Insiza River

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Insiza River
Ekusileni pontoon ferry, on the Insiza River downstream of Filabusi, Zimbabwe
Origin	Fort Rixon, Zimbabwe
Mouth	Mzingwane River
Basin countries	Zimbabwe
Avg. discharge	25.9 mm/a unit runoff [1]
Basin area	3,401 km2 [2]

The Insiza River is the principal tributary of the Mzingwane River in Zimbabwe.

It rises near Fort Rixon, Insiza District, and flows into the Mzingwane River near West Nicholson.

Contents 1 Hydrology 2 Cities, Towns and Settlements along the River 3 Bridges and Crossings 4 Development 5 References

[edit] Hydrology

The upper reaches of the Insiza River are ephemeral, but below Silalabuhwa Dam, the river flows for two-thirds of the year ^[3].

Major tributaries of the Insiza River include the Inkankezi and Siwaze Rivers.

[edit] Cities, Towns and Settlements along the River

The settlements below have are ordered from the beginning of the river to its end:

• Fort Rixon village
• Filabusi village

[edit] Bridges and Crossings

There are four main bridges over the Insiza River:

• Bridge on main Mbalabala - Masvingo road, near Filabusi.
• Bridge on Filabusi - Mataga road .
• Bridge on Filabusi - West Nicholson road .
• Croft Bridge, on the road from Filabusi to Croft mine.

There are also a number of crossing points, including:

• Ekusileni pontoon (see photo at top of page).

[edit] Development

In addition to a number of small weirs, there are four dams on the Insiza River:

• Upper Insiza Dam, near Fort Rixon, built in 1967 with a full supply capacity of 8,829 Mm³.

• Insiza Dam, previously known as Mayfair Dam and Lake Cunnigham, built in 1973, with a full supply capacity of 173,491 Mm³. It supplies water to the City of Bulawayo.

• Pangani Dam, near Filabusi, built to supply water for Pangani mine (now closed and site of a youth training institute.

• Silalabuhwa Dam, built in 1966, with a full supply capacity of 23,454 Mm³. It is located near the confluence with the Mzingwane River and supplies water for irrigation and to Colleen Bawn^[4].

[edit] References

1. ^ Kileshye-Onema,J.-M., Mazvimavi, D., Love, D. and Mul, M.L. 2006. Effects of selected dams on river flows of Insiza River, Zimbabwe . Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, 31, 870-875. [1]
2. ^ Kileshye Onema, J.-M. and van Rooyen, A. 2007. Landuse dynamics in a small watershed of the semi-arid Zimbabwe. American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2007, abstract #B41B-0460 [2]
3. ^ Kileshye-Onema,J.-M., Mazvimavi, D., Love, D. and Mul, M.L. 2006. Effects of selected dams on river flows of Insiza River, Zimbabwe . Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, 31, 870-875. [3]
4. ^ Chibi, T., Kandori, C. and Makone, B.F. 2005. Mzingwane Catchment Outline Plan. Zimbabwe National Water Authority, Bulawayo.