Pule's River Journey: An Exploration of the Orange–Senqu River Basin for Children

PeruJoleur’sney:

Riv

An Exploration of ther e iv R u q n e S – e g n a r O Basin for Children

Harare

Zimbabwe Mozambique

Namibia Botswana

Windhoek

No

Gaborone

sso

b

Fish

nge–Se Ora

nq u

Atlantic Ocean

Mo lo

po

Pretoria

SwaziLand

Maseru Bloemfontein

Indian Ocean

Lesotho

South Africa

International border Capital city City River Dam r basin Orange–Senqu Rive

Maputo

Mbabane

l Vaa

0

250

500 kilometres

UNDP partners with people at all levels of society to help build nations that can withstand crisis, and drive and sustain the kind of growth that improves the quality of life for everyone. On the ground in 177 countries and territories, we offer global perspective and local insight to help empower lives and build resilient nations. www.undp.org

The GEF unites 182 countries in partnership with international institutions, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and the private sector to address global environmental issues while supporting national sustainable development initiatives. Today the GEF is the largest public funder of projects to improve the global environment. An independently operating financial organization, the GEF provides grants for projects related to biodiversity, climate change, international waters, land degradation, the ozone layer, and persistent organic pollutants. Since 1991, GEF has achieved a strong track record with developing countries and countries with economies in transition, providing $9.2 billion in grants and leveraging $40 billion in co-financing for over 2 700 projects in over 168 countries. www.thegef.org

Pule’s River Journey: An Exploration of the Orange–Senqu River basin for Children ORASECOM Report 009/2014 Produced by the UNDP–GEF Orange–Senqu Strategic Action Programme Published by the Orange–Senqu River Commission (ORASECOM), www.orasecom.org First published in 2014 Copyright © ORASECOM, www.orasecom.org Copyright © photographs with photographers and sources listed on page 51 ISBN 978-0-620-61406-1 (print) ISBN 978-0-620-61407-8 (pdf ) All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including film, microfilm, transparency, photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the copyright holder.

Manuscript conceptualisation and development by Wordcentric Technical editing by Carole Roberts Design and layout by Handmade Communications

PeruJoleur’sney:

Riv

An Exploration of ther Orange–Senqu Rive Basin for Children

Introduction Hi! I’m Pule from Bloemfontein.

This is the story of an amazing adventure I went on. My cousin Lebo is very, very clever. She’s studying for a science degree at the university. She is working on a project where people are finding out more about some of the biggest rivers in this part of Africa. One of these rivers is called the Senqu River in Lesotho. It becomes the Orange River in South Africa where it is joined by another big river called the Vaal River. Lebo is studying the area around all these rivers.

This area is called the Orange–Senqu River basin.

Scientists often have to visit different places to find information and that’s what Lebo had to do. She asked my parents if I could go with her on her trip to the Orange– Senqu River basin during the school holidays.

You are reading my diary. It has everything in it that I learnt about the Orange–Senqu River basin!

Harare

Zimbabwe

Namibia

Where I live Botswana

Windhoek

No

Gaborone

b

sso

Atlantic Ocean

ge– Oran S

South Africa

International border Capital city City River Dam Orange–Senqu River basin

Pretoria

po

lo Mo

u enq

A map of southern Africa that Lebo gave me

Fish

The Orange— Senqu River Basin area that Lebo is researching

Mozambique

2

Lebo

Mbabane

l Vaa

Maseru Bloemfontein

Lesotho

0

Maputo

SwaziLand

250

Indian Ocean

500 kilometres

20 Novem be r on this to ld me why we are going bo Le . ry dia my of t ar st This is th e es lan d in ge –Senqu River basin includ an Or e “Th id: sa e sh at wh tr ip. This is s of th Africa an d Na mib ia. Million Sou , na wa ts Bo o, th so Le — fo ur cou ntries . They ge –Senqu River basin area an Or e th in r te wa e th pe ople depend on ng s dr ink ing an d hou se hold thi , ing min s, ng thi g kin ma , : use it for fa rm ing problem s in th e basin area ny ma e ar e er th t Bu . ing like washing an d cle an ing po lluted an d e rivers, th e water is be th by ay aw ed sh wa ing be soil is ra ng e for a oug h water. (This seem s st en t no is e er th , ces pla in so me at Le bo sa id!) river basin, but th at ’s wh that flows through all four er riv me sa the is er Riv u ect The Orange–Senq the river in Lesotho can aff of t ar st the at ns pe hap ay. countries. So, what , over 2 000 kilometres aw ibia Nam in er riv the wn do the people further Botswana, d by the gover nments of lve so be to ed ne s em obl pr Some e being solved together. Other problems ar tho so Le d an a ric Af th Sou Namibia, tant to along the rivers. It’s impor live o wh e opl pe lp he t tha by projects basin. You the problems in the river lve so to how ut abo s ion cis ma ke good de at Lebo ke good decisions. That’s wh ma to n tio ma or inf ht rig have to have the their problems people have with the on n tio ma or inf g tin will be doing — get lp her! water. And I’m going to he

1. Can you find where you live on the map?

2. Is your home in the Orange–Senqu River basin?

3. Use the map to find:  two oceans  six countries  six capital cities

The Orange–Senqu River is one of the longest rivers in southern Africa, but there are rivers in the world that are much longer.

Some of the longest rivers in the world are: Nile, Africa

6 650 km

Amazon, South America

6 400 km

Yangtze, Asia

6 300 km

Congo, Africa

4 700 km

Mississippi, North America

3 770 km

Zambezi, Africa

2 600 km

3

Our trip Namibia 22 Novem be r Windhoek

Rehoboth

Stampriet

s so b

Mariental

O l i fa

h

No

F is

Leonardville

nt s

we will be travelling Le bo sh ow ed me th e pla ces will be travelling rig ht to. I can ’t be lieve it — we Africa! The len gth across mo st of so uthern is over 2 00 0 of th e Oran ge —Senqu River kil om etres from hom e kil om etres. It ’s ne ar ly 2 flo ws for over 1 00 0 to my sc hoo l. So th e river tim es th at dista nce!

Charles Hill

Gobabis

Auob

Keetmanshoop Seeheim /Ais-/Ais– Richtersveld Transfontier Park

4 Find on the map:  the start of the Senqu River in

Lesotho. (Use your finger to trace the river all the way to the sea.)

Sendelingsdrift Alexander Bay

 dams along the Orange–Senqu River.

Aussenkehr Noordoewer Orange Vioolsdrift

Springbok

 towns and cities along the Orange–

Senqu River.  two rivers that join the Orange River:

the Vaal River and the Fish River.

Atlantic Ocean

Places we visited Our route Towns Rivers that flow all year (perennial) Rivers that flow after good rains (ephemeral)

Places we visited

Dam Orange–Senqu River basin International border

Cape Town

Pofadder

Did you know that the Molopo River used to reach the Orange River, but it doesn’t anymore because it doesn’t have enough water in it and sand dunes have now blocked its path?

Botswana

Kukantsi Zutshwa

Tshane

Molepolole Jwaneng

Gaborone Kayne Lobatse

Kgalagadi Transfontier Park

Werda M olo p

Good Hope

o

Pretoria Mahikeng

Tshabong

Mo

lop

Har

o

Vryburg

Har

Douglas

tb e es

nge Ora

k Sa

Philippolis

Vanderkloof Dam

Trompsburg Springfontein

Sa k

Vis

Rie

Brak

Kle

ak in Br

ko e See

De Aar

Gariep Dam

Sterkfontein Dam k a re Moho

Maputsoe

Maseru

Wepener

i

Brak

Ficksburg

Bloemfontein Riet oor t Rietp

Jacobsdal Ora nge

Prieska

Vet

on

Delportshoop

nge Keimoes Kakamas

Sand

Warrenton Springfontein Riverton Kimberley Modder

Vaal

Ora

5

l ed

Upington

Bloemhof aal V Dam

Taung

Ca

Kuruman

Vaal

Wi l

ge

Katse Dam

qu

Middelpits an

m Ku r u

Sen

Vaalhoek

BekkersdalJohannesburg Potchefstroom Vereeniging Vanderbijlpark Klerksdorp Vaal Dam Orkney

ts

Khawa

Mohale Dam

Lesotho

Mt. Moorosi ge Oran

Aliwal North

Quthing i Kraa

Indian Ocean

Middelburg

t

East London

South Africa Port Elizabeth

0

100

200

300

400

500 kilometres

About rivers 26 Novem be r ma p of where I will I sh owed my te acher the be going with Le bo. ers in the Oran ge– I aske d him why all the riv o on e big river.

