The Ōhau River is a river in the Mackenzie Basin of New Zealand's South Island. It is the primary outflow of Lake Ōhau, from which it flows in a roughly eastward direction until reaching the artificial Lake Benmore after a distance of roughly 27 kilometres (17 mi). In 1981, the artificial Lake Ruataniwha was created along the river's length to power a small hydroelectric power station as part of the Waitaki hydro scheme.[1] Prior to the creation of the Waitaki hydro scheme, the river flowed directly into the Waitaki River rather than through a series of lakes.[2] The river forms part of the traditional boundary between Otago and Canterbury regions.[3]
Prior to European settlement of the region, the river was a traditional mahinga kai (food gathering site) for Māori travelling through the Mackenzie Basin, providing valuable food sources such as weka, tuna (eels), and pora (Brassica rapa subsp. sylvestris)[4][5]
References
^"NZGB Gazetteer". New Zealand Geographic Board Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
^"Archived copy"(PDF). www.meridianenergy.co.nz. Archived from the original(PDF) on 21 February 2007. Retrieved 12 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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