The Konawaruk River is a river in western Guyana

Guyana

Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...

. It is a tributary of the Essequibo River

Essequibo River

The Esequibo River is the largest 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 1,010 km through forest and savanna into the Atlantic Ocean.-Geography:There are countless...

, joining it just south of the Potaro River

Potaro River

The Potaro River is a river in Guyana in northern South America.The source of the Potaro River is in the Mount Ayanganna area of the Pakaraima Mountains in the North Rupununi Savannahs...

 mouth at 5°18′N 58°55′W.

Mining

Mining

Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...

, especially for gold

Gold

Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...

, is the primary industry along the river. Pollution from extraction processes, including the use of missile dredges, has had a severe effect on the ecology of the river.