Te Waikoropupū Springs

Te Waikoropupū Springs
Location	Tākaka, Tasman District, New Zealand
Spring source	Wharepapa Arthur Marble Aquifer
Elevation	20m
Type	Karst spring
Discharge	13.4 m3/s

Te Waikoropupū Springs, also known as Pupu Springs and Waikaremumu Springs,^[1] are located in Golden Bay, in the Tasman District of the South Island of New Zealand. The springs are known for the clarity of the water, and the volume of water discharged. The springs are spiritually significant to Māori people. The springs feed Te Waikoropupū River, a short tributary of the Tākaka River.

The water discharged from the springs is the clearest that has ever been recorded from a karst spring.^[2] The horizontal visibility of the constantly 11.7 °C cool water in the springs has been measured at an average of 63 metres, and until 2011 was considered second only to sub-glacial water in the Antarctic.^[3] Since that year, however, the record holder for fresh water clarity is Blue Lake, also in Tasman District.^[4][5]

The source of the springs is an aquifer beneath the Tākaka Valley. The catchment that supplies the aquifer covers an area of 940 km² (360 sq mi), and rises to an elevation of 1,650 m (5,410 ft). The aquifer beneath the valley has three different types; the Takaka Unconfined Gravel Aquifer, Takaka Limestone Aquifer and Arthur Marble Aquifer. There are complex interactions between surface water and these aquifers, but the Arthur Marble Aquifer is the main source for Te Waikoropupū Springs.^[6]

The springs are notable for the volume of water discharged from the eight main vents. The mean outflow is 13.4 m³/s.^[2] The floor of the lake is covered with white sand. Waters expelled from some of the smaller vents carry the sand upward. These vents are known as the 'dancing sands', which for the few scuba divers who have secured permission to dive in the springs, is one of the highlights of underwater sightseeing.^[7]

The springs are considered as sacred by the local iwi,^[8] and have been registered as wāhi tapu with the Māori Heritage Council of Heritage New Zealand.^[9] Waikoropupū is the legendary home of the female taniwha Huriawa, one of the three main taniwha of Aotearoa. She is a diver of land and sea, travelling deep beneath the earth to clear blocked waterways. She is brave and wise and believed to still rest in the waters of Waikoropupū, when she is not away attending to business.^[10]

On signboards at the entrance to the springs, and in submissions seeking protection of the springs, iwi have stated:^[8]

The waters of Te Waikoropupū represent the lifeblood of Papatūānuku [earth] and the tears of Ranginui [sky], symbolising the link between past and present.

At the entrance to the walkway to the springs, the Department of Conservation has placed a sign:

"Te Waikoropupu Springs are a taonga (treasure) and wāhi tapu (a sacred place) for Māori, both locally and nationally. The legends of Te Waikoropupu are told in the stories of Huriawa, its taniwha (guardian spirit). In Māori tradition the Springs are waiora, the purest form of water which is the wairua (spiritual) and the physical source of life. The Springs provide water for healing, and in the past were a place of ceremonial blessings at times of birth and death and the leaving and returning of travellers."

In 2023 the Environment Court awarded the springs and their aquifer a Water Conservation Order (WCO), the highest legal protection.^[11][12][13] The WCO came into effect in October 2023.^[14] However, the Sixth National Government of New Zealand introduced the Fast-track Approvals Bill in March 2024 that would override WCOs if the legislation were to be passed as drafted.^[15]

40°50′52″S 172°46′10″E / 40.8477°S 172.7694°E / -40.8477; 172.7694

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Te Waikoropupū Springs.