Western Australia coast

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Rockingham Beach, a typical sandy beach in Western Australia near Rockingham

The coast of Western Australia is an important landmark of this Australian state. This is true in many ways. Western Australia was opened up from the coast by European settlers. Large oil and gas deposits are located on and off the coast . Most of the population lives in the coastal cities, where industry and port facilities are also located. The port facilities are not only used to supply the population, but also to export raw materials.

Most of the islands off the coast outside the Kimberley region are under nature protection and there are numerous marine protected areas in which the vulnerable fauna and flora are to be protected, which are threatened by the mining of the coastal raw materials. Fishing is also economically important. Tourism also takes place along the coastline.

The entire coastline of Western Australia borders the Indian Ocean . With a length of 12,889 kilometers, or 20,781 kilometers with islands, Western Australia has the longest coastline of all states and territories in Australia . It makes up about 36% of the entire coast of Australia (35% with islands).

Discovery story

Selection of expeditions around Australia
Local government map from an 1894 book on Western Australia

Aboriginal people have lived in the region for 40,000 years.

The west coast was first reached by Europeans in 1616 by the Dutchman Dirk Hartog near Shark Bay. In 1619 Frederick de Houtman came from the west south of Perth to the still unknown coast and followed it all along the western coast to the north to Shark Bay. Pieter Nuyts mapped the Australian south coast from Albany to the Eyre Peninsula in 1626/27 . In the 1640s, Abel Tasman investigated the waters south of Indonesia on behalf of the Dutch East India Company . In 1844 he sailed all along the north coast of the continent in search of the Torres Strait and exploring New Holland, as Australia was then called. At the end of 1696 Willem de Vlamingh's ships reached the Perth area, in 1791 George Vancouver sailed along the south coast, in 1792 Joseph Bruny d'Entrecasteaux . In 1801 the Baudin expedition reached Australia at Cape Leeuwin , inquired about the southwest, and sailed east along the south coast of Western Australia. The coast was completely mapped in 1803 by the expedition member Louis de Freycinet . Half a year after the French, Matthew Flinders landed in Western Australia and also sailed east along the south coast. During his circumnavigation of Australia in the following two years, Flinders kept a great distance to the coast of Western Australia in the north and west. Phillip Parker King explored the coasts of Australia on several expeditions from 1817 to 1822.

The first settlement of the coast took place in 1826 by the British in the area of ​​today's Albany . In 1827 Captain James Stirling returned from an expedition and gave the British King a positive report of the area around the Swan River . Not least in order to forestall attempts to colonize other nations, he was commissioned to found a new colony. In April 1829, Captain Charles Fremantle landed at the mouth of the river with his ship Challenger , followed by Captain James Stirling with his ship Parmelia in May . There they founded the Swan River Colony , named after the black swans that can be found here in large numbers. It later became Western Australia. In doing so, they displaced the indigenous people, the Aborigines.

geology

Shark Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage Site

Much of the coast consists of rocks and cliffs. Rocky coasts differ depending on the latitude. The rocks mainly made of granite or limestone , but sometimes also sandstone . Examples of rocky coastlines in Western Australia are Baxter Cliffs , limestone cliffs on Great Australian Bight , the sandstone Kimberley coast and the granite cliffs at Albany and Cape Naturaliste .

The coastal landscapes of Western Australia are characterized by huge sedimentation basins and cratons that extend far into the ocean. These geological conditions are reflected on the coasts, especially in the form of sandy beaches, cliffs and other typical coastal landscapes. These are (clockwise) the Euclabecken at Eucla, Yilgarnkraton at Point Malcolm, Bremer pool at Point D'Entrecasteaux, Perth Basin in Augusta, Carnarvon Basin at Cape Preston, Pilbarakraton at Cape Preston, Canning Basin in Port Hedland, Kimberleybecken before the Kimberley Coast and Bonapartebecken on Cambridge Gulf .

Coastal landscapes

The fluctuating sea level creates long-term structures such as tombolos or parabolic dunes . Sediments are pushed inland. In some cases on the state's south coast, this process has included bays or river deltas, creating estuaries such as Hardy Inlet near Augusta , lagoons such as Wilson Inlet (see Nullaki Peninsula ), or lakes such as Lake Clifton . The accumulation of sediments on the Gascoyne Coast led to the formation of large farmlands .

Sandy beaches make up much of the coast of Western Australia. Some of the beaches are reflective beaches, steep beaches on the open water, on which waves are reflected, such as Goode Beach near Albany. Dissipatives are flatter and arise when the waves are over two meters high. The water is shallower there. An example of a dissipative beach is Yokinup Beach near Perth.

With more than 200 kilometers, the Eighty Mile Beach in the northwest of the state is the longest sandy beach in Western Australia. At the village of Derby in King Sound , the largest tidal range in Western Australia and Australia is reached at 11.6 meters .

