Western Australia is Australia's
largest state in area, covering the western third of the
mainland, and is bordered by South Australia and the Northern
Territory. It is, after the Sakha Republic in Russia, the
second largest subnational entity (statoid) in the world.
The capital city, Perth, is the most isolated city of over
one million people in the world, being 2,104 km (1307 miles)
from Adelaide. Perth is closer to Jakarta, Indonesia (3,007
km/1,868 miles) than it is to Sydney (3,284 km/2,041 miles).
The people
of Western Australia, West Australians or Western Australians,
are often colloquially referred to as sandgropers because
of the insect found on sand dunes around Perth.
Geography
Main article: Geography of Western Australia
The bulk of Western Australia consists of the extremely
old Yilgarn craton and Pilbara craton which merged with
the Deccan of India, Madagascar and the Karoo and Zimbabwe
cratons of South Africa, in the Archean Eon to form Ur,
one of the oldest Supercontinents on Earth (3,200-3,000
million years ago). Because the only mountain-building since
then has been of the Stirling Range with the rifting from
Antarctica, the land is extremely eroded and ancient, with
no part of the State today above 1,245 metres (4,085 ft)
AHD (at Mount Meharry in the Hamersley Range of the Pilbara
region). Most parts of the State form a low plateau with
an average elevation of about 400 metres (1,200 ft), very
low relief, and no surface runoff. This descends relatively
sharply to the coastal plains, in some cases forming a sharp
escarpment (as with the Darling Range/Darling Scarp near
Perth).
The extreme
age of the landscape has meant that the soils are remarkably
infertile and frequently laterised. Even soils derived from
granitic bedrock contain an order of magnitude less available
phosphorus and only half as much nitrogen as soils in comparable
climates in other continents. Soils derived from extensive
sandplains or ironstone are even less fertile, being even
more devoid of soluble phosphate and also deficient in zinc,
copper, molybdenum and sometimes potassium and calcium.
Western Australian cities, towns, settlements and road networkThe
infertility of most of the soils has required heavy inputs
of chemical fertilisers, particularly superphosphate, insecticides
and herbicides, which, with the ensuing damage to invertebrate
and bacterial populations, and compaction of soils through
heavy machinery and hoofed mammals has done great damage
to the fragile soils. The massive clearing of the land has
not only damaged habitats for native flora and fauna, making
the South West region of the state that with the greatest
percentage of flora and fauna rare, threatened or endangered
in Australia, and one of the biodiversity "hot spots"
in the world, it has also led to major problems with dryland
salinity and the loss of fresh water.
The southwest
coastal area is relatively temperate and was originally
heavily forested, including large stands of the karri, one
of the tallest trees in the world. This agricultural region
of Western Australia is in the top nine terrestrial habitats
for terrestrial biodiversity with a higher proportion of
endemic species than most other equivalent regions, and
thanks to the offshore Leeuwin Current, numbers in the top
six regions for marine biodiversity, containing the most
southerly coral reefs in the world. Annual rainfall varies
from 300 millimetres (12 in) at the edge of the Wheatbelt
region to 1,400 millimetres (55 inches) in the wettest areas
near Northcliffe, but in the months of November to March
evaporation exceeds rainfall and it is generally very dry.
Plants must be adapted to this as well as the extreme poverty
of all soils. A major reduction in rainfall has been observed,
with a greater number of rainfall events in the summer months
(see Southwest corner of Western Australia). This may be
due to Climate change.
The central
four-fifths of the State is semi-arid or desert, and is
lightly inhabited with the only significant activity being
mining. Annual rainfall here averages about 200 to 250 millimetres
(8–10 in) but is very erratic because most of it is
produced in torrential falls by cyclones in the summer months
that are often unreliable.
An exception
to this is the northern tropical regions. The Kimberley
has an extremely hot monsoonal climate with average annual
rainfall ranging from 500 to 1,500 millimetres (20–60
in), but there is a very long almost rainless season from
April to November. Almost all (85%) of the State's runoff
occurs in the Kimberley, but because it occurs in violent
floods and the insurmountable poverty of the generally shallow
soils, the only development has taken place along the Ord
River with an ambitious scheme that has only recently begun
to pay off.
Snow is only
a regular occurrence on the Stirling Range near Albany,
as it is the only mountain range far enough south and with
sufficient elevation. More rarely, snow can fall on the
Porongurup Range. Snow outside these areas is a major event;
it usually occurs in hilly areas of southwestern Australia.
The most widespread low-level snow occurred on 26 June 1956
when snow was reported in the Perth hills, as far north
as Wongan Hills and as far east as Salmon Gums. However,
even in the Stirling Range, snowfalls rarely exceed 5 cm
(2 in) and rarely settle for more than one day.
