Serpentine River | |
---|---|
Location | |
Country | Australia |
Physical characteristics | |
Source | |
• location | Bowerling Hill |
• elevation | 313 metres (1,027 ft) [1] |
Mouth | |
• location | Peel Inlet |
• elevation | sea level |
Length | 111 kilometres (69 mi) |
The Serpentine River is a river in the South West region of Western Australia. It is known as Waangaamaap Bilya to the Indigenous Bindjareb people, who met, lived and fished there before British settlement. [2]
The river rises in the Darling Scarp below Bowerling Hill and flows westward crossing Albany Highway north of North Bannister. The river continues northwest through the Youarling State Forest then the Serpentine National Park. The river flows through Serpentine Dam then flows over Serpentine Falls just south of Jarrahdale as it comes off the Scarp and onto the Swan Coastal Plain. The river continues west and crosses the South Western Highway then flows past the town of Serpentine. The river then veers south and continues until it discharges into the Peel Inlet near Mandurah.
The upper reaches of the river flow into Serpentine Dam, which provides drinking water to the Perth metropolitan area.
The only tributary to the Serpentine River is Big Brook. Additionally, the Birrega Main Drain and Peel Main Drain discharge into the Serpentine River at Baldivis and Karnup respectively. [3] [4] The river also flows through Kerulup Pool, Lake Amarillo and Goegrup Lake.
The Lowlands Nature Reserve, situated along the river in Mardella, was declared in 2014. [5] [6]
The river is known to have toxic algal blooms, last occurring in 2007. Algal blooms usually occur after hot weather and in the upper reaches of the river. [7]
The Swan River is a major river in the southwest of Western Australia. The river runs through the metropolitan area of Perth, Western Australia's capital and largest city.
The Serpentine National Park is a national park located on the Darling Scarp, approximately 55 kilometres (34 mi) southeast of Perth in Western Australia.
The Darling Scarp, also referred to as the Darling Range or Darling Ranges, is a low escarpment running north–south to the east of the Swan Coastal Plain and Perth, Western Australia. The escarpment extends generally north of Bindoon, to the south of Pemberton. The adjacent Darling Plateau goes easterly to include Mount Bakewell near York and Mount Saddleback near Boddington. It was named after the Governor of New South Wales, Lieutenant-General Ralph Darling.
Mandurah is a coastal city in the Australian state of Western Australia, situated approximately 72 kilometres (45 mi) south of the state capital, Perth. It is the state's second most populous city, with a population of 90,306.
The Kwinana Freeway is a 72-kilometre (45 mi) freeway in and beyond the southern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, linking central Perth with Mandurah to the south. It is the central section of State Route 2, which continues north as Mitchell Freeway to Clarkson, and south as Forrest Highway towards Bunbury. A 4-kilometre (2.5 mi) section between Canning and Leach highways is also part of National Route 1. Along its route are interchanges with several major roads, including Roe Highway and Mandjoogoordap Drive. The northern terminus of the Kwinana Freeway is at the Narrows Bridge, which crosses the Swan River, and the southern terminus is at Pinjarra Road, east of Mandurah.
The Division of Canning is an Australian Electoral Division in Western Australia.
The Canning River is a major tributary of the Swan River in the South West Land Division of Western Australia. It is home to much wildlife including dolphins, pelicans, swans and many other bird species.
The Swan Coastal Plain in Western Australia is the geographic feature which contains the Swan River as it travels west to the Indian Ocean. The coastal plain continues well beyond the boundaries of the Swan River and its tributaries, as a geological and biological zone, one of Western Australia's Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia regions. It is also one of the distinct physiographic provinces of the larger West Australian Shield division.
The Serpentine Dam is a major water supply dam for Perth, Western Australia. The dam is used to store water that is released at a controlled rate to regulate the level in the Serpentine Pipehead Dam reservoir, which in turn feeds water to the metropolitan trunk main network depending on demand. Construction of the dam was completed in 1961.
Moore River (Garban) is a river in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia.
South Dandalup River is a river in the South West region of Western Australia.
The City of Mandurah is a local government area of Western Australia, covering both Mandurah proper and an additional area reaching down as far south as Lake Clifton. The city has a total area of approximately 174 square kilometres (67 sq mi).
The Peel-Harvey Estuarine System is a natural estuarine system that lies roughly parallel to the coast of Western Australia and south of the town of Mandurah.
The Murray River is a river in the southwest of Western Australia. It played a significant part in the expansion of settlement in the area south of Perth after the arrival of British settlers at the Swan River Colony in 1829. It should not be confused with the Murray River in southeastern Australia, which is the longest river in the country.
The Canning Dam and reservoir are a major source of fresh water for the city of Perth, Western Australia. The dam is situated on the Darling Scarp and is an impoundment of the Canning River. It is noted for its innovative structural and hydraulic design that was considered to be at the forefront of concrete gravity dam design at the time of construction in from 1933 to its completion 1940.
Dawesville Channel is an artificial channel between the Peel-Harvey Estuary and the Indian Ocean at Dawesville, about 80 km (50 mi) south of Perth in Western Australia. It is south of the regional city of Mandurah and north of Yalgorup National Park.
Forrest Highway is a 95-kilometre-long (59 mi) highway in Western Australia's Peel and South West regions, extending Perth's Kwinana Freeway from east of Mandurah down to Bunbury. Old Coast Road was the original Mandurah–Bunbury route, dating back to the 1840s. Part of that road, and the Australind Bypass around Australind and Eaton, were subsumed by Forrest Highway. The highway begins at Kwinana Freeway's southern terminus in Ravenswood, continues around the Peel Inlet to Lake Clifton, and heads south to finish at Bunbury's Eelup Roundabout. There are a number of at-grade intersections with minor roads in the shires of Murray, Waroona, and Harvey including Greenlands Road and Old Bunbury Road, both of which connect to South Western Highway near Pinjarra.
Whicher Range, also known as Whicher Scarp, is a range in the South West region of Western Australia.
The Peel Main Drain is a drainage canal in the southern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia. Construction of the canal commenced in 1920 to drain the wetlands in the area as part of the post-World War I Group Settlement Scheme at the Peel Estate. The canal stretches from Banjup, where it starts just north of Banjup Lake, to Karnup, where it discharges into the Serpentine River. The drain has a catchment area of 120 square kilometres.
The Birrega Main Drain is a drainage canal in the southern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia. Construction of the canal commenced in the 1920s. The canal stretches from Darling Down, where it starts just west of the South Western Highway, to Baldivis, where it discharges into the Serpentine River. A second major drain, the Oaklands Main Drain, flows into the Birrega Main Drain, dewatering an area south-east of the latter while a number of smaller rural drains in turn flow into both. The two main drains have a combined catchment area of 185 square kilometres (71 sq mi).