Senqu River basin flo w int way water moves First he told me abo ut the a an d on the lan d. aroun d in the air, in the se le’.

He called this the ‘water cyc abo ut river basins .

Then my te ach er to ld me

mething th at A basin in you r hou se is so . A river basin is collects an d drain s water s all th e water in an area of lan d th at drain th at area .

6

Condensation When the air gets cooler, the water vapour changes back into small drops of water. Lots of small water drops form clouds.

The sun heats up water in the sea and rivers.

Evaporation The water heats up and changes into water vapour, which we can’t see.

sea

The water cycle

Make a model river basin!

1. Crumple up a large sheet of newspaper.

2. Slowly pour water from above onto the newspaper. This is like the rain. Can you see how:  the water flows over the

paper to form rivers?  some of the water makes

tributaries?  the higher areas of the

paper are like mountains, separating the river basins?

Precipitation If there are enough water drops in the cloud, it rains.

Rain falls to the ground.

Water always flows downward.

Some water flows over the ground to make rivers. These rivers flow down to the sea.

Some water sinks into the ground. It flows slowly downward underground.

i n b a s

r i v e r

catchment

ar y ed

t r ib u t

watersh

r i v e r

wa

ter

shed

watershed

source

i n b a s

mouth

sea

7

River words mouth: the place where a river enters the sea river: water that flows downwards over the ground

Water always flows downwards, so it can’t flow up over higher areas like mountains or hills. This means that a mountain or a hill separates river basins. These higher areas that separate river basins are called watersheds.

river basin: an area of land that is drained by one river and its tributaries source: the start of a river tributaries: smaller rivers that join a bigger river as it flows downwards towards the sea surface runoff watershed

watershed: a high area of land separating river basins

basin A

surface runoff stream basin B

Getting ready 4 De cem be r

8

re ady to travel was su ch I did n’t kn ow th at getting throug h fo ur cou ntries, hard work ! We’re travelling have a passport. so I have to ma ke su re I different kin ds of Then I need to pa ck for a mo st ra in fa lls in we ather. In so uthern Afric of ra in but as we travel su mm er. Leso th o gets a lot f of th e river basin, it to wa rds th e wester n hal river en ds up flo win g will be com e dr ier un til th e throug h desert.

Leso th o has sn ow an d Le bo sa id th at in win ter, low freezin g! In su mm er, th e te mp erat ures are be at ures hig her th an 40 Na mib ia often has te mp er we are travelling in April degrees Ce lciu s. I’m gla d er an d win ter. be cau se it is betw een su mm t to see pla ces th at are I’m excited th at I will ge has th e hig hest mo un ta ins very different. Leso th o pa rt s of Bo tswa na an d in so uthern Africa. La rg e We will visit Joh an nesb urg Na mib ia are hot desert S. rn Africa, but we will als o — th e big gest city in so uthe in hut s an d even un der stay in sm all villag es , sleep th e stars.

I love fa cts , so I did so me rese arch abo ut wh ere we’re going . Som e of th e thing s I fo un d out are on th ese tw o pa ges.

The high mountains of Lesotho

The Orange River flows through the desert when it gets near its mouth.

Country

Number of people

Size of the Percentage of the 2 country (in km ) Orange–Senqu River basin Capital city

Lesotho

2 074 000

30 355

3,5% Maseru

South Africa 52 981 991

1 221 037

64% Pretoria

Botswana

2 024 904

582 000

8% Gaborone

Namibia

2 113 077

824 268

24,5% Windhoek

50–200 mm: very dry 200–600 mm: medium rainfall More than 600 mm: high rainfall Rivers that flow all year Rivers that only flow after a lot of rain Dam Orange–Senqu River basin International border Places we visited

Namibia

Botswana

Are you good at finding out facts? Use the information on pages 2 to 9 to help you answer these questions. Check your answers on page 50 to find out if you are a good fact detective!

1. Which countries are away from the sea?

Johannesburg

Khawa

Sendelingsdrift Aussenkehr Noordoewer Alexander Vioolsdrift Bay

Vaalhoek

Vaalhoek Aussenkehr Noordoewer Keimoes Kakamas

Bekkersdal

Keimoes Ficksburg Maputsoe Lesotho

Katse Dam

Mt. Moorosi

2. Which country has the most people?

3. Which country makes up most of the Orange–Senqu River basin?

4. In which country is the source of the Orange River?

5. Which countries are at the mouth of the Orange River?

Atlantic Ocean

South Africa 0

100

200

The average amount of rain every year

300 kilometres

Indian Ocean

6. Which part of the Orange– Senqu River basin gets the most rainfall – near the mouth or near the source?

9

Lesotho 10 De cem be r

10

nig ht. It ’s so exciting to I don’t think I’ll sleep to ip out sid e Sou th Africa! be here . Wo w! My first tr seem s so fa r aw ay.

Ou r hom e in Blo em fon tein be cau se th ere’s no I’m wr itin g by can dle ligh t h up in a sm all villag e ele ctr icity here . We are hig is in th e Ma loti ne ar Mo un t Mo orosi, which ’s cold an d wet out sid e.

Mo un ta ins of Leso th o. It r th ese mo un ta ins are Le bo to ld me th at in win te covered in sn ow. an d we clim be d hig her Leso th o is ma inly mo un ta ins so hig h my ea rs kept an d hig her to get here — s covered in mu d from all po pping . The dirt ro ad wa ally slo wly up th e steep th e ra in so Le bo drove re we wo uld to pple over passes . I was sca re d th at int o th e rivers be low us . th e Senqu River, which This villag e is rig ht above wh en it flo ws int o Sou th be com es th e Oran ge River ra inw ater collects in Africa. Wh en it ra ins , th e stre am s ru n int o big ger sm all stre am s an d th ese nqu River. Le bo sa id th at rivers like th e Oran ge –Se s su ch a sm all area , even th oug h Leso th o cover th e Oran ge –Senqu River ne ar ly half th e water in of pe ople depend on th e com es from here . Million s in. water from this river bas oun d There’s a LOT of water ar still has here but in this villag e it to be car rie d an d st ored in buc kets .

Mamasoko and her daughter, Bohlokoa The family we’re staying with, inside their hut

People walk or get around on small ponies.

What is the nearest river to your home? Try to find it on the map on pages 4 and 5.

Rivers always flow down to the sea. Even though the Indian Ocean is only a short distance (a few hundred kilometres) from where the Senqu River starts, it does not flow into the Indian Ocean. This is because there is a high mountain range in between the river and the sea. (These mountains are called the Maloti Mountains in Lesotho and Drakensberg Mountains in South Africa.) So instead, the Orange– Senqu River has to flow west right the way across southern Africa for over 2 000 kilometres to reach the Atlantic Ocean. watershed

Orange–Senqu River Atlantic Ocean

Maloti– Drakensberg Mountains

rivers flowing to the Indian Ocean Indian Ocean

11

Our hut

The village on the mountain slope above the river

Lesotho 11 De cem be r

12

cat tle were mo oin g an d, We wo ke up at su nr ise . The g of fres h wa rm mil k. th an ks to th em, I had a mu this kfast th at th e pe ople in ea br er ov d ine pla ex bo Le t d cow s to live. They als o ge an p ee sh eir th ed ne e villag . ts of lan d ne ar th e river fo od from fa rm ing sm all plo This le living here th an before.

