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Story: Geothermal energy

Geyser Valley in 1908

Geyser Valley was a spectacular attraction in the first part of the 20th century, as this 1908 map indicates, with tourists making regular trips to see the great Wairākei Geyser and Champagne Pool. These suffered as soon as the Wairākei power station began tapping underground fluids in 1958. Other springs soon disappeared, and by 2005 all that remained was steaming ground, renamed the Craters of the Moon.

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Alexander Turnbull Library

Reference: F-51616; F

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Carol Stewart, Geothermal energy – Effects on the environment, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/zoomify/5436/geyser-valley-in-1908 (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Carol Stewart, published 2 March 2009.