The West Taieri Drainage Scheme drains part of the Lower Taieri Flood Protection Scheme – the area bounded by the Taieri River, Lake Waipori and the West Taieri Contour Channel. A small part of the scheme lies in the Henley Floodway.

The West Taieri area differs from the other drainage schemes in that water must be pumped out – gravity cannot be used to drain water out of the scheme. A significant portion of the scheme lies at or below 1m of sea level. There are pump stations at Waipori, Henley and Lake Ascog.