Mackenzie Basin
The Mackenzie Basin (
The basin was named in the 1850s by and after James Mckenzie, a shepherd and would-be farmer of Scottish origin.[3] Mckenzie was captured for allegedly stealing sheep; he herded his flocks in what was then an area almost totally empty of any human habitation, though Māori previously lived there intermittently.[4] After his capture, the area was soon divided up amongst new sheep pasture stations in 1857.[5]
Geography
The basin extends approximately 100 kilometres (62 mi) north to south, and 40 kilometres (25 mi) east to west. The Southern Alps constitute its western edge. The Mackenzie Basin is located entirely within South Canterbury.
Using
The basin is drained by the Waitaki River. Prominent rivers crossing the Mackenzie Basin include the Ahuriri, the Hakataramea and the Tekapo Rivers. Lakes Ōhau, Pukaki, Alexandrina and Tekapo lie within the Mackenzie Basin, as do the artificial hydroelectric lakes of Ruataniwha, Benmore and Aviemore.
Settlement and activities
Sparsely populated, and with only four settlements (Lake Tekapo, population <500; Mount Cook Village, population <150; Twizel, population <1,000; and Omarama, population <400), the Mackenzie Country comprises an area of huge glacial lakes and snow-capped mountains, particularly favoured by tourists and skiers.
The Ōhau skifield near Omarama, and Roundhill and Mount Dobson Ski Areas at Lake Tekapo, are small commercial skifields popular amongst many living in Canterbury and Otago.
The Mackenzie Country is frequently utilised as the principal and second-unit location for television commercials, documentaries, and motion pictures, including much of Peter Jackson's epic The Lord of the Rings film trilogy and The Hobbit film trilogy.
International Dark Sky Reserve
Due to its clean, dry and dark sky, the Mackenzie Basin serves as an important area for New Zealand-based astronomy, with a number of related facilities located there, including the nation's premier astronomical observatory, the University of Canterbury's Mount John University Observatory, and several amateur observatories. Astronomy-related tourism is an increasing contributor to the area's economy, with more astro-tourism ventures in development near Lake Tekapo, Mount Cook village (planetarium) and Omarama.[6] Each June the annual mid winter star party is held at new moon on the Omarama airfield.
In June 2012, an area of 430,000 hectares (1,100,000 acres) including Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park and the Mackenzie Basin was declared the Aoraki Mackenzie International Dark Sky Reserve by the
Demographics
The statistical area of Mackenzie Lakes corresponds to the portion of the Mackenzie Basin within the Mackenzie District. It includes Mt Cook Village and Lake Tekapo, but not Twizel. Mackenzie Lakes covers 5,139.71 km2 (1,984.45 sq mi)[10] and had an estimated population of 1,390 as of June 2023,[11] with a population density of 0.27 people per km2.
Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
---|---|---|
2006 | 783 | — |
2013 | 882 | +1.72% |
2018 | 1,182 | +6.03% |
Source: [12] |
Before the 2023 census, Mackenzie Lakes had a smaller boundary, covering 5,134.25 km2 (1,982.35 sq mi).
Ethnicities were 71.6% European/Pākehā, 4.3% Māori, 2.0% Pasifika, 20.1% Asian, and 7.1% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.
The percentage of people born overseas was 43.4, compared with 27.1% nationally.
Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 55.6% had no religion, 31.0% were Christian, 1.8% were Hindu, 1.0% were Muslim, 2.8% were Buddhist and 2.3% had other religions.
Of those at least 15 years old, 279 (27.2%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 81 (7.9%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $36,500, compared with $31,800 nationally. 141 people (13.7%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 780 (76.0%) people were employed full-time, 117 (11.4%) were part-time, and 3 (0.3%) were unemployed.[12]
Environmental issues
This section needs additional citations for verification. (September 2022) |
The original vegetation cover prior to human settlement has been completely transformed in the basin and indeed most of the surrounding
The extensive network of canals for
The Mackenzie Basin is one of the areas where wilding conifers proliferate. These weed trees cover large areas sometimes to a very high density and therefore excluding native vegetation and reducing the amount of available pasture. Some areas have control measures in place to prevent the trees from spreading.
There is currently a high demand for water to irrigate the Mackenzie Basin, with 126 resource consents from 36 applicants before Environment Canterbury as of mid-2009. The water would be used to irrigate an area of 27,125 hectares (67,030 acres), but the schemes are opposed by many locals and the Department of Conservation for the potential ecological effects, and since it may clash with a proposed Mackenzie Basin Drylands Park.
References
- ^ "Kā Ara Tūpuna Te Manahura". ngaitahu.iwi.nz. Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
- ^ "Mackenzie Basin routes". Department of Conservation. Retrieved 4 February 2013.
- Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand. Archived from the originalon 17 May 2011. Retrieved 27 January 2011.
- ^ History of the Lake Tekapo Area (from the Lake Tekapo Tourism website. Accessed 2008-02-12.)
- ^ James Mckenzie (from the Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand website)
- ^ Edmund Hillary Alpine Centre Planetarium Archived 30 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine (from the Hermitage Hotel's website. Retrieved 2007-11-06.)
- ^ "Aoraki Mackenzie (New Zealand)". International Dark Sky Association. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
- ^ "New Zealand's Aoraki Mackenzie Named World's Largest International Dark Sky Reserve" (PDF). International Dark Sky Association. 9 June 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
- ^ Gibson, Jacqui (3 August 2021). "'There's drama Everywhere': Dark Sky adventure at Takapō". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
- ^ a b "ArcGIS Web Application". statsnz.maps.arcgis.com. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
- ^ "Population estimate tables - NZ.Stat". Statistics New Zealand. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
- ^ a b "Statistical area 1 dataset for 2018 Census". Statistics New Zealand. March 2020. Mackenzie Lakes (341500). 2018 Census place summary: Mackenzie Lakes
- ^ Department of Conservation - Black Stilt
- ^ Williams, David (26 May 2009). "Plan for 1080 drops in MacKenzie Basin". The Press. Retrieved 14 June 2009.
External links
- Aoraki Mt Cook Mackenzie District Council
- Twizel Te Manahuna area at the Department of Conservation
- Omarama Gliding Club
- List of local and national ski areas
- Observatories
- Mackenzie Guardians — advocacy group for protection of the Mackenzie Basin.
- Mackenzie Basin campaign — at Forest and Bird.
- Radiolive.co.nz: Ecological threats to The MacKenzie country