Bu t th ere are more pe op azing re an ima ls th an before gr me an s th at th ere are mo t of lan d for fa rm ing an d on th e lan d, but th e am oun r. grazing isn ’t getting big ge aze in an area , th ey eat Wh en to o ma ny an ima ls gr left ba re . Then, wh en it all th e grass. So th e soil is th e to slo w do wn th e flo w of ra ins , th ere is no grass ng wash ed aw ay an d so no thi ra inw ater. The soil is just d led soil erosion . Erod ed lan can grow th ere. This is cal or fa rm ing . can no t be used for grazing to see wh at ’s being done In th e aftern oon we went ld me abo ut a proje ct th at abo ut th e problem . Le bo to getting fo od an d ma kin g a he lps pe ople fin d ways of ct sh eep or cat tle . This proje living other th an keeping s growing aga in. We met als o tr ies to get th e gras rks three days a week on Ma maso ko Leso ts a. She wo e wa lls an d repla nt s th e th e proje ct. She builds st on grass to st op th e soil from washing aw ay.

The animals have eaten all the grass near the river. When it rains, soil is washed into the river.

Senqu River

A stone wall that has been built to stop the soil washing away

13

People are planting grasses that have strong roots. The grass can also be used for sheep and cattle to eat.

Mamasoko in her vegetable garden.

She is also breeding chickens – they ran out of the photograph!

Lesotho I was here at the dam wall.

The Katse Dam wall is huge and is made from cement. At the bottom it is more than 60 metres thick. It has to be this thick to hold back the large amount of water behind it.

Mali bam ats oR g River Bokon

14

e an d Mo hale da ms , which Tod ay we visite d th e Kats ins . Bo th da ms are pa rt are hig h up in th e mo un ta so th o Hig hla nds Water of a proje ct called th e Le Proje ct, or LH WP. Leso th o get more The LH WP is me an t to he lp th o se lls th e water ele ctr icity an d money. Leso th Africa, be cau se collecte d in its da ms to Sou water th an it has . The Sou th Africa needs more d th en pip es car ry it to da ms st ore th e water an rica wh ere th ere are big fa ra way pla ces in Sou th Af d min es , an d fa rm ing cities , lot s of fa ctories an areas. t ele ctr icity from flo win g Le bo expla ine d how we ge flo win g water is so water. The po wer of th e wh ee ls called ‘tu rb ines’. strong th at it tu rn s big a ma chine called a The spinn ing tu rb ines tu rn r ma kes ele ctr icity, which ‘generator ’. The generato wh ere it’s need ed . is ta ken by po wer lin es to built by building a wa ll Mo st da ms in Leso th o are g. All th e river water th at st op s th e river flo win ll. The LH WP an d da m collects be hin d th e da m wa Leso th o in so me ways , building has been goo d for re built, th e va lleys an d but wh en th e da m wa lls we flo od ed by th e da mm ed villag es be hin d th em were water. I wo uld hate it if a da m so me on e de cid ed to build th at flo od ed our hou se!

ive r

12 De cem be r

Katse Dam

0

10 kilometres

This is a map of the Katse Dam. It shows how the dam stores water in two deep valleys. The wall was built where the two big rivers meet. The river water stores up behind the wall.

Build a dam It’s not easy building a dam wall strong enough to stop a river, and to hold back the weight of millions of litres of water. Try building your own dam.

hosepipe

 Use soil to build up a mountain ‘valley’ with two high areas and a lower channel in between.  Use a hosepipe to let water run slowly through the channel from one end of the ‘valley’. This is your river.

sand water

 Now try to dam the river using sticks, stones, mud or anything else you can find.

How well does your dam store water?

mud

15

Hydroelectric Power Water from the Katse Dam flows over 80 kilometres in a tunnel underground all the way into a river in South Africa.

From there, the river flows into the Vaal Dam. Pipes and tunnels carry the Vaal Dam water to the nearby cities, like Johannesburg.

Hydroelectric power: how we get electricity from water

dam wall

power lines

electricity generator water

turbine

river

Lesotho 12 De cem be r

16

led we travelled to a to wn cal After visitin g th e da ms , are e to be bac k wh ere th ere Ma pu ts oe . It feels stra ng icity. ta rred ro ads an d ele ctr or in y to fin d work in th e cities Ma ny pe ople in Leso th o tr Africa. other cou ntries, like Sou th d gran dp aren ts grew up an Le bo re min de d me th at our vin g to Sou th Africa. lived in Leso th o before mo The wh ere th ey ma ke clo thing .

We visite d a hug e fa ctory cou ntries. It ’s stra ng e to clo th es get so ld to other ht be y pla ces like Au stra lia mig think th at pe ople in fa ra wa so th o. we ar ing jea ns ma de in Le ry. y we were visitin g a fa cto I cou ldn ’t un dersta nd wh a lot g thing s in fa ctories uses Le bo expla ine d th at ma kin e e ma de can als o po llute th of water. The way thing s ar on e of ry ma na ger to ld us th at water in rivers. The fa cto River ’ fa ctory is called th e ‘Blue th e rivers ne ar a jea ns to dye from th e jea ns used be cau se th e leftover blu e ing so . Im agine a wh ole river be er riv e th o int ed mp du be our ! po lluted th at it cha ng es col ter ere is often no t en oug h wa The ma na ger sa id th at th toilets . g thing s, dr ink ing an d th e at th e fa ctory for ma kin gets at first, be cau se Leso th o I did n’t un dersta nd this to do esn’t have en oug h pip es a lot of ra in. Bu t Leso th o pla ces ere it is need ed , so so me car ry all th e water to wh . do no t have en oug h water

It is important that we do not waste water.

Can you think of five ways you could save water each day?

17

Inside the factory we visited. There are over 900 people making clothes here!

This is how much water it takes to make:

Did you know that to make one plastic bottle takes twice as much water as is inside the bottle? leather shoes: 8 000 litres

1 litre

1 litre

1 litre

2 litres

cotton shirt: 4 000 litres

1 litre

new car with tyres: 145 000 litres

jeans: 3 500 litres

Free State 12 De cem be r a. We sa w om Leso th o to Sou th Afric We crosse d th e border fr is used for here . So mu ch of our lan d yw er ev ing tch re st s rm fa pend on ople in so uthern Africa de pe of s lion mil ny Ma . ing fa rm om fa rm ers can get water fr all Not . ng livi a ke ma to fa rm ing e th ey have to depend on th d ea st In s. op cr eir th da ms for e y th at ma kes th e best us wa a in rm fa to e hav ey ra in. So th il. of water th at ’s in th e so tive in th e MD Fou nd ation Coo pera We visite d a proje ct called er an d th e fa rm ers work to geth ct, oje pr s thi In g. bur ks Fic eat. he lp ea ch other to grow wh

18

How does wheat grow?

Wheat is planted in the autumn months and harvested in November and December. Once it has been harvested, wheat farmers usually plough their fields.

This means they turn over the soil. Ploughing removes weeds and breaks up the soil into smaller pieces. It uses a lot of expensive fuel and needs big tractors.

These are some of the MD Foundation Cooperative farmers we met.

They farm in a way that is good for the soil.

They depend on only the rain to water their crops, but there is very little rain in the Ficksburg area, so they don’t plough because ploughing dries out the soil and takes out the leftover plant material.

Instead of ploughing, these farmers do something called ‘minimum tillage’, which disturbs the soil as little as possible so it doesn’t dry out as much. They also rely on things like leftover plant material, worms and small creatures to protect the soil and break it into smaller pieces.

The farmers also use as few chemicals as possible. (Using chemicals on the land can pollute the groundwater and rivers.)

This photograph shows the big machines that are used to harvest the wheat.

The MD Foundation Cooperative farmers keep the soil covered with dead plant material to stop it from drying out. Try this experiment to see how plant material can help to keep moisture in the soil.

You will need:  two handcloths or facecloths (these represents the soil)  water  pieces of cut grass or leaves.

