Irrawaddy River

Irrawaddy River ဧရာဝတီမြစ်
Aerial view of the river
Course, watershed, cities and major tributaries of the Irrawaddy River
Location
Country	Myanmar
States/Regions	Kachin Mandalay Sagaing Magway Bago Ayeyarwady
Cities	Myitkyina Bhamo Mandalay Sagaing Pakokku Bagan Magway Pyay Hinthada
Physical characteristics
Source	Ridong Qu headwaters, southeast Tibet, China: The geographical source.[1]
• coordinates	28°44′04″N 97°52′21″E / 28.73444°N 97.87250°E / 28.73444; 97.87250
• elevation	4760 m (approximately)
2nd source
• location	Gada Qu headwaters, southeast Tibet, China: The northernmost source.
• coordinates	28°45′57″N 97°45′1″E / 28.76583°N 97.75028°E / 28.76583; 97.75028 (approximately)
• elevation	4760 m (approximately)
3rd source	N'Mai River[2]
• location	Kachin State, Myanmar
• coordinates	28°31′50″N 97°37′55″E / 28.53056°N 97.63194°E / 28.53056; 97.63194 (approximately)
• elevation	4650 m (approximately)
4th source	Mali River
• location	Kachin State, Myanmar
• coordinates	27°44′48″N 97°2′5″E / 27.74667°N 97.03472°E / 27.74667; 97.03472 (approximately)
• elevation	3800 m (approximately)
Source confluence
• location	Damphet, Kachin State
• coordinates	25°42′0″N 97°30′0″E / 25.70000°N 97.50000°E / 25.70000; 97.50000
• elevation	147 m (482 ft)
Mouth	Andaman Sea
• location	Ale-ywa, Ayeyarwady Region, Myanmar
• coordinates	15°51′19″N 95°14′27″E / 15.85528°N 95.24083°E / 15.85528; 95.24083
• elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Length	2,288[1] km (1,422 mi)
Basin size	404,200 km2 (156,100 sq mi) [3]
Discharge
• location	Irrawaddy Delta
• average	15,112 m3/s (533,700 cu ft/s)[4]
• minimum	2,300 m3/s (81,000 cu ft/s)
• maximum	60,000 m3/s (2,100,000 cu ft/s)
Basin features
Tributaries
• left	Chindwin River, Mu River
• right	Myitnge
Second longest source length: Kaidag Qu/Gadag Qu: 48 km ⟶ Gyita Qu/Kelao Luo: 56 km ⟶ Dulong River: 182 km ⟶ N Mai Kha River: 231 km ⟶ Irrawaddy River: 2,210 km ⟶ Andaman Sea: Total: 2,727 km Longest source length: Quwa Qu/Ridong Ermei ⟶ Gyita Qu/Kelao Luo: 56 km ⟶...

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The Irrawaddy River (Burmese: ဧရာဝတီမြစ်, pronounced [ʔèjàwədì mjɪʔ], official romanisation: Ayeyarwady^{[5][note 1]}) is the largest river in Myanmar. Originating from the confluence of the N'mai and Mali rivers,^[7] it flows from north to south before emptying through the Irrawaddy Delta in the Ayeyarwady Region into the Andaman Sea. Its drainage basin of about 404,000 square kilometres (156,000 sq mi) covers 61% of the land area of Burma, and contains five of its largest cities.^[8]

As early as the sixth century, the river was used for trade and transport, and an extensive network of irrigation canals was developed to support agriculture. The river is still of great importance as the largest commercial waterway of Myanmar.^[9] It also provides important ecosystem services to different communities and economic sectors, including agriculture, fisheries, and tourism.^[8]

In 2007, Myanmar's military dictatorship signed an agreement for the construction of seven hydroelectric dams, yielding a total of 13,360 MW, in the N'mai and Mali Rivers, including the 3600 MW Myitsone Dam at the confluence of both rivers. Environmental organisations have raised concerns about the project's ecological impact on the river's biodiverse ecosystems. Animals potentially impacted include the endangered Irrawaddy dolphin and the critically endangered Ganges shark.

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