Snowy River facts for kids
The Snowy River is an important river in south-eastern Australia. It starts high up on Mount Kosciuszko, which is Australia's tallest mountain. The river gets its water from the eastern side of the Snowy Mountains in New South Wales. It then flows through a special protected area called the Snowy River National Park in Victoria. Finally, it reaches the ocean at Bass Strait. A long time ago, until the mid-1900s, the Snowy River was famous for having lots of fresh water, being wide, and having big, fast-moving sections called rapids.
Quick facts for kids Snowy |
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| River | |
 The Snowy River below McKillops Bridge
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| Nickname: "The Snowy" | |
| Country | Australia |
|---|---|
| State | Victoria, New South Wales |
| Region | South-east Australia |
| Tributaries | |
| - left | Mowamba River, Maclaughlin River, Jacobs River, Deddick River, Rodger River |
| - right | Delegate River, Wullwye Creek, Pinch River, Buchan River, Brodribb River |
| City | Jindabyne (NSW), Orbost (Vic), Marlo (Vic) |
| Source | Australian Alps |
| - location | Great Dividing Range |
| - elevation | 2,200 m (7,218 ft) |
| Mouth | |
| - location | Bass Strait, Australia |
| - elevation | 0 m (0 ft) |
| Length | 352 km (219 mi) |
| Basin | 15,779 km² (6,092 sq mi) |
| Discharge | mouth |
| - average | 517 m³/s (18,258 cu ft/s) |
The river's path and the land around it haven't changed much. This is because it is protected by the Snowy River National Park. However, the amount of water flowing in the river was greatly reduced in the 1950s. This happened when the Snowy Mountains Scheme was built. This big project was made to create hydroelectricity, which is power from moving water.
Four large dams were built as part of this scheme. These dams were at Guthega, Island Bend, Eucumbene, and Jindabyne. Many smaller dams and tunnels were also built. After the scheme was finished, less than 1% of the river's original water flow continued downstream from Jindabyne, New South Wales.
People became worried about the river's health. Because of this, the state and federal governments made an agreement. They decided to release more water back into the river. From 2002 to 2008, the water flow was slowly increased from 1% to 4%. The plan was to increase the flow to 15% by 2009 and 21% by 2012. This helps the river and its environment stay healthier.
Images for kids
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Headwaters of the Snowy River, with Mount Kosciuszko beyond
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The Snowy River near Suggan Buggan, in Victoria, 2008.
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Snowy River mouth at Marlo in flood, 2012.
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Exposed riverbed just south of the NSW/VIC border is a result of the reduction of the river's water flow by 99%.
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The Snowy River, at the small NSW town of Dalgety.
See also
In Spanish: Río Snowy para niños
