Motueka River
Encyclopedia
The Motueka River is located in the north of the South Island
of New Zealand
and is a popular tourist destination for watersports and fishing. The Motueka flows 116 kilometres (72.1 mi) from the mountains 40 km west of the city of Nelson
in the southeast of the catchment and flows north to the Tasman Bay
.
, and flows for 120 kilometres, first through rough hill country and then the more gently undulating terrain southwest of Tasman Bay
, passing by many small communities such as Ngatimoti
, Riwaka, Brooklyn and many others as it makes it way its outflow into the bay close to the town of Motueka
.
The Motueka has three major tributaries, the Motupiko River
, Wangapeka River
and the Baton River
, as well as smaller tributaries called the Pearse, Dove, Tadmor and Rainy.
and areas of recent alluvium
, with a complex mix of sedimentary and igneous rocks, originating from the mountainous terrain of the Arthur Range
which form the western boundary of the catchment area. and a region of clay-bound gravels to the eastern boundary. As well as the granites, the wide variety of rock types found along the course of the river include complex basement rock
, ultramafic, old and young sedimentary rocks.
2,100 cubic meters per second. The average monthly flow has seasonal variation and it at its highest in winter and
spring. The mountain catchment areas to the west and southeast have the highest rainfall and provide most of the mean annual flow for the Motueka River. Significant flooding was a serious problem for the local population and a major flood in 1877 led to widespread erosion and changed the course of the river in several areas. There have since been serious flooding in January 1895, July 1929, June 1954 and April 1957 but this was thought to have been addressed when the Motueka Catchment Control Scheme was completed in 1982. In May 2010, however, twenty homes were flooded by the Motueka River in the Wangapeka area near Tapawera and residents had to be evacuated.
fishing throughout its entire length. Large numbers of trout range below the Wangapeka confluence and very large trophy fish have been caught.
, commonly known as 'didymo' or 'rock snot', a species of diatom
, in the Motueka River and its tributaries,. This algae grows in warm and shallow water and can form large mats on the bottom of rivers. It is not considered a health risk but can affect stream habitats and sources of food for fish and make recreational activities unpleasant. It is considered a nuisance organism or invasive species
. The microscopic algae
can be spread in a single drop of water, so anglers must clean their waders and boots before moving to different rivers or face a fine of up to $100,000 or up to five years in prison.
, tobacco
, Asian pears
and kiwifruit
grown on the banks of the middle and the lower reaches and commercial forestry
on lowland and hill areas. The livestock farming uses include sheep and beef farming and, increasingly, dairy farming, which requires a number of cow crossings on the river that can affect water quality, through introducing fecal coliform microbes and conflict with sports such as fishing. A special research project was therefore established as part of a nine year programme that began in July 2000 and ended in September 2010. The aim of the research was to provide information to support the management of the environment of the area using an 'Integrated Catchment Management
' (ICM) approach. This recognises the catchment or river basin as an ecosystem
and includes consideration of social, economic and political factors.
South Island
The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...
of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
and is a popular tourist destination for watersports and fishing. The Motueka flows 116 kilometres (72.1 mi) from the mountains 40 km west of the city of Nelson
Nelson, New Zealand
Nelson is a city on the eastern shores of Tasman Bay, and is the economic and cultural centre of the Nelson-Tasman region. Established in 1841, it is the second oldest settled city in New Zealand and the oldest in the South Island....
in the southeast of the catchment and flows north to the Tasman Bay
Tasman Bay
Tasman Bay is a large V-shaped bay at the north end of New Zealand's South Island. Located in the centre of the island's northern coast, it stretches along of coastline and is across at its widest point. It is an arm of the Tasman Sea, lying on the western approach to Cook Strait.At the bay's...
.
Geography
The Motueka River lies 60 kilometres to the south of NelsonNelson, New Zealand
Nelson is a city on the eastern shores of Tasman Bay, and is the economic and cultural centre of the Nelson-Tasman region. Established in 1841, it is the second oldest settled city in New Zealand and the oldest in the South Island....
