The extent of the dry reaches in tributaries of the Avon/Ōtākaro River

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to systematically survey the upper tributaries of the Avon/Ōtākaro River in Christchurch, to identify the current extent of the dry reaches. The Avon/Ōtākaro River tributaries are fed by shallow groundwater from the Christchurch-West Melton aquifer system, via artesian springs and seepage through soils and stream bed gravels. The flow in these tributaries had been observed to be particularly low in the summer of 2015/2016, with unusually extensive dry reaches being reported throughout the upper catchment.