť Main article: Lesotho Highlands Water Project

The Lesotho Highlands Water Project was conceived to supplement the water supply in the Vaal River System. Water is delivered to South Africa by means of the Delivery Tunnel which passes under the Lesotho South Africa border at the Caledon River and then under the Little Caledon River south of Clarens in the Free State and discharges into the Ash River about 30km further to the north. The scheme became viable when water demands in Gauteng reached levels that could no longer be supported economically by alternative schemes such as the Tugela River-Vaal River pumped storage scheme, which utilized the Sterkfontein Dam, located near Harrismith in the Free State.

Rafting and canoeing

During the temperate months of March and April, given good rains and the sluices of the dams being open a canoeist (or rafter) can easily travel 30 km per day. The lower reaches of the river are most popular, because of the spectacular topography. Commercial tours are available and these expeditions depart from the border town of Vioolsdrif.

Miscellaneous

In pre-colonial times the river almost certainly was home to the hippopotamus but, if so, these disappeared long ago.

Because of the river's geographical position, it's too cold in winter to support crocodiles.Further Information

Get more info on 'Orange River'.

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