Highest maximum
temperature: 50.5 °C (122.9 °F), Mardie, Pilbara,
61.6 kilometres (38.3 mi) from Barrow Island, 19 February
1998
Lowest minimum
temperature: -6.7 °C (19.9 °F), Booylgoo Springs,
187.3 kilometres (116.4 mi) from Meekatharra, 12 July 1969
History
Main article: History of Western Australia
Main article: Aboriginal History of Western Australia
John Forrest was the first Premier of Western AustraliaThe
first inhabitants of Australia arrived from the north approximately
40,000 to 60,000 years ago. Over thousands of years they
eventually spread across the whole landmass. These Indigenous
Australians were well established throughout Western Australia
by the time European ships started accidentally arriving
en-route to Batavia (now Jakarta) in the early seventeenth
century.
The first European
to visit Western Australia was a Dutch explorer, Dirk Hartog
who on 26 October 1616 landed at (what is now known as)
Cape Inscription, Dirk Hartog Island. For the rest of the
17th century there were many other Dutch travellers who
also, usually unintentionally, encountered the coast. By
the late 1700s, British and French sailors had also begun
to explore the Western Australian coast.
The origins
of the present state began with the establishment of a British
settlement at King George Sound in 1826 (later named Albany
from 1832). The settlement was founded in response to concern
about the possibility of a French colony being established
on the coast of Western Australia.
In 1829, the
Swan River Colony was established on the Swan River by Captain
James Stirling. By 1832, the British settler population
of the colony had reached around 1,500. The two separate
townsites of the colony developed slowly into the port city
of Fremantle and the Western Australian capital city Perth.
Population
growth was very slow until significant discoveries of gold
were made in the 1890s around Kalgoorlie.
In 1887, a
new constitution including the right of self-governance
was drafted and in 1890, the Act granting self-government
for the colony was passed by the British House of Commons
and assented to by Queen Victoria.
The colony
eventually became a state of Australia on 1 January 1901.
People
Western Australia's capital city, Perth, on the Swan River,
home to three quarters of the state's populationThe first
inhabitants of what is now Western Australia were Indigenous
Australians, from a wide variety of language and kin groups
— for example, the Nyungah in the south west, the
Wongai in the central Desert, the Malkana in Shark Bay.
These groups retain significant presences throughout the
state and, in some areas — e.g., the Kimberley —
continue to form the majority of the local population.
Europeans began
to settle permanently in 1826 when Albany was founded by
the British to forestall French claims to the western third
of the continent. Perth was founded as the Swan River Colony
in 1829 by British and Irish settlers, though the outpost
languished, eventually requesting convict labour to augment
its population. Even with this, Western Australia did not
receive significant flows of migrants from Britain, Ireland
or elsewhere in the British Empire until the early twentieth
century when local projects — such as the Group Settlement
Scheme of the 1920s which encouraged farmers to settle the
south west — increased awareness of Australia's western
third as a destination for colonists. Western Australia
also benefitted demographically from a mining boom in the
Goldfields underpinned by interstate migration from the
1890s onward.
Led by migrants
from the British Isles, Western Australia's population developed
exponentially during the twentieth century, though at a
much slower pace than other parts of Australia. Nonetheless,
like the eastern states, Western Australia received large
numbers of Italians, Yugoslavs and Greeks after the Second
World War. Despite this, settlers from Britain have contributed
the greatest number of migrants to this day, and Western
Australia — particularly Perth — has the highest
proportion of British-born of any state: 10.9 per cent in
2001, compared to a national average of 5.3 per cent. This
group is heavily concentrated in certain parts of the metropolitan
area such as Joondalup where they account for a quarter
of the population.
In terms of
ethnic groups, 2001 census data reveal that Western Australia
is highly diverse: the largest single group was those reporting
English ancestry or ethnicity, accounting for 733,783 responses
(32.7 per cent), followed by "Australian" (presumably
Anglo-Celtic) with 624,259 (27.8 per cent), Irish with 171,667
(7.6 per cent), Italian with 96,721 (4.3 per cent), Scottish
with 62,781 (2.8 per cent), German with 51,672 (2.3 per
cent) and Chinese with 48,894 responses (2.2 per cent).
There were 58,496 Indigenous Australians in Western Australia
in 2001, forming 3.1 per cent of the population.
In terms of
birthplace, 32.9 per cent of the population were born overseas
— far higher than the Australian average of 23.1 per
cent. 10.9 per cent of West Australians were born in Britain,
2.4 per cent were born in New Zealand and 1.2 per cent were
born in Italy.
Perth's metropolitan
area had an estimated population of 1.50 million in 2006
which was almost three quarters of the state's population.
The Perth metropolitan area has grown to include the port
of Fremantle and the town of Rockingham. Other important
or well-known centres include Mandurah (pop. 54,000), Bunbury,
Kalgoorlie, Albany, Geraldton, Port Hedland and Broome,
but these are all relatively small cities or towns.
