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'''Umkomaas''',
==Etymology==
Many [[whales]] once used the estuary as a nursery, giving birth in the shallows. The [[Zulu people|Zulus]] named the river after this spectacle (uMkhomazi means ''the place of cow whales'').<ref>{{Cite book |editor=Vic Mayhew |url=http://archive.org/details/illustratedguide0000unse_d6x7 |title=Illustrated guide to Southern Africa |date=1980 |
===Name change===
In November 2009, the [[eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality]] submitted a list of places in the municipality to the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Geographic Names Committee to be changed from their anglicised names to the correct Zulu spelling. In the list, the town “Umkomaas” was to be changed to "eMkhomazi" and the Umkomaas River was to be changed to "uMkhomazi".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sanpath |first=Arthi |date=25 November 2009 |title=More name changes |url=https://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/more-name-changes-465724
On 1 October 2010, the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Arts and Culture gazette the list of approved name changes which included the eMkhomazi town and uMkhomazi river.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Approval of official geographical names |url=https://www.gov.za/sites/default/files/gcis_document/201409/33584848.pdf
==History==
=== Colonial Era ===
The area came into prominence in the mid-19th century when [[Theophilus Shepstone]], the Secretary for Native Affairs, proposed the establishment of a “black kingdom” south of the uMkhomazi River in 1851. However, this plan was rejected by the colonial authorities. The first official colonial presence began in July 1853 when Henry Francis Fynn was appointed Assistant Resident Magistrate in the Lower Umkomaas division. He also operated the first ferry service across the river, which was essential due to the presence of crocodiles.
The turning point for the South Coast, including Umkomaas, was in 1857 when the Legislative Council decided to promote development by opening up Crown land grants. This led to a flurry of interest, and by 1859, there were 93 colonists in the coastal area between the uMkhomazi and Ifafa rivers. The success of sugar plantations, especially John McKenzie’s Craigie Burn estate, contributed significantly to the area’s development.
It was established as settlement around 1861 when a harbor was constructed to facilitate the export of sugar. In Umkomaas, the entry of the ship Natalie was seen as a breakthrough for travel and transportation, as it brought access to Durban within a few hours, saving significant costs per ton of cargo. After inspecting the river mouth in 1872, the Surveyor-General, Dr P.C. Sutherland noted that until the settlement at Umkomaas grew in size, there was no urgency to expend further resources on developing the river mouth. Leading way to the slow disuse of the harbour and eventual abandonment once the dredging of Durban Harbour was successful.<ref>Natalia No 45 Article Umkomaas.pdf</ref>
===World War II plane crash===
A notable event in the village's history was the fatal air crash involving a [[Curtiss P-40 Warhawk|War Hawk]] Air Force plane during the Second World War. On 30 March 1944 during a routine practice battle formation, two Kittyhawks (5067 piloted by FO Brown) and 5006 (piloted by PO Smith) collided in mid air. 5006 managed to make a forced landing next to the river and pilot Smith escaped with his life. The second plane was not so fortunate; Brown was unable to bale from the plane and went down with the craft on the south bank of the Umkomaas river near the site where Saiccor is today. The aeroplane is believed to have sunk into quicksand on the south bank of the river between the village and the present-day location of Saiccor. A local group made numerous attempts to recover the wreckage of the craft in the 1980s, but as the precise location of the plane is still not decisively known, it has never been recovered. Subsequently much speculation exists as to where exactly the plane is buried.
The [[South African Navy]] [[mine countermeasures vessel]] SAS ''Umkomaas'' is named in honour of the river and village
==Geography==
Located approximately 50 km south-west of [[Durban]] and
===Topography===
[[File:Umkomaas.jpg|thumb|left|Umkomaas — surf near Mkomazi River mouth, September 2007]] The
Occasionally, raft races, canoeing, and other sporting events are held on the river. The river is a popular white-water rafting destination. During the winter dry season, the river mouth often silts up, but after heavy rains it carries large amounts of brown sediment into the [[Indian Ocean]]. Some of this sedimentation is due to anthropogenic (human-made) pressures on the local ecosystem. These pressures include soil erosion caused by over-grazing, intensive cultivation, sewage disposal, informal farming and settlements, timber plantations, and the removal of sand or topsoil from the river's basin.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.ewisa.co.za/misc/RiverKZNMkomazi/MKOMAZIRiver_Geology%20.htm| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20111005194418/http://www.ewisa.co.za/misc/RiverKZNMkomazi/MKOMAZIRiver_Geology%20.htm| archive-date = 2011-10-05| title = MKOMAZI RIVER}}</ref>
The
The river's basin covers about 4,315 km<sup>2</sup>, annual discharge is approximately 1 x 106 m<sup>3</sup> and sediment load is an estimated 900 000 tons per year.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://sajg.geoscienceworld.org/cgi/content/full/107/4/489|title = South African Journal of Geology | GeoScienceWorld}}</ref> Some parts of the river basin are vulnerable to flooding due to the steep topography and weather systems, such as intense thunderstorms and cut-off lows. This is exacerbated by [[land degradation]] and [[Impervious surface|impervious]] urban areas. Some floods have resulted in loss of life, destruction of properties where development has encroached on floodplains in densely populated areas, and damage to roads and bridges.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.ewisa.co.za/misc/RiverKZNMkomazi/MKOMAZIRiver_Hydrology%20.htm| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20111005194544/http://www.ewisa.co.za/misc/RiverKZNMkomazi/MKOMAZIRiver_Hydrology%20.htm| archive-date = 2011-10-05| title = MKOMAZI RIVER}}</ref><ref>Department of Water Affairs and Forestry, South Africa. 2004. Internal Strategic Perspective: Mvoti to Mzimkulu Water Management Area : Prepared by Tlou and Matji (Pty) Ltd, WRP (Pty) Ltd, and DMM cc on behalf of the Directorate: National Water Resource Planning (East). DWAF Report No. P WMA 11/000/00/0304.</ref>
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Additionally, a large amount of effluent is pumped out to sea, and major extensions of this effluent pipe were carried out in 1987 and 1999, though Saiccor maintained for many years that the effluent was largely harmless. A well-known act was when Saiccor chief executive was challenged to drink a glass of effluent at a company function.
Saiccor is today the world's largest producer of chemical cellulose, and employs about 1200 people directly and about 20 000 indirectly, its pulp being used largely for products such as [[viscose]], [[acetate]] and [[cellophane]]. In 2012 the company said almost half its staff came from Umkomaas, Magabeni, Craigieburn, Roseneath and Widenham.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://southcoastherald.co.za/195394/newsflash-umkomaas-protestors-gather-sappi-gates-demand-jobs/|title = UPDATE: 'There simply are not enough jobs,' says Sappi| date=16 March 2017 }}</ref>
The manufacture of over 1 billion components annually for the packaging industry and furniture assembly are also carried out in the area. Additional infrastructure includes the roads and railways built by and for Saiccor's operations, together with a stretch of [[Spoornet]]-owned coastal track, on which Saiccor to this day maintains and operates classic steam engines.
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==Education==
A co-educational primary school, founded in 1913, is in the centre of the village.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://umkomaasprimary.co.za/| url-status =
==Parks and greenspace==
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