Soak both cloths in some water. Then spread them out in the sun. Cover one cloth with the grass or leaves. Which cloth do you think will dry first? Why? Test your results after a few hours. Can you explain what happened?

19

Vaal 13 De cem be r

20

12 million pe ople living in I’m in Jozi! There are over so fa r areas aroun d it. We seem Joh an nesb urg an d in th e aw ay from an y big rivers. pe ople living in it th an an y Joh an nesb urg has th e more pe ople rica. So th ere are lot s of other area in so uthern Af ink ing , th ey all need water for dr living in a sm all area an d th e an nesb urg area als o has washing an d coo kin g. The Joh o in so uthern Africa. They als mo st fa ctories an d min es of all this area uses over 20% use water. Le bo sa id th at lot of an ge –Senqu Basin . That’s a Or e th in ed us r te wa e th water! water an nesb urg needs lot s of So, th e problem is th at Joh do esn’t big rivers in th e area . It but th ere are very few in e of th e dr iest cou ntries he lp th at Sou th Africa is on lot. In es ra in, it do esn’t he lp a th e world . Even wh en it do on an d lls in th e hot su mm er se as Joh an nesb urg th e ra in fa e air. t evap orates bac k int o th jus r te wa at th of lot a so an d nesb urg by pip es , tu nn els an Joh o int ht oug br is r Wate oje ct so th o Hig hla nds Water Pr can als . Water from th e Le d to ers fu rther aw ay, is ad de (LH WP) an d from other riv water tr y to get th e am oun t of th e water in th e da ms to th at is need ed . e in h water for pe ople to us oug en ing hav at th id sa bo Le is ctories an d min es to use fa e th for d an es hom th eir with water in this area . do to s em obl pr e th of e on ly on do. e to do with wh at pe ople The other problem s all hav

Did you know that most large cities in the world are next to big rivers? Johannesburg is one of the few large cities that is not next to a big river.

Did you know that there are over 14 million people living in the Orange–Senqu River basin?

Nine million of these people live in the Gauteng area, which is where Johannesburg is.

Do you know how much water household activities use?

Choose the correct amount of water each of these everyday activities uses from the box.

You can check your answers on page 50.  flushing the toilet  having a bath  showering

36% People who live in the rest of the Orange-Senqu River Basin

64% People who live in Gauteng

11 litres 90 litres

 washing a load of washing in a washing machine

136 litres

 running a tap to brush your teeth

7.5 litres a minute

 watering the garden

26 litres a minute

4 litres a minute

Look at how close together people live in Gauteng. There are lots of people!

21

Vaal This is a photo of the Vaal Dam. This dam was built in 1938. Since then the dam wall has been raised twice to allow more water to be stored in the dam.

22

Pretoria Gauteng Johannesburg

Soweto

Water from the Vaal River, Wilge River and Klip River flows into the Vaal Dam.

Vereeniging Vaal Dam

er Wat

val

Grootdraai Dam

Vaal

Klip

Koppies Dam

Free State

e Wilg 0

300 kilometres

Kwazulu-Natal

ge Wil

Why do you think the river water needs to be cleaned? Find out on pages 23 to 29.

Boksburg Springs

Sebokeng

Klip

The water is taken from the dam and cleaned at purification stations before it is used in the Johannesburg area.

Mpumalanga

14 De cem be r y. Le bo called ‘groun dw ater ’ to da I lea rn t abo ut so mething th at is er is act ua lly just water expla ine d th at groun dw at r seep s After it has ra ine d, wate . on lk wa we d oun gr e th in int o s water flo ws do wn wa rds thi of e Som d. oun gr e th int o an d sp aces betw een th e cks ro e th in es vic cre d an cracks . in large un derg ro un d lakes ts lec col it ces pla me so sa nd . In em to have water ta ken to th Pe ople living in cities need lot s o un derg ro un d. So th ere’s throug h pip es which are als think ua lly see. It ’s stra ng e to of water th at we don’t act es , in feet — flo win g throug h pip our r de un r te wa at th all of th e groun d. un derg ro un d lakes an d in 15 December We have visited lots of different places in and around Johannesburg. I have learnt so much about how people affect the water in a river system. Now I also understand how all the water in a river system is connected. What happens in one place along a river affects what happens in another place.

Today we visited Bekkersdal near Johannesburg. Lots of the people here have come to live in Bekkersdal to try find work in the area. Many of them live in shacks they built themselves. They also have to share taps to get water. They keep water in buckets and plastic drums in their homes. This drinking water can easily get dirty and people can become sick from drinking it.

In places like this there is no rubbish removal. The sewage systems are often broken and leaking. So the pollution seeps into the ground and makes the groundwater unsafe to use.

Yesterday we went to Soweto where there are so many people from all over southern Africa. Lebo told me that the cities in southern Africa are changing all the time, and getting bigger. People come to the cities to try find work, but they need places to live — and water! It wasn’t always that way.

23

Vaal From abo ut 40 000 ye ars ago, there were a few San hun tergatherers in the area wher e Joh an nesb urg is no w. As lon g as 2 500 ye ars ago, the Kh oi fa rm ed cattle, sheep an d goats in the area . Then from abo ut 700 ye ars ago, pe ople starte d settling in villages. They fa rm ed cattle an d sorg hum.

Du rin g all of these tim es, there we re very few pe ople in the area so there was en oug h water for ever yon e.

This chang ed when gold was dis covered in 1886. Tho us an ds of pe ople cam e to fin d work on the min es . Then other ind ustries an d businesses starte d de veloping . More an d more pe ople cam e to the area to fin d work .

24

The mining of gold, platin um an d coa l, an d manu fa ctu rin g (m aking prod ucts) are still very imp ortant. The min es an d fa cto ries provide work for pe ople, which is a good thing . Bu t, the y als o cau se water sh ortages an d a lot of water pollution, like acid rain an d acid min e drain age . Althou gh it’s easy to see some types of pollution, Le bo sa ys the big gest problem s ar e the on es we can ’t see easily — in the air an d un der the groun d.

Sca ry!

I to ok lots of ph otos wher ever we went so my ph ot os re ally tell the stor y.

Many people have to share taps to get their water.

A caption describes what is shown in a photograph or drawing. Look at the photograph on the right.

Can you think of your own caption for the photograph?

Like lots of people, this girl’s family does not have taps in their home or nearby. She spends nearly two hours before school every day collecting and carrying water.

25

There is a problem with rubbish removal in this area. Also, many people live in shacks that do not have piped sewage. So, a lot of waste from the area flows into the river system.

Vaal I found this picture. It shows how pollution moves underground and into a river.

rubbish dump seepage

street

run-off river

stormwater drain septic tank

groundwater

aquifer

26 underground lake

fertilizers and pesticides

In cities, water runs off the streets and out of containers like septic tanks into underground drains. This water is polluted with waste matter and chemicals. The stormwater drain pipes often have leaks, and the polluted water gets into the groundwater.

The polluted groundwater eventually flows back into the river system where it pollutes the river. And then, when this water flows into the dam, it pollutes the dam too. That’s how the groundwater, dam and river water get too dirty to be used by people.

In places where there are no drains, pollution seeps into the ground. This is how it gets into the groundwater and eventually flows into rivers.

At 1 drip per second, a leaking tap can leak 11 000 litres per year!

This is a wastewater treatment plant on the Klip River. It cleans wastewater and sewage before allowing it to flow back into the river.

Try this experiment to see for yourself how easy it is for pollution in our stormwater drains to get into the groundwater. Here’s a list of what you will need for the experiment, and what these things represent in real life: You will need:

What they represent in real life:

a glass bowl (or a clear plastic box)

the ground under the surface

a cardboard box with a small hole in it the stormwater drain food colouring

chemicals (like those in cleaning products and fertiliser)

sunflower oil

motor oil

soil and sand or pebbles

the soil and rocks in the ground

bits of grass and leaves

natural vegetation

small bits of plastic

plastic pollution like plastic bags

a watering can filled with water

rain

The groundwater near this big steel manufacturing plant is poisoned with dangerous chemicals that cause diseases.

