Taieri River

Output of the Taieri Gorge at Outram

Template: Infobox River / Obsolete

The Taieri River is 201 km long, the fourth longest river in New Zealand. He dominates together with the further west, Clutha River, the Otago region in the southeast of the South Island and, with its tributaries, the main source of water in the region dar.

Geography

Sprung in the Lammerlaw Range, the Taieri flows through the level Serpentine Flat northward, then used to power the wetlands of the Maniototo Plain. At the northern end of the Rock and Pillar Range, the river turns eastward and crosses after a bend to almost 180 degrees the broad former glacial Strath Taieri, which is surrounded by the mountain ranges of over 1300 m high Rock and Pillar Range and the Taieri Ridge. From this valley from the southward Taieri has worked deep into the countryside and formed the Gorge Taieri Gorge. In Outram the river leaves the canyon and watered the Taieri Plains, only to culminate after another 30 km stretch of river at Taieri Mouth in the Pacific Ocean. The estuary is the island Taieri Iceland or Moturata upstream.

The most important tributary is the Waipori River, which flows at Henley in the Taieri Plains in the Taieri River. Places along the river are Middlemarch, Outram, Mosgiel, Taieri Mouth and Henley.

Use

At the upper reaches of the Taieri River is located at Paerau a hydroelectric power plant, which was taken together with the location in a creek in Patearoa power plant into operation in 1984. A portion of the water of the Taieri is diverted and fed through a 1.3 km tunnel to the 10 -MW power plant.

In the fertile plains of the Maniototo plains, Strath Taieri Taieri and the river water is used intensively for agriculture and livestock. Fishing is allowed anywhere on the Taieri and possible, and the wetlands of the Maniototo with the anglers are particularly popular. The Taieri Gorge is a tourist destination and can be traversed with the daily schedule, train the Taieri Gorge Railway from Dunedin to Middlemarch.

Environmental problems

After adjoining Farmer of wetlands have been transferred in the upper portion of the river increases for dairy farming and breeding of deer, wetlands are threatened by pollution and expansion of agricultural land.

Swell

• New Zealand Encyclopedia, 5th Edition, David Bateman Ltd, Auckland, 2000. ISBN 0-90861-021-1