, and flows for 120 kilometres, first through rough hill country and then the more gently undulating terrain southwest of Tasman Bay
Tasman Bay
Tasman Bay is a large V-shaped bay at the north end of New Zealand's South Island. Located in the centre of the island's northern coast, it stretches along of coastline and is across at its widest point. It is an arm of the Tasman Sea, lying on the western approach to Cook Strait.At the bay's...
, passing by many small communities such as Ngatimoti
Ngatimoti
Ngatimoti is a small town near Motueka in New Zealand's South Island. Its Māori name means "of Timothy".The town lies on the banks of the Motueka River and has been inhabited since 1855 when the Salisbury brothers arrived in the river valley...
, Riwaka, Brooklyn and many others as it makes it way its outflow into the bay close to the town of Motueka
Motueka
The town of Motueka in the South Island of New Zealand lies close to the mouth of the Motueka River, on the western shore of Tasman Bay. It is, after Nelson and Richmond, the third largest centre in the Tasman Region, with a population of 7125...
.
The Motueka has three major tributaries, the Motupiko River
Motupiko River
The Motupiko River is a river of the Tasman Region of New Zealand's South Island. A major tributary of the Motueka River, it flows north from its origins southeast of the Hope Saddle, meeting the Motueka at Kohatu, 15v kilometres west of Wakefield. The Motupiko's tributaries include the Rainy...
, Wangapeka River
Wangapeka River
The Wangapeka River is a river of the Tasman Region of New Zealand's South Island. It rises in two branches, the North Branch and the South Branch, in the Matiri Range within Kahurangi National Park, meeting some 25 kilometres southeast of Karamea...
and the Baton River
Baton River
The Baton River is a river in the Tasman District of the South Island of New Zealand. It rises near the Baton Saddle in the Arthur Range and flows ESE then northeast before feeding in to the Motueka River 2 km south of Woodstock...
, as well as smaller tributaries called the Pearse, Dove, Tadmor and Rainy.
Geology
The river runs through a wide band of graniteGranite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
and areas of recent alluvium
Alluvium
Alluvium is loose, unconsolidated soil or sediments, eroded, deposited, and reshaped by water in some form in a non-marine setting. Alluvium is typically made up of a variety of materials, including fine particles of silt and clay and larger particles of sand and gravel...
, with a complex mix of sedimentary and igneous rocks, originating from the mountainous terrain of the Arthur Range
Arthur Range
The Arthur Range is a mountain range in the South West Wilderness, Tasmania, Australia. The range is broken into two main section, the Western Arthurs and the Eastern Arthurs...
which form the western boundary of the catchment area. and a region of clay-bound gravels to the eastern boundary. As well as the granites, the wide variety of rock types found along the course of the river include complex basement rock
Basement Rock
Basement or Basement Rock music was a sub-genre coined in 2006 in an article by music magazine TGR. This was first in relation to the existence of underground record label Criminal Records but more for the independent bands they represent. The roots of the sub-genre are noted to be as far back as...
, ultramafic, old and young sedimentary rocks.
Flooding and river flow
The Motueka is a large river with average annual flow of 59 cubic meters per second and a flow range from 6 to more than2,100 cubic meters per second. The average monthly flow has seasonal variation and it at its highest in winter and
spring. The mountain catchment areas to the west and southeast have the highest rainfall and provide most of the mean annual flow for the Motueka River. Significant flooding was a serious problem for the local population and a major flood in 1877 led to widespread erosion and changed the course of the river in several areas. There have since been serious flooding in January 1895, July 1929, June 1954 and April 1957 but this was thought to have been addressed when the Motueka Catchment Control Scheme was completed in 1982. In May 2010, however, twenty homes were flooded by the Motueka River in the Wangapeka area near Tapawera and residents had to be evacuated.
