The Piako River is a lowland river system that drains into the Firth of Thames on the North Island of New Zealand. Together with the Waihou River, it is one of the two main rivers systems which drains the Hauraki Plains. It is the dominant river system in the Matamata-Piako District, and on its journey it passes through the towns of Morrinsville and Ngatea.
The Piako River has an annual mean flow of 17 cubic metres per second (600 cu ft/s) (at Paeroa-Tahuna Road),[1] with a total catchment area of approximately 1,440 square kilometres (560 sq mi). The river system is approximately 100 kilometres (62 mi) long, aligned in a north-south direction and occupies much of the central and western Hauraki Plains (or more broadly, the Thames Valley), extending from Hinuera in the south before discharging into the Firth of Thames in the north, five kilometres west of Thames.
The Piako River has two major stems: the first, and main, stem drains the northern Te Miro-Tahuroa hills, and the Pakaroa Range. The dominant tributaries on the eastern slopes of these hills are the Piakonui and Piakoiti Streams. These streams, together with the smaller Toenepi Stream, converge just south of Kereone to become the Piako River. The western slopes are drained by the Waitakaruru Stream which joins the Piako River at Morrinsville. As the Piako River progresses north, it is fed by numerous small streams draining the eastern slopes of the Hangawera Hills.
The second stem is the Waitoa River, which starts near Piarere. The Waitoa River catchment drains the Hinuera Flats and broad southern Hauraki Plains, before converging with the Piako River in the large wetland known as the Kopuatai Peat Dome, northeast of Tahuna. The Upper Piako River catchment also drains the eastern aspects of the Hapuakohe Range through small tributaries.
The river system is highly modified by intensive dairy farming and associated industry. Given this, the Toenepi Stream - a small sub-catchment of the Piako River - has been extensively used to research the impact of intensive farming on water quality and develop improved farming practices.[2]
^"The Waikato Regional Flood Event of 9-20 July 1998". Massey.ac.nz. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
^Wilcock, R.J.; Monaghan, R.M.; Quinn, J.M.; Campbell, A.M.; Thorrold, B.S.; Duncan, M.J.; McGowan, A.W.; Betteridge, K. (2006). "Land‐use impacts and water quality targets in the intensive dairying catchment of the Toenepi Stream, New Zealand". New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research. 40 (1): 123–140. doi:10.1080/00288330.2006.9517407.
The PiakoRiver is a lowland river system that drains into the Firth of Thames on the North Island of New Zealand. Together with the Waihou River, it...
and the Matamata-Piako District respectively. The alluvial plains have been built up by sediment deposited by the Piako and Waihou rivers, which flow north...
Matamata-Piako District Piako County, a former local government area PiakoRiver, a river system that drains into the Firth of Thames Piako Swamp, another...
Hauraki Plains rivers: the Waihou River, PiakoRiver and Waitakaruru River. Prior to the Oruanui eruption 27,000 years ago, the Waikato River also flowed...
Hamilton and 22 kilometres west of Te Aroha. The town is bordered by the PiakoRiver to the east and the Waitakaruru Stream to the south. Prior to European...
It converges with the PiakoRiver in the Kopuatai Peat Dome wetland, approximately 15 kilometres north of Morrinsville. The river largely follows the former...
river and the nearby PiakoRiver form the wide alluvial Hauraki Plains. Just before the river reaches the ocean, State Highway 25 crosses the river over...
of the PiakoRiver, within the Waikato region of New Zealand's North Island. It should not be confused with the similarly named Waitakaruru River, which...
of Thames and 70 kilometres southeast of Auckland. Ngatea lies on the PiakoRiver, eight kilometres south of its outflow into the Firth of Thames. Ngatea...
is a farming service community located close to the west bank of the PiakoRiver, eight kilometres north of Morrinsville in the Waikato region of New...
portages existed, bridging the rivers of the Waikato region. The Mangawara portage connected the Waikato River to the PiakoRiver, via the Mangawara Stream...
natlib.govt.nz. 26 April 1954. Retrieved 2 April 2024. "SS Hauiti on the PiakoRiver". Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. 1 April 2016. Buchanan, Arthur...
River Patutahi River Pearse River Pearson River Penk River Percival River Peria River Perth River Perunui River Phantom RiverPiakoRiver Pitt River Pleasant...
the region is the Waikato River catchment. Other major catchments are those of the Waihou, Piako, Awakino and Mokau rivers. The region is bounded by Auckland...
Waitakaruru and Whangamarino Rivers and their tributaries at the north end. Further south, tributaries of the PiakoRiver drain the east side of the range...
just south of the Firth of Thames, just east of the PiakoRiver, and west of the Waihou River. The Ngāti Hako people traditionally had a pā (defensive...
Kopuatai Peat Dome and surrounding farmland into Tee Head Canal in the PiakoRiver system. The canals have low biodiversity, with a small population of...
the surrounding canals and rivers. Locally, a popular misconception persists that water flows from the nearby PiakoRiver into the bog and that the wetland...
The 1938 Council Chambers is now a Category 2 listed building. Matamata-Piako District Council took over under the 1989 local government reforms. The...
1906 work started on a road to Ohinewai and on cutting the bends in the PiakoRiver below Kaihere Landing. From 1908 stopbanks and drainage canals were built...
over the PiakoRiver at Morrinsville, was realigned from the original plans to be a 7-span, 220 ft (67 m) skew bridge, 54 ft (16 m) above river, made of...
North District of New Zealand. The Peria River flows through here Peria, Waikato, a locality in the Matamata-Piako District of New Zealand Peria (fruit)...
district prior to 1834, when the missionary, John Morgan, travelled up the PiakoRiver and crossed to Horotiu. The 1860s saw an influx of European settlers...
Kiwitahi is a rural community in the Matamata-Piako District and Waikato region of New Zealand's North Island, located directly south of Morrinsville...
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