Economy
Kalgoorlie Super Pit, Australia's largest open-cut gold
mineWestern Australia has the highest per capita output
of any Australian state, with an economy that has been largely
based on the extraction and export of mining and petroleum
commodities, especially, iron, alumina, natural gas, nickel
and gold. Western Australia is a leading alumina extractor,
producing more than 20% of the world's alumina. It is also
the world's third-largest iron ore producer, producing around
15% of the world's total iron ore output. Western Australia
also extracts up to 75% of Australia's 240 tonnes of gold.
Diamonds are extracted at Argyle diamond mine in the North
West. Coal is mined at Collie and used for domestic power
production.
Western Australia's
economy recently has benefited from an unprecedented amount
of foreign demand for resources, particularly from China.
This has contributed to strong GSP growth. Perth has emerged
as a significant administration centre for businesses in
the mineral and oil and gas industries.
Agricultural
exports are also important (amounting to approximately 3%
of GSP), especially wheat, barley and sheep products such
as wool and meat. Approximately 50% of Australia's live
cattle exports come from WA. In recent years, tourism has
grown in importance, with the majority of visitors coming
from the United Kingdom and Ireland, Singapore, Japan and
Malaysia.
Western Australia,
with about 10% of Australia's population, has historically
generated approximately 30% of Australia's export revenues,
however the recent commodities boom has pushed this figure
to now exceed 40%. The State now generates more export income
than New South Wales and Victoria (Australia's two most
populous states) combined. High incomes, strong corporate
activity, lower unemployment, mineral revenue and a younger
population mean that Western Australia provides a significant
financial subsidy to all other states. The economic boom
in Western Australia is so strong that a significant labour
shortage has emerged. The state government has launched
an appeal for more people to move to the growing state at
www.gowestnow.com. Very high levels of job vacancies have
emerged and unless skilled workers can be found, the state
government fears that significant economic opportunities
may be lost.
This boom has
also caused a massive rise in property values. Average residential
property increased in value by over 40% in 2006, however
values have remained rather flat in 2007. Perth property
is now the second most valuable in Australia behind Sydney.
Large projects continue to fuel the economy and population
growth continues to push rental prices up.
Significant
refining and manufacturing industries are located within
the state and are continuing to grow strongly with the state's
booming economy. These include Liquified natural gas production
mainly for export to Asia, Petro chemicals and fertilizer
Production in the North West Shelf region. In September
2007, Hu Jintao, the President of China visited Western
Australia and committed to the purchase of AUD$45 Billion
worth of gas over a lengthy period. This is the largest
export contract Australia has ever had.
A major heavy
industrial area is located south of Perth at Kwinana. Oil
Refining is conducted here along with an ironplant owned
by Rio Tinto. Alumina and Nickel are also produced in Kwinana.
Shipbuilding is conducted at Austal yards in Henderson south
of Fremantle. Several heavy and light engineering and metal
fabrication factories are located in Perth catering for
the demands of the mining industry. Other light industries
include cement and building product manufacturing, flour
milling, food processing, animal feed production, automotive
body building, printing and boat building.
Several major
along with smaller specialised breweries are located mainly
in Perth including Swan Brewery at Canning Vale, Carlton
United Brewing at Mosman Bay others include Little Creatures
Brewery in Fremantle and Gage Roads Brewery also Fremantle.
Western Australia also has major wine producing regions
in the South West located in the Margaret River region and
Swan Valley. Several wineries produce wine for local consumption
and international export.
Western Australia
has a significant fishing industry that produces fish for
local consumption and foreign export including Western Rock
Lobsters, Prawns, Crabs, Shark and Tuna. Processing is conducted
along the west coast. Whaling ceased at Albany in 1978.
Perth is a
centre for banking and finance, and includes state head
offices for all major banks, Commonwealth, National Australia
Bank, Westpac and ANZ. It is also home to the Head Office
of Woodside Petroleum and has major offices for Rio Tinto,
BHP and Western Mining Corporation. Perth is Australia's
main centre for mining and oil and gas administration. Several
insurance companies have large offices in Perth including
AXA, Aviva, AMP and SGIO.
Hay Street, PerthPerth has the biggest retail sector in
the state with retail outlets being found mainly in Hay,
Murray and Wellington Streets. Several large shopping malls
are located in the suburbs at Garden City, Karrinyup, Morley
and Cannington. Department stores include Myer and David
Jones. Fremantle is also a retail centre catering for local
and tourist needs.
Retail trade
is tightly regulated and there are strict restrictions on
the hours that stores are allowed to open. Major stores
are restricted to open between 8:00am and 6:00 p.m. weekdays
except Thursdays in the suburbs where closing time is 9:00pm.
On Saturdays stores are open from 8:00 am to 5:00pm. A referendum
was held on 26 February 2005 on the issue of allowing weekday
trading to 9pm and 6 hours of trade on Sundays; the referendum
was defeated.
Exemptions
to this are granted for designated tourist precincts of
the Perth city centre, Fremantle and major regional centres:
these are allowed to trade on Sundays from 12:00pm until
5:00pm. The Perth City area has Friday night trading until
9:00pm.
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