A woman living here told Lebo that her tea even foams when milk is added – that’s how polluted the water is!

Put everything except the bowl and watering can into the cardboard box. Hold the box above the bowl. Pour water from the watering can into the box. Look carefully at what drains through the box and into the bowl. This is like what passes through a stormwater drain deep into the ground.

27

Vaal

Acid mine drainage is the pollution of ground water from mining. It is one of the biggest water problems in the Gauteng and Vaal areas of the Orange–Senqu River basin.

During mining, the groundwater is pumped continuously out of the mine tunnels.

The water comes into contact with the mined rocks and forms acid and dissolves metals like lead, copper and uranium.

When mining is finished the mine tunnels are empty.

Groundwater usually flows into these empty tunnels.

The polluted acid water moves around underground and pollutes nearby groundwater, underground lakes and rivers.

There are many abandoned mines in the Orange–Senqu River basin, especially in Gauteng. Each day, several million litres of acid water flow into the groundwater and can spill into the rivers and dams. Soon the water that the area depends on could be badly polluted by acid mine drainage.

28

A Groundwater seeps into the mine.

B Groundwater level rises.

C Rocks and metals.

D Water runs over the rocks and and forms acid and dissolves metals. The groundwater level rises, polluting water in wells and boreholes.

E Polluted water also drains back to lakes and rivers on the surface.

F Animals and plants that live in the river are poisoned.

A

C B D

E F

During mining, groundwater is pumped out of the mine tunnels.

29 In the rural areas, people can usually get water from rivers or boreholes. But in the cities, people need water supplied to them. More and more people are moving to the cities every day. This is a big problem for areas where there isn’t a lot of water. What water there is, is often polluted by people at home and by factories and mines.

If you were interviewed by a TV reporter, how would you answer these questions? 

Why does water in the Vaal area need to be piped from other areas?



How do people living in cities get their water?



What are some of the ways that people pollute water close to where they live?



How do factories pollute our water?



How does mining pollute our water?



Why is water pollution a problem for people?



What do you think should be done about water pollution?

North West 16 De cem be r

30

d out more rese arch, Le bo had to fin For th e next pa rt of her abo ut I’ve never re ally th oug ht abo ut fa rm ing an d water. es I love es from — like th e po tato com t ea I od fo e th e er wh com es So mu ch of th e fo od I eat . ing rn mo e th in p pa my an d er basin. from th e Oran ge –Senqu Riv ter. In ing needs su ch a lot of wa I didn’t realise that farm g time. Lebo doesn’t rain for a very lon souther n Africa, it often times the ch bad droug hts that some told me there have been su have stopped flowing.

Orange River and Vaal River op s. rm ers can ’t pla nt th eir cr fa s, ht oug dr e ar e er th Wh en th ere own an d so th e fo od th at gr is od fo s les at th s an This me le wh o work on th e fa rm s op Pe s. op sh e th in re mo is costs to ry imp orta nt for pla nt s ve is It s. job eir th e los mig ht als o an ge –Senqu River basin. get en oug h water in th e Or th e ere is en oug h water for On e way of ma kin g su re th wh ere r from da ms or rivers to te wa e th mp pu to is s op cr of th e ‘ir rig ation fa rm ing ’. A lot led cal is s Thi e. ar s op cr th e u River rm ing in th e Oran ge –Senq fa n tio iga irr for ed us r wate f Da m, which is on e of th e loo rk de Van e th om fr es basin com largest da ms in so uthern Africa.

Canals are like rivers, but they are made by people. They carry the water from the dam or river to where it is needed which is often many kilometres away.

‘Gariep’ means ‘Great Water’ in the San language. The Orange River was first called the Gariep River. In some areas, it is still called by this name today.

The Vaalharts Irrigation Scheme has over 1 176 kilometres of canals. That’s more than half the length of the whole of the Orange– Senqu River. Over 1 000 farmers get water from these canals, which are supplied from the Vaal and Harts rivers.

We met Mr Ipeleng Morgan Bonmamye, a farmer who grows maize and barley on his small farm in Taung. He said he wouldn’t be able to farm without the water that he gets from the Vaalharts Irrigation Scheme.

A

The Gariep Dam during a dry period

Look at these photos.

Can you answer these questions about them?  What differences do you notice?  Why do you think so much water is being let out of the dam in photo B?  How do you think letting out so much water will affect people who live further down the river?

B Think of your own caption for photo B.

31

Botswana 17 De cem be r

32

many untains of Lesotho with its mo l coo the in h hig re we Not long ago, we h Desert! It is very flat, wit i ar lah Ka the in e ar we flowing rivers. Now as we can see. At ass and trees for as far gr s, ne du nd sa d re w fe a if no thing ever qu ite bor ing . It loo ke d as d ke loo rt se de e th st fir nes are t th at th e desert sa nd du rn lea e I’v but , re he ns happe movin g all th e tim e!

De se rt. e mid dle of th e Ka lah ar i th in e lag vil all sm y r ve Kh aw a is a in th e lot of job s. Mo st pe op le a t no e ar re The . re he Life is to ug h rm em to su r vive. Fam ilie s fa th nd ou ar d lan e th on vil lag e de pe nd d ma ke th ing s fr uit, do wo od car vin g an d wil er th ga , tle cat w fe a fr om lea th er. e nu mb er e to o ma ny an ima ls for th hav le op pe o, th so Le in Ju st like e pla nt s ea . The cat tle ate up all th ar e th in ow gr can at th of pla nt s along , have big feet. As th ey wa lk tle Cat . ow gr ld cou es on before new cia lly pla nt s. This happene d espe all sm up dig d an ple am th eir feet tr , ima ls were killin g th e cat tle an d wil se cau Be s. ole rh aroun d th e wate waterh oles. This ma de th e e th ar ne s ea ar r alle sm th ey were kept in en worse. problem of overgrazing ev pla nt s. So ma ny to be he ld in pla ce by th e ed us s ne du e th of nd The sa hold th e ple d, th ere is no thing to am tr d an n te ea en be e pla nt s hav e du nes e sa nd aroun d. It blo ws th th ws blo d win e th So, ce. sa nd in pla kes com es int o th e villag e, it ta nd sa e th en Wh a. aw Kh s slo wly to wa rd din g out more an d waterh oles. Le bo is fin over th e building s, path s pe ople of Kh aw a de al with e th lp he to g yin tr is at abo ut a proje ct th th ese problem s.

This is a cheetah. It is a wild animal found in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, one of the world’s largest conservation areas.

This national park is near Khawa.

Sometimes wild animals move out of the park and attack cattle.

33

Some of the sand dunes are really big.

Overgrazing is when the grass is eaten by so many cattle, sheep or goats that it cannot grow back. The land becomes bare and the soil can easily wash away or blow away.

These are cisterns for harvesting water in the rainy season. The fences protect animals from falling in and drowning.

Botswana 18 De cem be r

34

e in lho ek, which is a sm all villag Last nig ht, we staye d in Vaa t flo we d Mo lop o River. This river las Bo tswa na . It ’s ne ar th e of fore I was bor n! This pa rt be g lon s wa at th — 8 198 in y.

