RIVERS AND THEIR USES

RIVERS AND THEIR USES

The most important use of a river is the conveyance of surplus rainwater off the land to the sea. Rivers rise in the mountains and all the streams and mountain torrents which feed carry down rock and sand soil from the mountain sides.

In a dry country, rivers are the source irrigation system, which has turned deserts into smiling gardens and productive farms.

Rivers too, are important as highways. Before the information for railways, the large rivers of a country were a necessary means of communication especially when roads were few or bad. Even now, the traffic on navigable rivers is considerable and important. Anyone who has seen rivers like the gangers, the Irrawaddy or Yang-tze, will realize that navigation is still an important use of rivers.

Finally, there is the beauty of a river-and beauty has an important use. Think of the beauty of the foaming mountain torrent surrounded by fertile lands.