Geography and Topography
Geography
The reservation, located in southwest South Dakota, takes 3,400 square miles (8,800 km2) of space. The nearest urban center, Rapid City, South Dakota, is 120 miles (190 km) from the center of the reservation.
Topography
The topography is generally rolling mixed grass prairie, interspersed in various location, especially to the north, into typical badlands topography. The higher elevations of the prairie are covered by wind blown sands that form dunes, blowouts, and thin sheets. The southern part of the reservation is crossed by Pine Ridge, which is probably a fault scarp, and which supports the growth of scattered pine and cedar trees. Well-developed sandhills are the dominant features along the southern boundary of the reservation, which extend into the sandhills region of Nebraska. Only 84,000 acres (340 km2) of the more than 2 million acres (8,100 km2) of the reservation are considered land suitable for agricultural uses, and the climate, soil and water conditions are challenging. Many farmers among the Lakota can do little more than gain a subsistence living from the land.
The White River flows through the reservation. It was named for the water's white-gray color, a result of eroded sand, clay, and volcanic ash carried by the river. Draining a basin of about 10,200 square miles (26,000 km2), the stream flows through a region of sparsely populated hills, plateaus, and badlands. It flows west to east through the reservation.
Read more about this topic: Pine Ridge Indian Reservation
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