Pioneer River
| Pioneer | |
| River | |
 The Pioneer River weaves through Mackay
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| Country | Australia |
|---|---|
| State | Queensland |
| Region | North Queensland |
| Tributaries | |
| - left | Stockyard Creek (Queensland), Blacks Creek (Queensland), Bustard Creek, Cattle Creek (Queensland), McGregor Creek, Devereux Creek, Balnagowan Creek, Fursden Creek, Vines Creek |
| - right | Black Waterhole Creek |
| City | Mackay |
| Source | Pinnacle Ranges, Pioneer Valley, Eungella Dam |
| - location | below Mount McBryde near Pinevale |
| - elevation | 75 m (246 ft) |
| - coordinates | 21°18′58″S 148°51′01″E / 21.31611°S 148.85028°E |
| Mouth | Coral Sea |
| - location | East Mackay |
| - elevation | 0 m (0 ft) |
| - coordinates | 21°09′13″S 149°13′16″E / 21.15361°S 149.22111°ECoordinates: 21°09′13″S 149°13′16″E / 21.15361°S 149.22111°E |
| Length | 120 km (75 mi) |
| Basin | 1,550 km2 (598 sq mi) |
| Reservoirs | Teemburra Dam, Dumbleton Weir, Mirani Weir and Marian Weir |
 Location of Pioneer River river mouth in Queensland
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The Pioneer River is a river located in North Queensland, Australia. The 120-kilometre (75 mi) long river flows through the city of Mackay.
Captain John Mackay and his party were the first Europeans to discover the river in 1860. Mackay named it Mackay River after his father, George Mackay of Uralla in New South Wales. However, when George Bowen, the Governor of Queensland, visited on the HMS Pioneer in October 1862, the name was changed to Pioneer River.
The river rises in the Pinnacle Ranges below Mount McBryde near Pinevale, 63 kilometres (39 mi) southwest of Mackay. The river flows in a northerly direction into the Pioneer Valley, one of Australia's richest sugar cane areas. At Mirani the river flows to the east before reaching its mouth and emptying into the Coral Sea at Mackay. The river is joined by ten tributaries including Cattle Creek, with the other major tributary being Blacks Creek. The river is too shallow for navigation, drying sandbanks encountered only a few kilometres upstream of the river mouth. During king tides the Pioneer River may experience a tidal range of up to 6.4 metres (21 ft).
The catchment covers an area of 1,550 square kilometres (600 sq mi). Upper parts of the catchment are too steep for agriculture and remain covered by rainforests and open woodlands. In 2002, a Queensland Government report found that the local sugar industry had allowed five pesticides to enter the river, exceeding acceptable standards.
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