RIVERS-YEAR 6 TERM 3 NOTES
NILE RIVER-AFRICA-Found in Northeast Africa
-Longest river in the world (6695km)
-Flows through 11 countries: Egypt, Tanzania, Uganda, DRC, Rwanda, Burundi, Ethiopia,
Kenya, Eritrea, South Sudan, Sudan
-Has two tributaries: White Nile starting in South Sudan and Blue Nile starting in Ethiopia
- The tributaries flow North through Egypt and finally into the Mediterranean Sea.
- The river used to flood every August and the nutrient rich soil turns into a thick, moist
mud
- To control the floods, the Aswan High Dam was built.
-The river is important to 95% of people in Egypt and even wildlife.
- The source of the river is in Lake Victoria in East Africa but the exact point where it
starts is unknown because many rivers and lakes join to start it
ZAMBEZI-AFRICA
- Found in Eastern Africa flowing from North Zambia to Mozambique to the Indian Ocean
- Africa’s 4th longest river (1599 km)
-An explorer called David Livingstone discovered it between 1851 and 1860
- Flows through 6 countries: Zambia, Angola, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and
Mozambique
- Victoria Falls are the most famous waterfalls along the Zambezi at its upper course.
- About 80% of the people in the Zambezi depend on the river for agriculture.
-Its source is near Kalene Hill in Mwinilunga District in Zambia and empties into the
Indian Ocean.
-Zambezi means ‘great river’
AMAZON RIVER- SOUTH AMERICA
- The largest river in the world, 6400 km long
- Begins in the Andes mountains in Peru and empties into the Atlantic Ocean
- It has more than a thousand tributaries
- The river is surrounded by the Amazon Rainforest
- It flows from Peru through Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Bolivia and Brazil
- It is a biodiversity hotspot which means it is home to a wide variety of plants and
animals.
MISSISSIPPI RIVER- NORTH AMERICA
-It is 2340km long and starts in Lake Itasca in Minnesota and flows south to the Gulf of
Mexico.
- Mississippi means “Father of Waters”
- It loops and curls leaving behind meanders, oxbow lakes and swamps.
- 20 million people rely on it for drinking water daily.
- Supports a billion-dollar shipping industry.
YANGTZE RIVER- ASIA
- The 3rd longest river in the world (6300km)
- Flows through China from The Tanggula Mountains and Tibetan Plateau.
- Its mouth is in East China Sea with over 700 tributaries.
- About 30% of Chinese live in the Yangtze River Basin.
- It has the world’s largest hydroelectric dam
-High levels of rising pollution is a concern for the ecosystem
- Significant for a source of water, transport and agriculture.
VOLGA RIVER- EUROPE
- It is 3700km long and flows from Valdai Hills in Russia.
-It forms from melting snow and has 200 tributaries.
- Its mouth is in the Capsian Sea
- The Volga freezes for most of its length, 3 months each year.
- Power stations use the river to produce electricity.
-Volga means ‘bright’ or ‘clear’ in Russian.
THE MURRAY RIVER- AUSTRALIA
- It is 2508km long and starts in the Australian Alps
- It flows through New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia.
- Murray is the country’s main river.
- It starts near Mount Kosciuszko and its mouth is into Lake Alexandria and then into the
Southern Ocean (Antarctic Ocean)