The Murraylands is a geographical region of the Australian state of South Australia (SA); its name reflects that of the river running through it. Lying due east of South Australia's capital city, Adelaide, it extends from the eastern slopes of the Mount Lofty Ranges to the border with the state of Victoria, a distance of about 180 kilometres (110 miles). The north-to-south distance is about 130 kilometres (81 miles). The region's economy is centred on agriculture (especially vegetables, grains and livestock), and tourism, especially along its 200-kilometre (120-mile) frontage of the River Murray. [note 1]
The main towns in the region, in order of population at the 2016 census, are: [note 2]
These towns' populations totalled 24,600. [2] People living outside the towns approximated 8,000. [note 3]
The region has a Mediterranean climate, with warm to hot, dry summers and mild winters. Mean maximum temperatures range from 22.3 °C (72 °F) in the south to 23.6 °C (74 °F) in the north; minimums are from 8.8 °C (48 °F) to 8.8 °C (48 °F) respectively. [4]
The Murraylands region is long established in South Australia and the name is widely used by residents of the region and elsewhere in the state, but there is a multiplicity of names that refer to the geography in that part of the state. Local Government Areas and South Australian Government Regions continually change, and in the case of the Murraylands, its boundaries no longer correspond exactly with other types of divisions. The 2018 state electorate of Hammond had the nearest-equivalent borders. [5] The South Australian Government region of which it was part was Murray and Mallee, extending about 170 kilometres (110 miles) north of the Murraylands to include the Riverland region; and extending to the south of the Murraylands to The Coorong. [3] Of similar size to the Murray and Mallee region is Regional Development Australia's Murraylands and Riverland Region. [6] A generic term, applied to a larger area than the Murraylands, is Murray Mallee . Tourism regions are different again: the South Australian Tourism Commission includes the Murraylands with the lakes at the mouth of the Murray, and The Coorong, in an area that earned $148 million in 2018. [7] The area extends well into the state of Victoria, where it is known simply as The Mallee. [note 4]
The Murraylands economy is strongly reliant on primary industry. In 2014–15, primary production accounted for 41.6 per cent of the gross regional product in the SA Government's Murray and Mallee region. Within the Murraylands, the top three commodities were vegetables, grains and livestock. [11] [12] From 2001 to 2009 and 2017 to 2019, the Murraylands region was one of many regions in south-east Australia afflicted by severe drought, which significantly degraded the economy. [13] [14]
As of 2021 [update] , local government councils within the Murraylands were:
Recreational opportunities are abundant in the region. There are many sport facilities, reserves, parks, and trails for walking, cycling and horse riding. [15] Many are connected to the River Murray. A major government program has funded a Murray Coorong Trail initiative, which will eventually connect a range of loop trails and experiences beside or near the river for 250 kilometres (160 miles) from Cadell in the Riverland to Salt Creek in the Coorong National Park; as of 2021 [update] a 5 kilometres (3.1 miles) walking trail had been completed at Parnka Point in Coorong National Park and others were being constructed. [16]
Recreational fishing and watersports are especially popular. The Murray Bridge Rowing Club, founded in 1909, is one of South Australia's oldest rowing clubs [17] and has fostered many champions, including recent world champion and Olympic medal winner, James McRae; and Walter Pfeiffer, Walter Jarvis, Frank Cummings, Ted Thomas (rower), Herbert Graetz, William Sladden, Robert Cummings, Arthur Scott, and Alf Taeuber.
As of 2021 [update] :
At the north-west corner of the Murraylands is the River Murray International Dark Sky Reserve, an area of 3200 square kilometres (1200 square miles) centred on the Swan Reach Conservation Park – one of the darkest locations in the world. The darkness is enhanced by the dry climate and low humidity with long periods of clear skies all year round. Low population, freedom from major development, and supportive policies of the Mid Murray Council regarding artificial light and future development were also crucial in the reserve being established. [18]
Respect for the natural environment on which they depend is a strong characteristic of people in the area. The region has a number of national parks and conservation areas where bush walking, sightseeing, bird watching, camping, caravanning, 4-wheel driving and orienteering activities are welcome. They include: [19]
As of 2021 [update] , the Murraylands region had 47 educational establishments within and immediately outside its boundaries, as shown in the table.
Educational establishments | ||
---|---|---|
Pre-school | Primary | Secondary and TAFE* |
Morgan Preschool** | Morgan Primary School** | Swan Reach Area School |
Swan Reach and Area Kindergarten | Truro Primary School | Mannum Community College |
Mannum Kindergarten | Blanchetown Primary School | Murray Bridge High School |
Murray Bridge Preschool Kindergarten | Cambrai Area School** | Unity College, Murray Bridge |
Callington Kindergarten | Swan Reach Primary School | Tyndale Christian School, Murray Bridge |
Tailem Bend Kindergarten | Swan Reach Area School | St Joseph's School, Murray Bridge |
Meningie Kindergarten** | Palmer Primary School | Meningie Area School** |
Coonalpyn Kindergarten** | Mypolonga Primary School | Lameroo Regional Community School |
Tintinara Preschool** | Murray Bridge South Primary School | Murray Bridge TAFE |
Lameroo and District Kindergarten | Murray Bridge North Primary School | |
Pinnaroo Kindergarten | Fraser Park Primary School, Murray Bridge | |
Concordia Kindergarten | Murray Bridge State School | |
Callington Primary School | ||
Tailem Bend Primary School | ||
Meningie Area School** | ||
Salt Creek Primary School | ||
Coonalpyn Primary School | ||
Coomandook Area School | ||
Tintinara Area School** | ||
Lameroo Regional Community School | ||
Pinnaroo Primary School | ||
Karoonda Area School | ||
Mannum Community College Junior School | ||
Tyndale Christian School, Murray Bridge | ||
St Joseph's School, Murray Bridge | ||
Unity College Junior School, Murray Bridge | ||
* TAFE: Technical and further education college. ** Located just outside the formal Murraylands boundary. | ||
Tailem Bend is a rural town in South Australia, 85 kilometres south-east of the state capital of Adelaide. It is located on the lower reaches of the River Murray, near where the river flows into Lake Alexandrina. It is linear in layout since it is constrained by river cliffs on its western side and the Adelaide–Melbourne railway line is dominant on its eastern side. The town grew and consolidated through being a large railway centre between the 1890s and 1990s; now it continues to service regional rural communities. In the 2021 census, Tailem Bend and the surrounding area had a population of 1,705.
