It is located in western Canterbury and is naturally a tributary of the Rakaia River,[1] but like the Harper River, it has had some of its flow diverted into Lake Coleridge as part of a hydroelectricity project.

This diversion boosted the output of the Coleridge Power Station and was established in 1977.

[2] An early proposal for the route of the Midland Line railway from Christchurch to Westland involved extending the Whitecliffs Branch to the West Coast via the Wilberforce River and Browning Pass / Nōti Raureka.

This was one of the proposals rejected in favour of a route via Arthur's Pass.

This article about a river in Canterbury, New Zealand is a stub.