| Tooma River | |
|---|---|
Overlooking Tooma River from Ardenside Road, Tooma from coords 35,58,43 S & 148,02,50 E |
|
| Origin | Snowy Mountains |
| Mouth | confluence with the Murray River |
| Basin countries | Australia |
The Tooma River is a river in the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, Australia.
The Tooma River starts near Mount Jagungal in the Snowy Mountains and drains part of the western side of the range. It flows generally north, then west, before turning south and joining the Murray River near the village of Tooma.
The Tooma River has a total length of about 50 km, but a rather large seasonal flow as it drains part of the snowmelt from the Snowy Mountains.
The Tooma Reservoir, part of the Snowy Mountains Scheme, captures water in the headwaters of the Tooma River, and diverts the water to the Tumut Pondage on the Tumut River, where the water can then be used to generate electricity in the sequence of hydro-electric power stations along the length of the Tumut River.
This diversion results in a transfer of water from the Murray River catchment (which includes the Tooma River), to the Murrumbidgee River catchment (which includes the Tumut River). However, a compensating opposite transfer from the Murrumbidgee to the Murray basins is made using a different part of the Snowy Mountains Scheme.