Golf

In Australia, a large section of the sea into the mainland is known as the Gulf ( German : Golf). In Western Australia this is the

Sounds

In Australia, sounds are inlets, straits or straits that extend far into the country. In Western Australia this is the

Offshore reefs

The offshore reefs of Western Australia are mostly limestone. They are connected as a chain and extend over almost the entire coast of Western Australia. They mark the former coasts and are seldom more than ten kilometers from today's coast. These reefs are sometimes connected to the mainland with raffles, such as Point Peron near Rockingham or Robert Point near Mandurah .

They are an important part of Western Australia's marine landscape because of their high biological productivity and because they carry sediments to the coast through erosion and biological processes. They also protect parts of the coast from waves.

Islands

There are around 2,700 islands off the coast of Western Australia, only 30% of which are named. Western Australia has 45% of all of Australia's islands. The majority of the islands are in the Kimberley region to the north. The largest island is Dirk Hartog Island with 68,000 hectares. The islands are mostly found in archipelagos . The largest are the Buccaneer Archipelago and the Bonaparte Archipelago with about 800 and 200 islands respectively in the north and the Recherche Archipelago with 235 islands in the south of the state. None of the islands are privately owned, but some have been used for herding grazing. Nuclear tests were carried out by the United Kingdom on the Montebello Islands . As a result, these cannot be settled for centuries. Most of the islands outside the Kimberley region are protected.

Coral reefs

The coral reefs of Western Australia are mainly fringing reefs , such as the Ningaloo Reef on the Gascoyne Coast . In the north of the state, the reefs are mostly on islands far from the coast, such as the Rowley Shoals or Seringapatam Reef . They are mostly elliptical.

Ningaloo Reef is Western Australia's only coral reef near the coast. At 260 kilometers, it is Australia's longest fringing reef. The reasons for the proximity are the narrow shelf , the dryness of the adjacent coast and the Leeuwin Current , which brings warm clear water.

Marine protected areas

There are numerous marine reserves on the coast of Western Australia where the flora and fauna are particularly protected. The two most important are the protected areas with the rank of UNESCO World Heritage. These are the Ningaloo Marine Park and Shark Bay Marine National Park . In addition, there are, for example, the Barrow Island Marine Park , Jurien Bay Marine Park , Mermaid Reef Marine National Nature Reserve , Marmion Marine Park , Montebello Islands Marine Park , Ngari Capes Marine Park , Scott Reef , Rowley Shoals Marine Park , Shoalwater Islands Marine Park Die The waters off the coast are relatively shallow compared to those on the east coast of Australia. The south coast has almost no shelf. The south coast is mainly characterized by a chain of gorges, which runs past the Margaret River Peninsula to Shark Bay . From the Vlaming Head peninsula there are significantly more shelves, many valleys and basins, but also plateaus.

Marine flora and fauna

A rich marine fauna is found along the coast and on the islands. These include dolphins and whales , dugongs , reef sharks , rays and the largest fish on earth, the whale shark . The greatest biodiversity of marine life is found at Ningaloo Reef, Shark Bay and off Rottnest Island .

The world's largest occurrence of seaweed in Shark Bay is significant .

Economic use

There are four major economic benefits of the Western Australia coast. Ports , mining of mineral resources such as natural gas, oil and iron deposits, fishing (off the coast near Broome is a center of Australian pearl farming ) and tourism .

Distribution of the population of Western Australia, 2006

The population centers of Western Australia are limited almost exclusively to its coast due to the inhospitable climate and economic benefits. Nine of the ten largest cities in Western Australia have direct sea access. That is why the coast also plays an important role in the country's economy.

Natural resources

In particular, the economic use of the coastal areas has consequences for the nature and culture of the Aborigines .

The Greater Gorgon gas field around Barrow Island

Large natural gas and oil reserves are located off the coast of Western Australia in the Bonaparte, Bowie, Cornavaron and Perth Basins. For example, about 50 kilometers off the coast under the Lowendal Archipelago, the natural gas produced is not only exported, but it is also used to supply Western Australia with energy. When a gas pipeline broke on Varanus Island in June 2008 and the gas processing plant on the island was subsequently largely destroyed by fire, the gas crisis broke out in Western Australia . This led to an energy supply crisis in Western Australia that did not end until December 2008. About 130 kilometers off the coast, at a depth of 200 meters, is one of the largest oil and gas reserves in the world, which is being mined in the so-called Gorgon gas project . It is one of the four major LNG gas projects in Australia.

Crude oil was found on Barrow Island in the 1950s and is extracted from more than 400 oil wells. Australia's largest oil-producing region is located on this island.

On Murujuga , a peninsula with an estimated 600,000 to over 1,000,000 petroglyphs (rock art) and menhirs that are up to 30,000 years old, it is estimated that around 25 percent of the stone carvings have been made as a result of measures to prepare and carry out the industrial use is irretrievably destroyed by petrochemical industrial plants. Only since 2008, this Kultürgüter in are UNESCO - World Heritage listed.

Loading of iron ore at Dampier

The mining of iron ore mining in Western Australia found mainly in the Pilbara region instead and the ore is transported by railways to ports. As a result of this use, large coastal areas have been and are being built on and changed. But there was also iron ore mining on Cocktatoo Island off the coast, which has since been stopped for reasons of profitability. The island landscape was left completely changed.

