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The Ord River is a 320-kilometer-long river in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. It was...

The Ord River is a 320-kilometer-long river in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. It was named in honor of Harry Ord, Governor of Western Australia from 1877 to 1880. The headwaters of the Ord river are located below Mount Wells and initially flows east and around the edge of Purnululu National Park before heading North through Lake Argyle then passing west of Kununurra and discharging into the Indian Ocean in Cambridge Gulf. The river has 35 tributaries of which the five longest are Bow River, Nicholson River, Dunham River, Panton River and Negri River. The Ord River Irrigation Scheme (ORIS) was constructed on the river in 1963 and opened on June 30, 1972 by Prime Minister William McMahon. The scheme created Lake Argyle, which is Australia's largest dam, covering an area of 741 km². ORIS provides water for irrigation to over 117 km² of farmland and there are plans to extend the scheme to allow irrigation of 440 km² in the future. The dam also generates power for the local community of Kununurra. The Ord River Dam Hydro Scheme is a privately funded, owned and operated power system in the East Kimberley region of Western Australia. It consists of a new 36 MW hydro electric