Fishing
The river is well known for its excellent Brown troutBrown trout
The brown trout and the sea trout are fish of the same species....
fishing throughout its entire length. Large numbers of trout range below the Wangapeka confluence and very large trophy fish have been caught.
Watersports
The river is also noted for rafting, canoeing or just drifting down on an inner-tube. Kayaks can be hired from a number of commercial companies and organised trips are avaialable.Invasive algae
Precautions have been taken to control the spread of an invasive algae Didymosphenia geminataDidymosphenia geminata
Didymosphenia geminata, commonly known as didymo or rock snot, is a species of diatom that grows in warm and shallow water. If it overgrows, it can form large mats on the bottom of lakes, rivers and streams. It is not considered a significant human health risk, but it can affect stream habitats and...
, commonly known as 'didymo' or 'rock snot', a species of diatom
Diatom
Diatoms are a major group of algae, and are one of the most common types of phytoplankton. Most diatoms are unicellular, although they can exist as colonies in the shape of filaments or ribbons , fans , zigzags , or stellate colonies . Diatoms are producers within the food chain...
, in the Motueka River and its tributaries,. This algae grows in warm and shallow water and can form large mats on the bottom of rivers. It is not considered a health risk but can affect stream habitats and sources of food for fish and make recreational activities unpleasant. It is considered a nuisance organism or invasive species
Invasive species
"Invasive species", or invasive exotics, is a nomenclature term and categorization phrase used for flora and fauna, and for specific restoration-preservation processes in native habitats, with several definitions....
. The microscopic algae
Algae
Algae are a large and diverse group of simple, typically autotrophic organisms, ranging from unicellular to multicellular forms, such as the giant kelps that grow to 65 meters in length. They are photosynthetic like plants, and "simple" because their tissues are not organized into the many...
can be spread in a single drop of water, so anglers must clean their waders and boots before moving to different rivers or face a fine of up to $100,000 or up to five years in prison.
Integrated Catchment Management (ICM) project
The Motueka River has a wide range of land uses over its catchment of over 2000 square kilometers which include agriculture, with hopsHops
Hops are the female flower clusters , of a hop species, Humulus lupulus. They are used primarily as a flavoring and stability agent in beer, to which they impart a bitter, tangy flavor, though hops are also used for various purposes in other beverages and herbal medicine...
, tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
, Asian pears
Pyrus pyrifolia
Pyrus pyrifolia is a pear tree species native to China, Japan, and Korea. The tree's edible fruit is known by many names, including: Asian pear, Chinese pear, Korean pear, Japanese pear, Taiwan pear, and sand pear.....
and kiwifruit
Kiwifruit
The kiwifruit, often shortened to kiwi in many parts of the world, is the edible berry of a cultivar group of the woody vine Actinidia deliciosa and hybrids between this and other species in the genus Actinidia....
grown on the banks of the middle and the lower reaches and commercial forestry
Forestry
Forestry is the interdisciplinary profession embracing the science, art, and craft of creating, managing, using, and conserving forests and associated resources in a sustainable manner to meet desired goals, needs, and values for human benefit. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands...
on lowland and hill areas. The livestock farming uses include sheep and beef farming and, increasingly, dairy farming, which requires a number of cow crossings on the river that can affect water quality, through introducing fecal coliform microbes and conflict with sports such as fishing. A special research project was therefore established as part of a nine year programme that began in July 2000 and ended in September 2010. The aim of the research was to provide information to support the management of the environment of the area using an 'Integrated Catchment Management
Integrated catchment management
Integrated catchment management is a subset of environmental planning which approaches sustainable resource management from a catchment perspective, in contrast to a piecemeal approach that artificially separates land management from water management....
' (ICM) approach. This recognises the catchment or river basin as an ecosystem
Ecosystem
An ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving , physical components of the environment with which the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight....
and includes consideration of social, economic and political factors.