Ports

Virtually every major city has a port. In Western Australia, port administrations are set up under the Port Authorities Act 1999 which act as corporatized bodies and report their directors directly to the Minister of Transport. You are both the owner and strategist of the port. As of 2014 there are five port authorities in Western Australia.

There are nine other ports that are not assigned to any port authority. These are mostly managed by companies

In 2018, 9,609 ships docked at these ports. Over 740 million tons were shipped through ports of the Port Authorities from 2017 to 2018 and traded worth AU $ 130 billion . In total, almost a billion tons of goods were loaded in Western Australia. That is about 28% of the value of all Australia's exports, and as much as 62% of the weight of all exports. The recipients of the exports are mainly in East Asia, with the top importers in the order of China , Japan , South Korea , Hong Kong and Singapore . The most important export goods are iron ore , natural gas and gold , but also food , aluminum and petroleum . In addition, 119 cruise ships with around 130 thousand passengers have docked in the ports .

tourism

Tourism is limited in Western Australia primarily on the south coast, the Ningaloo Reef, the stromatolites and beach Monkey Mia in UNESCO - World Heritage Shark Bay and Cable Beach in Broome. Popular destinations in the south are the beaches near Esperance, the Torndirrup National Park near Albany, Greens Pool near Denmark and the longest wooden walkway in the world in Busselton .

Wrecks

Because of the severe conditions the coast offers, there are around 1650 shipwrecks off the Western Australian coast. The best known are probably those of the Batavia , the SS Xanttho and the Zuytdorp .

Subdivisions of coastal areas

The coast of Western Australia is divided into different aspects such as waters and weather forecasts.

IMCRA

In the latest version 4.0 of the Integrated Marine and Coastal Regionalization of Australia (IMCRA), the coastal waters of Western Australia are divided into 14 provincial bioregions within Australia's exclusive economic zone , seven of which are directly on the coast. They are classified into four categories: Tropical waters , Subtropical waters , Transition and Warm temperate waters .

The following Provincial Bioregions are located in the waters for Western Australia. The numbers are the numbering in the IMCRA.

  • Tropical waters
    • 2, Timor Province
    • 4, Northwest Province
    • 27, Northwest IMCRA Province
  • Subtropical waters
    • 6, Central Western Province
    • 29, Central Western IMCRA Province
  • Transition
    • 3, Northwest Transition
    • 5, Central Western Transition
    • 7, Southwest Transition
    • 26, Northwest IMCRA Transition
    • 28, Central Western IMCRA Transition
    • 30, Southwest IMCRA Transition
    • 32, Great Australian Bight IMRA Transition
  • Warm temperate waters
    • 8, Southern Province
    • 31, Southwest IMCRA Province

Bureau of Meteorology

The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) divides the coast of Western Australia into 15 so-called forecast areas , in which daily wind strength in knots , wave height in meters, swell in meters and weather is given.

The following forecast areas are used by the BOM:

  • North Kimberley Coast
  • West Kimberley Coast
  • Pilbara Coast East
  • Pilbara Coast West
  • Ningaloo Coast
  • Gascoyne Coast
  • Geraldton Coast
  • Lancelin Coast
  • Perth Coast
  • Perth Local Waters
  • Bunbury Geographe Coast
  • Leeuwin Coast
  • Albany Coast
  • Esperance Coast
  • Eucla Coast

Web links

Commons : Coast of Western Australia  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ CASTline Lengths Geoscience Australia. Last accessed on February 22, 2019. Archived version from January 22, 2011.
  2. ^ Chart of Western Australian coastline National Library of Australia . Last accessed on February 22, 2019
  3. ^ A Brief History of Albany. In: amazingalbany.com.au. Albany City Council, September 13, 2016, accessed March 2, 2019 .
  4. ^ Coastal Planning and Development Manual Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage (.pdf), (English). Last accessed on February 22, 2019.
  5. ↑ Proposed Eighty Mile Beach marine Park Department of Environment and Conservation (.pdf), (English). Last accessed on February 22, 2019.
  6. ^ King of all tides ABC Science. Published May 1, 2002. Last accessed February 22, 2019.
  7. ^ Western Australia - The State of Islands Department of Environment and Conservation, (English). Last accessed on February 23, 2019.
  8. ↑ Geomorphic Features Australian Marine Parks (.pdf), (English). Last accessed on February 23, 2019.
  9. ^ Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism: Energy in Australia 2012 , p. 10. (PDF), accessed March 3, 2019
  10. ^ Port Authorities Department of Transport, (English). Last accessed on February 23, 2019.
  11. ↑ WA Ports Infographic Department of Transport, (English). Last accessed on February 23, 2019.
  12. ^ Shipwrecks Database Western Australian Museum, English. Last accessed on February 23, 2019.
  13. ↑ Map 1: IMCRA 4.0 Provincial Bioregions Department of the Environment and Heritage (.pdf), (English). Last accessed on February 22, 2019
  14. ^ Western Australian Forecast Areas Map Bureau of Meteorology . Last accessed on February 22, 2019.