Bo tswa na is very, very dr th e th e basin in Bo tswa na are The tw o big gest rivers in oun d They on ly flo w above th e gr Mo lop o an d Nosso b rivers. er ! So, in — which me an s hardly ev wh en th ere is a lot of ra it do es just dr y river be ds . Wh en th ese rivers are mo stly so hot or evap orates be cau se it is ra in, mo st of th e water oun dw ater. th e sa nd an d be com es gr h oug thr s ep se r te wa e th ago, r the dr y river be d. Long de un er at dw oun gr is re Bu t, the d this area du g into the groun in led tt se o wh e opl pe the Na ma more es an d their livestock . As to get water for themselv . So, the here, they du g more wells an d more pe ople settled t it’s faster. Le bo explaine d tha groun dwater was used up you sip glass throug h a stra w. As like sippin g water from a have drink gets lower an d you the of el lev the , r te wa the into the glass . Well, as more er low wn do w ra st the sh to pu er groun dwater level got low the , up ed us s wa er at groun dw d lls had to be du g deep er an we the t tha t an me s Thi . an d lower water o told us that lon g ago the deep er. We met Mr Bo k, wh t an d est to drink . It was swee from the wells was the nic often you can ’t drink it. cold. Now it’s so sa lty that pe ople iss agie fa mily. Like other r-V oe mb Ka e th t me o als We an d uses plastic bot tles, pip es y mil fa s thi , ek lho Vaa in living ht fa ll. t an y ra inw ater th at mig lec col d an y tr to s um dr large

The green area what the Molopo riverbed looks like today. It’s hard to believe that in 1852 there were hippos in the deep Molopo River.

fo un d to sh ow me This is th e ma p th at Le bo d Mo lop o River wh ere th e Nosso b River an of th e Ka lah ar i dis appe ar int o th e sa nd tists be lieve th e Desert. She sa id th at scien d int o th e Oran ge tw o rivers haven ’t flo we d ye ars.

River for over a th ous an

There are three kinds of rivers.  Some rivers flow all year round. They are called perennial rivers. The Orange–Senqu River is a perennial river.  Some rivers only flow for part of the year in the rainy season. These are called seasonal rivers.  Some rivers only flow after unusually heavy rainfall.

They are called ephemeral rivers. The Molopo River is an ephemeral river.

35

Botswana Fi s

h

N os

so b

Kgalagadi Transfontier Park

Namibia

Au

Mo

lop

o

ob

Khawa Vaalhoek

Molo

/Ais-/AisRichtersveld Transfontier Park Aussenkehr Sendelingsdrift drift Noordoewer Orange Alexander Vioolsdrift Bay Atlantic Ocean

po

South Africa Upington Ora

0

100

ng e

Keimoes Kakamas

200 kilometres

Bloemhof Dam

Places Rivers that flow all year Rivers that only flow at certain times Dam Orange–Senqu River basin International border

Botswana This is the pump that Mr Bok uses to pump groundwater out from his deep well.

Most people living here have to carry all their water from an outside tap that they share. Some people sleep outside because it is so hot, even at night.

Can you find the places named on the graph below on the map on pages 6 and 7? Now use the graph to help you answer the questions.

670 mm

700

720 mm

800

730 mm

36

1. Does the amount of annual rainfall get more or less as you move down the Orange– Senqu River from Lesotho and the Vaal area towards the sea?

400 300

Keimoes (South Africa)

Vaalhoek (Botswana)

Mt. Moorosi (Lesotho)

0

Ficksburg (South Africa)

100

Noordoewer (Namibia)

65 mm

200

189 mm

300 mm

500

Johannesburg (South Africa)

Rainfall (mm)

600

2. How much more rain does Mount Moorosi get than Noordoewer: two times, five times or ten times more?

3. Find out the annual rainfall of where you live. You can look on the Internet. (Ask your teacher or another adult to help you.) Is it more or less than Mount Moorosi? Is it more or less than Vaalhoek?

The usual or average amount of rain that falls every year is called ‘average annual rainfall’. Rainfall is measured in millimetres. The Vaalhoek area only gets 300 millimetres annual rainfall, on average.

funnel

measuring cylinder

rain

A rain gauge

Children from the Vaalhoek settlement in the Kalahari Desert carry firewood they have gathered to their homes. There is no electricity in many parts of the Kalahari Desert. People depend on firewood for heat and cooking.

37 Below are some of the problems facing the people living in the Kalahari Desert part of the Orange–Senqu River basin. The project in Khawa helps people to do different things to stop the overgrazing and the sand dunes shifting around. Can you match the problems in the table with a solution?

Problems 1. Unreliable rainfall and salty groundwater 2. Moving sand dunes 3. Cattle being hunted and eaten by wild animals 4. Destruction of plants by animals near the waterholes 5. Overgrazing 6. Poverty, and too few ways to earn a living You can find the answers on page 50.

Solutions A. Farmers move the cattle around to graze so they don’t use all the waterholes at the same time. This means the plants at some waterholes are given a chance to recover and grow.

B. Cattle are kept in kraals at night so they can’t wander around and destroy the plants. They are also starting to farm sheep, which cause less damage to plants.

C. People build fences which helps to stop the sand blowing freely.

They plant trees and shrubs, which holds the sand in place.

D. To protect cattle their cattle from cheetah and hyena, people use guard dogs, and at night, kraals.

E. People collect and store rainwater in tanks and cisterns. They are digging more boreholes and wells.

F. People are increasing tourism in the area by developing campsites and traditional crafts such as woodcarving.

Northern Cape 19 Dece mber elled I’m really getting arou nd South Africa! We’ve trav time in cars , buses, and I even got to fly for the first els in when we flew over Viools drift to look at the chann the river!

38

It’s We visited the small town s of Keim oes and Kaka mas. very very hot here . They have to do all the farm work The early before the sun rises becau se it gets so hot. begin s Oran ge River is very different here to where it etres in Leso tho. In some places the river is a few kilom a lot wide and has lots of islan ds in the midd le. We had way to of fun swim ming in the river. Then we went all the s the a part of the Oran ge River where the river form a small bord er betw een South Africa and Namib ia. There is doew er town on the Namib ian side of the river called Noor is a and on the South African side of the river there town called Viools drift. ing This area is very dry desert and that makes farm takin g difficult. There are a lot of irrig ation cana ls here from water from the river to the areas further away a the river. The few farm s there provide work and living for a numb er of families in the area .

A channel

We swam in the Orange River near Keimoes.

South Africa is on the other side The bridge goes over the Orange River

Namibia is on this side

I helped Sannette pick grapes on a farm in Keimoes.

39 The border post at Vioolsdrift

This photo was taken from an aeroplane flying over the Orange River near Vioolsdrift. Can you find these things?  the Orange River  islands in the river  channels in the river  green vegetation on the banks of the river  dry desert areas on each side of the river.

Namibia 20 Dece mber The Northern Cape and Namib ia are very hot and dry. ed Many years ago when people settled here , they need had trees that would grow quickly and easily so that they e, shad e and wood for build ing, and food for their cattl comes sheep and goats . They decid ed to plant a tree that the from Amer ica called pros opis. It seem ed like it was perfect solution becau se pros opis grow s quickly and food prod uces lots of seed pods . The seed pods made good grew for their anim als and also mean t that new trees ever ywhere very quickly.

Over time pros opis has grown TOO well. Pros opis has s of root s that are able to reac h deep er than the root the trees that have always grown in the area .

40

Pros opis also spre ads so easily becau se its natu ral a. enem ies — like bugs — are not foun d in southern Afric This mean s that trees do not die off natu rally. So, less becau se of this and pros opis’ deep root s, there is ng it grou ndwater in the area and other trees are findi hard to grow.

clever Lebo told me about a man north of here who has a ed way of dealing with the pros opis prob lem and has turn the it into a good busin ess. He empl oys people to remove with. trees and cut them up to make timber for build ing makes So, he gives people jobs, gets rid of the trees and something useful from them .

Wood from prosopis trees being cut into planks to use for building.

Prosopis is a very thick and very thorny tree that grows in and along dry riverbeds. When it rains and the river flows again it uses up this water. Prosopis roots can be as long as 300 metres so it also uses up a lot of the groundwater.

21 Dece mber

Next we visited a huge farm ing area called Aussenke hr. This is on the banks of the Oran ge River .

It stretches for 15 kilom etres along the river bank . All the water the crop s need to grow comes from the Oran ge River.

About 1 300 people work there all thro ugh the year .

