Essequibo River
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The Essequibo River is the longest river in Guyana, and the largest river between the Orinoco and Amazon. Rising in the Acarai Mountains near the Brazil-Guyana border, the Essequibo flows to the north for 1,000 kilometres through forest and savanna into the Atlantic Ocean. There are countless rapids and waterfalls along the route of the Essequibo, and its 20km wide estuary is dotted with numerous small islands. It enters the Atlantic 21km from Georgetown, the capital city of Guyana.
Its many tributaries include the Rupununi, Potaro, Mazaruni, Siparuni, Kiyuwini and Cuyuni rivers. For over 20 miles (32km) from its mouth, the river's channel is divided by the large flat and fertile islands of Leguan (approximately 18 square miles), Wakenaam (approximately 17 square miles), and Hog Island (about 22 square miles). Fort Island is situated off the eastern side of Hog Island. Fort Island was the seat of Government of the country during the Dutch colonial era.
The first European settlement in Guyana was built by the Dutch along the lower part of the Essequibo in 1615. The colonists remained on friendly terms with the Native American peoples of the area, establishing riverside sugar and cacao plantations.
In August 1995 there was an acid spill in the river by the Canadian mining company Cambior. An estimated one billion gallons (four billion liters) of waste laced with cyanide was released into the river causing much destruction.
The river's name is said to come from an Arawak word meaning "hearth-stones". This is explained as being a reference to the Arawak custom of collecting stones from the river’s banks for their firesides.
Essequibo is also the name of a former Dutch colony founded in 1616 and located in the region of the Essequibo River that later became part of British Guiana.
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