The Sand River or Polokwane River () is a watercourse in
Limpopo Province
Limpopo () is the northernmost province of South Africa. It is named after the Limpopo River, which forms the province's western and northern borders. The term Limpopo is derived from Rivombo (Livombo/Lebombo), a group of Tsonga settlers ...
,
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
, a right hand tributary of the
Limpopo River
The Limpopo River () rises in South Africa and flows generally eastward through Mozambique to the Indian Ocean. The term Limpopo is derived from Rivombo (Livombo/Lebombo), a group of Tsonga settlers led by Hosi Rivombo who settled in the mou ...
. Its new name "Polokwane River" is homonymous with the name of the town of
, formerly Pietersburg, about upriver from its mouth. The Sand River flows by the western edge of this town.
Course
It has its source south of
Mokopane and flows northwards across central Limpopo Province until it cuts across the
Soutpansberg
The Soutpansberg (formerly Zoutpansberg), meaning "Salt Pan Mountain" in Afrikaans, is a Mountain range, range of mountains in far northern South Africa. It is located in Vhembe District Municipality, Vhembe District, Limpopo. It is named for t ...
through a deep gorge, the Waterpoort. Then it meanders northwards across the
Lowveld
Veld ( or , Afrikaans and Dutch: ''veld'', field), also spelled veldt, is a type of wide-open, rural landscape in Southern Africa. Particularly, it is a flat area covered in grass or low scrub, especially in the countries of South Africa, ...
until it joins the right bank of the Limpopo east of
Musina. Although considered a
perennial stream
A stream is a continuous body of surface water flowing within the bed and banks of a channel. Depending on its location or certain characteristics, a stream may be referred to by a variety of local or regional names. Long, large stream ...
it is often dry in the winter.
The
veld
Veld ( or , Afrikaans language, Afrikaans and Dutch language, Dutch: ''veld'', field), also spelled veldt, is a type of wide-open, rural landscape in Southern Africa. Particularly, it is a flat area covered in grass or low scrubland, scrub, ...
in the Sand River basin has suffered much degradation, mainly due to
overgrazing
Overgrazing occurs when plants are exposed to intensive grazing for extended periods of time, or without sufficient recovery periods. It can be caused by either livestock in poorly managed agricultural applications, game reserves, or nature ...
.
There are some
wetland
A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...
zones in the basin. These areas are an important
ecosystem
An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...
for certain rare or endangered plants, as well as frog and bird species. There are 18 mines in the Sand River basin.
Dams and tributaries
The only relatively large dam in the Sand River basin is the
Mathala Dam, also known as ''Houtrivier Dam'', on the
Hout River, a left hand tributary of the Sand.
The
Diep River meets the right bank of the Sand River northeast of Polokwane town. The
Mulaudzi River, also known as "Blood River", joins the Sand River from the left just north of Polokwane. The
Seshego Dam is a small dam on the Mulaudzi.
Polokwane Municipality
/ref> The Brak River is an intermittent stream flowing between the Blouberg and the Soutpansberg
The Soutpansberg (formerly Zoutpansberg), meaning "Salt Pan Mountain" in Afrikaans, is a Mountain range, range of mountains in far northern South Africa. It is located in Vhembe District Municipality, Vhembe District, Limpopo. It is named for t ...
, joining the left bank of the Sand River about from the Limpopo River.
See also
* Drainage basin A
* List of rivers of South Africa
This is a list of rivers in South Africa.
It is quite common to find the Afrikaans word ''-rivier'' as part of the name. Another common suffix is "''-kamma''", from the Khoisan term for "river"
Meiring, Barbara"South African Toponymic Guidelin ...
References
{{reflist
External links
The Anglo-Boer War, 1899-1902 - The Far North-Western FrontOld & New Place Names in South AfricaLimpopo WMA1
Rivers of Limpopo
Tributaries of the Limpopo River