Durin g the harvest seas on which is six months long, about 5 000 extra workers come from all over Namib ia to work on the farm . They often bring their families with them so there can be up to 30 000 people living on the farm durin g harvest time .

workers’ homes

Lebo told me that life here is very hard for the workers. Altho ugh there is some clean, piped wate r, it can be very far away from the place where the workers live in Aussenke hr, and there is no piped sewa ge. This mean s that huma n waste can be wash ed into the Oran ge River when it rains , and that the workers often use unpu rifie d wate r from open rese rvoir s in the area .

river

vineyards

Aussenkehr farm

41

Namibia 21 De cem be r

42

ing! infall — or maybe even fa rm ra on rt pe ex an ing com I think I’m be th e th e world . In so me pla ces in s rie nt cou t ies dr e th is Na mib ia is on e of th oug h it is so dr y, fa rm ing en Ev . ar ye a mm 50 an ra infall is less th pe ople. ovides fo od an d job s for pr It ia. mib Na in nt ta or imp r to grow, ed su ns hin e, soil an d wate ne s nt pla at th s ow kn e Ever yon soil is often ge –Senqu River basin, th e an Or e th of rt pa s thi rig ht? In has lot s ien ts in it. Althou gh Na mib ia tr nu ny ma e hav n’t es do sa ndy an d to be ter. So all th e crop s have wa ch mu e hav n’t es do it of su ns hin e, ‘watere d’ is ‘ir rig ated ’. watere d. An other word for n, an d cen tre- pivot irr igatio n tio iga irr ip dr like g, tin Som e ways of irr iga ople have used for ways of waterin g th at pe r he ot an th r te wa s les use a lon g tim e. geth er an d Na mib ia are work ing to an ric Af th Sou of ts en The gover nm th e . They me as ure thing s like er riv e th of es sid h bot on proje cts on d th e y of water in th e area an alit qu e th il, so e th in r tion am oun t of wate ed . They sh are this infor ma st wa es tim me so is at th am oun t of water cision s abo ut th e fa rm ers ma ke goo d de lps he It s. er rm fa e th h wit ow th at th ere uipment to use. I did n’t kn eq d an s od th me ing rm fa wh at ! nn ing need ed for fa rm ing was so mu ch scien ce an d pla

sprinklers

We saw a large field of crops being watered using centre-pivot irrigation. The long pipes carrying the water look like ‘arms’. They turn slowly around a centre point.

Water flows from the centre point, along the arms, and through the sprinklers onto the ground below.

arms

wheels

A field that is watered using drip irrigation

Drip irrigation is a way of watering plants by providing the exact amount of water the plants need to allow them to grow healthily. Pipes are laid along the ground or underground. The pipes have little holes in them at or near to the plants roots.

A small amount of water – a ‘drip’ – flows out of the pipe into the soil, to water the plant. It goes straight to the plants’ roots underground so water is not lost through evaporation. Drip irrigation doesn’t waste any water.

Another way of irrigating is to let water from the river flow into canals, and then into the fields where the crops are growing. This is called flood irrigation.

Make your own drip irrigation system to save water while you water plants You will need: • a 2-litre plastic bottle with its lid • a sharp knife or pair of scissors • water 1. Make two small holes in the side of the bottle.

2. Make another two small holes in the bottom of the bottle.

3. Fill the bottle with water and screw the lid back on.

4. Bury the bottle in the ground between your plants.

43

Northern Cape 22 December

44

the Orange ce! Yesterday, we crossed pla hot a ch su in e ar we , Phew of floating th Africa. We used a sort Sou o int k bac get to in aga River place called the gsdrift to get here, to a elin nd Se at ’ nt ‘po a led cal bridge s here in as hot as 50 degrees Celciu get can it me d tol bo Le ld.

Richtersve the su mmer. rocky grow in this heat and in the to e abl be uld wo ng thi no I thought that ferent kinds of g! There are over 650 dif on wr s wa I but , ins ta un mo e adapted to the and plants in this area hav ls ima an the All . re he s nt pla k and behave in t the animals and plants loo tha s an me d’ te ap ‘Ad . rt dese ch water. in the heat and without mu live can y the t tha so ys wa certain ars — here for thousands of ye d live e hav , hoi oik Kh the People, called s for is so little grass or bushe re the se cau Be . ts goa d an keeping sheep d new grazing to move around a lot to fin grazing, the farmers have . far from the Orange River areas. They never move too after someone shepherd . His job is to look a is o wh es Obi h ep Jos t We me and cloth. It’s er made of plastic, sticks elt sh a in s live He . ts goa else’s to walk survive here. Because he has to s ed ne he le litt how me amazing to longings like y load. He just has a few be av he a ry car ’t can he , ts with the goa om the saw. He gets his firewood fr od wo a d an s tle bot r te a pot, cups, wa s alone ter from the river. He live wa his ts lec col d an ea ar few trees in the he and his dogs. I asked him if ts goa the t jus h wit ea ar in this huge, open d me that ever feels lonely. Joseph tol owner ever y weekend the goats’ d comes to look after them an then Joseph can go home to his family in a village near here.

Joseph Obies’ camp and the goats he looks after

A World Heritage Site is a place that is very special and is protected. The place might be chosen because of its history, or because it has things that you can’t find anywhere else in the world. In one small part of the Richtersveld World Heritage Site there are 33 types of plant that you can only find there and nowhere else in the world.

A plant growing in a crack in the Richtersveld rocks

Study the photograph of Joseph Obies’ camp. Then try these things!

1. Find the following in the photograph:  the shelter  the goats  the Orange River

2. Write down words to describe the ground.

3. What can you tell about the climate from the photograph? (For example, do you think it gets a lot of rain or just a little? Do you think it is cold or hot in the daytime? ) 4. Think of a reason why trees are only near the river.

45

Northern Cape 23 Dece mber ve we have follow ed We are finally at Alexa nder Bay! It’s hard to belie to here , where the Oran ge–Senqu River all the way from its source d on the beach, it enters the sea. I was so excited to actua lly stan where the muddy river joins the Atlan tic Ocea n. y, but there was I always think of beach es as being warm and sunn it was hard to a stra nge mist on the beach . It was so thick that the cool air from see Lebo! Lebo expla ined that the mist form s when above the hot above the cold sea water and the warm er air from desert sand mix together.

46

diam onds that For many years, Alexa nder Bay was famo us for the r. Divers even were mine d in the sand and at the mouth of the rive up off the used to go into the cold, dark ocean to vacu um them g to see the seab ed. I kept lookin g down at where I walke d, hopin all the diam onds spar kle of a diam ond, but Lebo told me that near ly have alrea dy been foun d.

water, dunes and We walke d over the dunes to a large area of shallow ial birds, anima ls marshes. This is a protecte d area becau se of its spec . Some of them and plants. Many of the birds fly here from far away to esca pe the cold fly here from as far away as Europe and the Arctic winters there.

Seeing the birds was a good way to end our trip. I thoug ht We had come far!

Some of these birds fly over 10 000 kilometres to get to Namibia and then another 10 000 kilometres to get home again. That’s five times the length of our mighty Orange–Senqu River!

I had fun playing with these children at Alexander Bay.

This is the place where the saltwater from the Atlantic Ocean mixes with the river water. These beautiful birds, called flamingoes, love it here.

47

We saw this diamond mine at Alexander Bay. It is near the mouth of the Orange River.

We saw this diamond mine at Alexander Bay. It is near the mouth of the Orange River.

When it is winter in the northern half of the world, it is summer in the southern half of the world. And when it is winter in the southern half, then it’s summer in the northern half. Many birds need to escape the cold of winter. So they fly between the northern and southern halves of the world – living in a permanent summer. This is called ‘migration’.

Board game Game Play this game about life in the Orange-Senqu River Basin with a friend!

 You will need a dice and two counters or small stones.

NAMIBIA

 Start at the source of the river.

The first player to reach the Atlantic Ocean is the winner.  Take turns throwing the dice. Move your marker according to the number you throw.

WINDHOEK

SH

FINI

48

Rive rm out ha t At lan Go tic O a R cea de ich ts a n ser te re r yo t. M svel lost u l iss d r in oo a t oc k f ur ky or n w the h m. ile

b

sso

No

11

18

13 17ATLANTIC OCEAN 15

No pi wo sewa ped rke ge wat rs a fo er r o Go t Au farm r s ba sen ck 1. kehr .

