Rivers of Tasmania

This page discusses the rivers and hydrography of the state of Tasmania, Australia.

In the geography of Tasmania, the state is covered with a network of rivers and lake systems. As an island, all rivers eventually empty into the waters that surround Tasmania. There are four main river systems:[1]

  1. In the south, the Derwent flows from the Central Highlands past Hobart, to the sea at Storm Bay;
  2. In the west, the Gordon River takes the waters of Lake Gordon and Lake Pedder and is joined by the Franklin River before flowing into Macquarie Harbour;
  3. Flowing eastwards and to the south, the Huon River has its headwaters at Scotts Peak Dam on Lake Pedder, and reaches the sea in D'Entrecasteaux Channel; and
  4. Flowing from the north-east, the South Esk, the state's longest river, joins the North Esk at Launceston to create the Tamar.

Compared to the rest of Australia,[2] Tasmania has a very high proportion of wild or undisturbed rivers.[3][4]

Catchment areas

Major catchments of Tasmania are linked to the major rivers, the most notable being the Derwent. Catchments by region are:

South west region

West coast region

Major rivers

The following rivers are the longest river systems, by length.[1]

Longest rivers in Tasmania by length
(January 2008)
Order River name Length Region(s)
km mi
1South Esk252 157Midlands
2Derwent215 134Central Highlands
3Arthur189 117West Coast
4Gordon186 116Central Highlands; South-west; Western
5Huon169 105South-west
6Mersey158 98North-west
7Franklin129 80Central Highlands; West Coast
8North Esk97 60Northern
9Pieman38 24West Coast

River topography

Rivers that flow towards the Tasman Sea of the South Pacific Ocean

Rivers that flow towards the Southern Ocean

Rivers that flow north, towards Bass Strait

See also

References
  1. "1384.6 - Statistics - Tasmania, 2008". Bureau of Statistics. Australian Government. 3 January 2008. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
  2. "Identified Natural Rivers - National" (Map). Australia's Natural Lands and Rivers. Department of the Environment, Australian Government. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
  3. "Identified Natural Rivers - Tasmania" (Map). Australia's Natural Lands and Rivers. Department of the Environment, Australian Government. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
  4. "Undisturbed rivers - Tasmania" (Map). Australian Heritage Commission. Department of the Environment, Australian Government; Department of Primary Industries, Water and Energy and Forest Tasmania, Tasmanian Government. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
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