The Division of Barker is an Australian electoral division in the south-east of South Australia. The division was established on 2 October 1903, when South Australia's original single multi-member division was split into seven single-member divisions. It is named for Captain Collet Barker, a British military officer and early explorer, prior to the British Settlement of South Australia, of the southern Mount Lofty Ranges, Fleurieu Peninsula and the region at the mouth of the Murray River near the Coorong where he tragically lost his life in 1831 whilst on active duty after successfully solo swimming the channel of water and went Compass in hand over a sandhill.
Murray Bridge is a city in the Australian state of South Australia, located 78 kilometres (48 mi) east-southeast of the state's capital city, Adelaide, and 77 kilometres (48 mi) north of the town of Meningie.
The Mid Murray Council is a local government area in South Australia in the Murray and Mallee region of South Australia. The council spans the area from the Riverland through the Murraylands to the eastern slopes of the Mount Lofty Ranges. It includes 220 km of the Murray River. The council seat is at Mannum; it also maintains secondary offices at Cambrai and Morgan.
The Murray Mallee is a grain-growing and sheep-farming area in the east of the Australian state of South Australia. The name is not formally designated but is widely used to refer to an area of approximately 20,000 square kilometres bounded by the River Murray on its northern and western sides, the Victorian border on its eastern side, and up to about 50 kilometres south of the Mallee Highway.
The Riverland is a region of South Australia. It covers an area of 9,386 square kilometres (3,624 sq mi) along the River Murray from where it flows into South Australia from New South Wales and Victoria downstream to Blanchetown. The major town centres are Renmark, Berri, Loxton, Waikerie, Barmera and Monash, and many minor townships. The population is approximately 35,000 people.
Loxton is a town on the south bank of the River Murray in the Riverland region of South Australia. It is located on the lands of the Erawirung people who occupied the area before the arrival of Europeans.
Jabuk is a locality in the Australian state of South Australia located about 142 kilometres (88 mi) south-east of the state capital of Adelaide and respectively about 78 kilometres (48 mi) west and 58 kilometres (36 mi) east of the municipal seats of Pinnaroo and Tailem Bend.
Paringa is a small town in the Riverland of South Australia, 17 kilometres from the border with Victoria. It is known for its vineyards and almond, citrus and stone fruit orchards. Its main feature is a six-span bridge that crosses the River Murray. One of the spans can be raised to allow houseboats and paddle-steamers to pass underneath.
The Mallee Football League (MFL) was an Australian rules football competition in South Australia. The league comprised teams located in south eastern South Australia and one team (Murrayville) located in western Victoria.
The River Murray Football League is an Australian rules football competition based in the Murray Bridge region of South Australia, Australia. It is an affiliated member of the South Australian National Football League.
The Border Times, based in Pinnaroo, is the local newspaper of the Southern Mallee region of South Australia since 1911. Published weekly, it focuses on local news, sports and weather.
Yumali is a town in South Australia 162 km southeast of Adelaide on the Dukes Highway (A8). Yumali belongs to The Coorong District Council and is in the State electorate of Hammond and the Federal electorate of Barker. Yumali is in the County of Buccleuch.
Coorong District Council is a local government area in South Australia located between the River Murray and the Limestone Coast region. The district covers mostly rural areas with small townships, as well as part of the Coorong National Park.
The Loxton railway line is a closed railway line in the northern Murray Mallee region of South Australia. It ran north-east from Tailem Bend to grain silos near Loxton.
The Barmera railway line was the second railway built to develop the Murray Mallee region of South Australia, in 1913. It followed the success of the Pinnaroo railway line in 1906. Both lines branched east from Tailem Bend to the north of the main Melbourne–Adelaide railway. The Brown's Well line was the more northerly, and extended into country which had not been developed much before the railway, partly due to the absence of any viable transport route for produce. The original terminus of the Brown's Well railway was at Meribah, not far from the Victorian border.
In South Australia, one of the states of Australia, there are many areas which are commonly known by regional names. Regions are areas that share similar characteristics. These characteristics may be natural such as the Murray River, the coastline, desert or mountains. Alternatively, the characteristics may be cultural, such as common land use. South Australia is divided by numerous sets of regional boundaries, based on different characteristics. In many cases boundaries defined by different agencies are coterminous.
Bowhill is a locality in South Australia. A settlement is located inside a bend on the left (eastern/southern) bank of the Murray River between Mannum and Swan Reach. It is predominantly shacks built facing the river bank. The settlement is in the Mid Murray Council area, but most of the locality is located away from the river and within the District Council of Karoonda East Murray, including the Lowan Conservation Park.
Elwomple is a locality in The Coorong District Council in the South Australian Murray Mallee, southeast of Tailem Bend. The northwest corner is the junction of the Mallee Highway which forms the northern boundary of Elwomple, and the Dukes Highway which forms the southwestern boundary. The Bend Motorsport Park was developed in Elwomple adjacent to this junction. In September 2017, before the facility opened, the boundary between Tailem Bend and Elwomple was adjusted so that The Bend Motorsport Park was officially in Tailem Bend, not Elwomple.