19

Va p al Fis ro har m frho vid ts c aiz m e a e r w n fo far iver ate als rw m fo r ar ers r d .G 2. o W a Va ter an alh from d u oe w Go ndr k is s ell ba ink alty at ck ab 2. le.

Prosopis up trees use r. ate groundw .

Go back 4

16

12

SOUT

14

HARARE

T R A ST

ZIMBABWE MOZAMBIQUE

1 BOTSWANA GABORONE

3 MBABANE

2

Vegetab le provide gardens villager food for s in L Throw a esotho. gain.

MAPUTO

Factory SWAZILAND jobsi.n Lesotho prov

l

9

ides Go forw ard 2.

ge

an Or u nq

e –S

TH AFRICA

PRETORIA Va a

Pol luti o Bek groun n leMaolo k p ker sda dwate s inoto l. M r in iss a tu rn.

10

Soil ero Lesoth sion in o fields. G destroys o back 1.

Vaal Dam stores water.

Go forward 1.

MASERU

Bloemfontein

8

5

7

INDIAN OCEAN

Lesotho Highlands Water Project provides electricity.

Go forward 4.

LESOTHO

At Ficksburg minimum tillage saves water. Go forward 4.

6

4

49

Looking back 27 Dece mber What an amazing trip! I can’t wait to tell my frien ds about how I’ve travelled all the way along southern Africa’s greatest river. I’m going to show them my phot os!

When I got home last night, I wanted a long bath. Then I remembered how much water bathing uses and how to precious our water is. I don’t think I’ll ever be able use water again in the same way as before this trip.

Here are ten things I learnt during our trip: is everywhere! It moves in the air as water vapour, clouds and rain. It 1 Water is found on land in rivers, lakes, dams, tunnels, pipes and canals. Under the

ground there is groundwater.

50

Orange–Senqu River starts in Lesotho and then flows over 2 000 kilometres 2 The across southern Africa where it flows into the Atlantic Ocean

Orange–Senqu River basin spreads across parts of four countries: 3 The Lesotho, South Africa, Botswana and Namibia.

the water in the Orange–Senqu River basin, including the smaller rivers 4 All(tributaries) and groundwater, is connected. So what happens in one place

can affect the water far away.

5

Over 14 million people live in the Orange–Senqu River basin. We need it for drinking, washing, growing the food we eat and for making the clothes we wear.

of southern Africa has low rainfall and is very sunny. So, a lot of the 6 Most water in rivers and on the ground, evaporates back into the air. This makes

water scarce. can control and manage the water supply by building dams, canals, 7 We boreholes, wells and pipes. The water we use sometimes comes from far

away. of the things we do pollute our water, which means there is even less 8 Many clean water for drinking. Polluted water can make people very sick.

pollution travels from one river to another. It can even travel under the 9 Water ground into groundwater, and from under the ground to the surface.

One of the biggest problems in the future of the Orange–Senqu River 10 basin is that there are more and more people that will need water from

this river.

Answers Page 9: 1. Lesotho and Botswana; 2.

South Africa; 3. South Africa; 4. Lesotho; 5. Namibia and South Africa; 6. the source Page 21: flushing the toilet = 11 litres, having a bath = 136 litres, showering = 7.5 litres a minute, washing a load of washing in the washing machine = 90 litres, running a tap for teeth brushing= 4 litres a minute, watering the garden = 26 litres a minute.

Page 37: 1 - E; 2 - C; 3 - D; 4 - A and B; 5 - A and B; 6 - F

Photo credits Pages 14 and 49, © AdeleD/Shutterstock Page 31 bottom, © Aliwal2012/Wikimedia Commons Page 32, © Wolf Avni/Shutterstock Page 43 bottom, © James Barnes Page 2, © Richard Cavalleri/Shutterstock Pages 43 top and 43 middle, © Francois du Plessis Page 25, © Francois Loubser/Shutterstock Pages 17, 18, 19, 24, 25, 27, 29 and 31 top, © Greg Marinovich Page 10 top, © Leonie Marinovich Page 13 middle, © Kevin Kirkman Pages 42 and 45, © John Pallett Page 39 middle, © Pieter Rinkel/Panoramio Page 8 top, © Kevin Roberts Page 31 middle, © Nic Roets/Wikimedia Commons Pages 33 top and 34, © UNOPS/Abigail Engleton

51

Pages 10 bottom, 12, 13 top, 13 bottom, 37, 38, 41, 44, 46, 47, 48, 49 and 51, © UNOPS/Greg Marinovich Pages 8 bottom, 30, 39 top, 40 top, 40 bottom and 48, © UNOPS/Leonie Marinovich Pages 11, 33 bottom, 39 bottom and 49 top © UNOPS/ Christoph Mor Page 22 and 49, © Zootar/Dreamstime.com

Seals swimming at Alexander Bay

About ORASECOM The Orange–Senqu River Commission (ORASECOM) was established in 2000 by the governments of Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and South Africa, which share the water resources of the Orange–Senqu River basin. The Commission provides a forum for consultation, sharing information and cooperation between the countries. For more information on ORASECOM, visit http://www.orasecom.org/.

About the Orange–Senqu Strategic Action Programme The Orange–Senqu Strategic Action Programme is a four-year project working in close collaboration with ORASECOM. It assists the basin states in identifying threats to the water resources of the Orange–Senqu and in developing a basin-wide plan to address these. The objective of implementing such initiatives contributes towards ORASECOM’s programmes and the long-term goal of sustainable development of the Orange–Senqu River basin. The project is implementing a transboundary diagnostic analysis and strategic action programme process to meet this objective, while concurrently implementing a number of projects and activities to help strengthen ORASECOM, fill knowledge gaps, and raise awareness and encourage participation of the public.

The project is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) through the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and is executed by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS). For more information on the project, visit http://undp.orasecom.org/.

52

About this book The Orange–Senqu River basin is one of the largest in southern Africa. From the Orange–Senqu’s headwaters in the highlands of Lesotho the river is joined by numerous tributaries on its westward journey, draining significant areas of Botswana, Namibia and South Africa. More temperate in the east, the climate of the basin becomes increasingly arid towards the west. Rainfall is variable, subjecting the basin to droughts and floods. Nevertheless, the Orange–Senqu provides the water required to drive the most economically active region in southern Africa, supports large-scale irrigation and meets the domestic needs of several million inhabitants.

Water supply required to meet the various demands has been assured through the construction of numerous dams and a series of transfer schemes that store and move water to areas and at times when it would otherwise not be available. In western areas, much of the rural and urban water requirements are met by tapping the basin’s groundwater resources.

Whilst important for economic development, this remarkable operation of the basin’s water resources comes at a price. Extensive water abstraction for has significantly altered the natural flow of the river system. The frequency, size and duration of floods are also affected. These changes adversely affect the health of the river, the resources and ecosystems it supports and the services they provide. To maintain these important ecological functions and secure resources in the long term, it is essential that the Orange–Senqu is managed effectively, efficiently and sustainably. ORASECOM promotes such an integrated approach to water management.

To help the four basin nations plan on how to manage the river basin sustainably and equitably, we require a thorough understanding of the priority problems, their underlying causes and the impacts they have. Such an analytical study was recently carried out by the Orange–Senqu Strategic Action Programme, through the assistance of our international cooperating partners, UNDP–GEF. The study – or transboundary diagnostic analysis, as it is known – provides the technical and analytical basis on which strategic plans have been developed to address the problems.

Based on findings of the Orange–Senqu Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis, this children’s book highlights the characteristics of the river basin – its resources, the people and economies it supports, and its problems – in a way that is accessible to a younger audience. Designed for the future custodians of this river basin and the resources it provides, this book gives an insight into the diversity of the basin and the importance of a common understanding of pertinent management challenges to the nations that share the river basin and which collaborate to address them.

53