| Olifants River | |
| Name Other: | Olifantsrivier, Rio dos Elefantes |
| Name Etymology: | Olifant means "elephant" in Afrikaans, Obalule, means "long, stretched-out one" and Lepelle means "slow-flowing" or "distant"[1] |
| Pushpin Map: | South Africa |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location of the Olifants-Limpopo confluence |
| Subdivision Type1: | Country |
| Subdivision Name1: | South Africa and Mozambique |
| Subdivision Type3: | Provinces |
| Subdivision Name3: | Mpumalanga, Limpopo and Gaza |
| Source1: | Near Bethal |
| Source1 Location: | Mpumalanga, South Africa |
| Source1 Coordinates: | -26.3425°N 29.8297°W |
| Source1 Elevation: | 1800m (5,900feet) |
| Mouth: | Limpopo River |
| Mouth Location: | Gaza Province, Mozambique |
| Mouth Coordinates: | -24.1122°N 32.6403°W |
| Basin Size: | 54570km2 |
| Tributaries Left: | Letaba River |
| Tributaries Right: | Steelpoort River |
| Extra: | [2] |
The Olifants River, Lepelle,[3] iBhalule or Obalule[4] (Afrikaans: Olifantsrivier; Portuguese: Rio dos Elefantes) is a river in South Africa and Mozambique, a tributary of the Limpopo River. It falls into the Drainage Area B of the 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]
The Olifants River has its origin between Breyten and Bethal, Mpumalanga Province.[6] It flows north towards 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]
Overgrazing in sections of its middle course result in the river carrying away eroded soil after heavy rains.[8] The Olifants river has become one of the most heavily polluted rivers in South Africa, not by human or industrial waste, but by thriving green algae.[9] A 2013 study in the Kruger Park found that the river was mesotrophic, meaning that nutrient levels were fairly low, though a slight increase in nitrates could initiate eutrophication. Very high sulphate levels were attributed to coal mining and industry in the upper catchment.[10]
The Olifants River's largest tributaries are the Letaba River[11] and the Steelpoort River known as Tubatse River.[12] Other tributaries are the Tongwane, Blyde, Moses, Spekboom, Timbavati, Nkumpi, Ga-Selati, Klaserie, Makhutswi, Mohlapitse River, Lepellane River, Mohwetse River and Ngwaritsi River. Some tributaries, notably the Klein Olifants River (origin near Hendrina, joins the Olifants River downstream of the Middelburg Dam), the Elands, Wilge and 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]
Thirty large dams in the Olifants River Catchment include the following:
