Lowendal Archipelago
| Lowendal Archipelago | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
||
| Waters | Indian Ocean | |
| Geographical location | 20 ° 39 ′ S , 115 ° 34 ′ E | |
|
||
| Number of islands | 34 | |
| Main island | Varanus Island | |
| Total land area | 1.60 km² | |
| Residents | uninhabited | |
The Lowendal Archipelago consists of 34 islands . It is located about 50 km off the coast of Western Australia in Australia , about 120 km from Onslow in the Pilbara region, about 7.5 km northeast of Barrow Island and 10 km south of the Montebello Islands .
geography
The archipelago belongs to the Ashburton Shire (within the Ashburton Ward) in the Pilbara region, and forms the northernmost landmass of the Ashburton Shire.
The largest island in the Lowendal Archipelago is Varanus (83 ha ), which is 2.5 km long and 600 m wide. Other islands are Abutilon (27 ha), Bridled (27 ha), Parakeelya ( Parkinsonia ) (10 ha) and Beacon (1.5 ha). These five largest islands in the archipelago take up around 93 percent of the total area of 160 hectares.
Map with all coordinates of the geography section : OSM
| island | Area ha |
Coordinates |
|---|---|---|
| Varanus Island | 83 | 20 ° 39 ′ 4 ″ S , 115 ° 34 ′ 26 ″ E |
| Abutilon Island | 27 | 20 ° 40 ′ 1 ″ S , 115 ° 34 ′ 50 ″ E |
| Bridled Island | 27 | 20 ° 38 ′ 19 ″ S , 115 ° 33 ′ 28 ″ E |
| Parakeelya Island (Parkinsonia) | 10 | 20 ° 37 ′ 52 ″ S , 115 ° 31 ′ 17 ″ E |
| Beacon Island | 1.5 | 20 ° 38 ′ 3 ″ S , 115 ° 34 ′ 18 ″ E |
environment
The islands of the group consist of limestone and have little vegetation because they are heavily karstified .
In the waters of the archipelago grow coral reefs , sea grass and algae . The islands are nature reserves where numerous colonies of birds nest.
Economic use
On Varanus Island there is a large industrial plant for gas liquefaction, which exploded in 2008 and was destroyed in the process. This resulted in Australia's gas supply being reduced to a third for months.
Within the archipelago is the Simpson oil field owned by Apache Northwest Pty Ltd. exploits. Oil tanks and pipelines lead to mainland Australia on Varanus Island . Ships can also be loaded offshore on Varanus Island. In the waters of the archipelago there are several drilling platforms and oil production platforms such as Harriet Alpha , which are located in the sea a few kilometers from the islands.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Information on birdlife.org . Retrieved September 21, 2010