Ashburton Lakes

Ashburton Lakes (Māori: Ō Tū Wharekai) is a region of high-country lakes and wetlands located in inland Canterbury in the South Island of New Zealand. The region is a glacial inter-montane basin between the Rangitata and Rakaia rivers. It includes multiple areas of protected conservation land collectively known as the Hakatere Conservation Park, and the lakes, tarns and wetlands provide habitat for nationally significant and threatened species. The region includes 12 lakes, the largest of which are Lake Heron and Lake Clearwater. Both of these lakes are protected nature reserves.

The region provides recreational opportunities including camping, sight-seeing, tramping and climbing, skiing, fishing and hunting. Ōtūwharekai / Ashburton Lakes is an area of cultural importance to the iwi Ngāi Tahu because it was a significant food-gathering area and was also on a main route for travel between Hakatere and the Rakaia trails to Te Tai Poutini.

In 2007, the Ashburton Lakes were included in a national wetland restoration programme known as Arawai Kākāriki. Monitoring of water quality in the lakes shows they are in "fair" or "poor" condition, as a result of nutrient-enrichment and sediment inflow. As of 2024, several of the lakes are at risk of deteriorating further into severe eutrophic states, changing from clear water with vegetation, to turbid algae-dominated water.