Mandurah, Western Australia
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| Mandurah Western Australia |
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 Location of Mandurah, Western Australia |
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| Population: | 67,813 (2006) [1] (21st) |
| • Density: | 636.1/km² (1,647.5/sq mi) |
| Postcode: | 6210 |
| Area: | 106.6 km² (41.2 sq mi) |
| Location: |
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| LGA: | |
| State District: | Mandurah, Murray-Wellington, Dawesville |
| Federal Division: | Brand, Canning |
Coordinates: 32°31′44″S 115°43′23″E / 32.529°S 115.723°E
Mandurah is a city in Western Australia located approximately 72 kilometres (45 mi) south of the state capital, Perth, Western Australia.
Mandurah is the fastest-growing regional city in Australia, and is also the largest city outside the Perth metropolitan area, having experienced hypergrowth for several years.[citation needed] The city grew from isolated holiday communities along the shores of the Peel-Harvey Estuary, and, with the growth of Perth, it has become a popular lifestyle alternative. Mandurah's connection with the Perth CBD has been strengthened with the opening of the Perth-Mandurah railway line in December 2007. A housing affordability survey of 227 cities in the 2008 ranked it the least affordable city in Australia. [2]
The city centre foreshore is home to a variety of wildlife including dolphins, pelicans, shags, and an abundance of marine life including the blue manna crab which has become synonymous with the area.
The city welcomes thousands of tourists every year, including many international visitors. Mandurah is famous for its protected waterways, superb beaches and excellent boating and fishing activities. The City of Mandurah holds a nationally significant arts festival in April each year, called the 'Stretch' festival. The event attracts wide community participation.
A photograph of Mandurah adorns the cover of the 1986 album Born Sandy Devotional by The Triffids.
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[edit] Geography
The waters of the Peel Inlet and Harvey Estuary (one of Australia's larger inlet systems) form the centre of Mandurah. The estuary is approximately twice the size of Sydney Harbour. The city lies in and around this freshwater system which in turn feeds into the Indian Ocean. The city and its suburbs have many kilometres of ocean coastline most of which is sandy beaches. Mandurah also has a number of suburbs built around artificially created canal systems that extend from the Peel Inlet.
The area is governed by the City of Mandurah, although a couple of suburbs east of the Serpentine River are governed by the Shire of Murray.
[edit] Climate
Sharing a similar climate to Perth, Mandurah has a typical Mediterranean climate (Köppen classification Csb) with warm summers and cool winters. During summer (December to February), the average maximum temperature is 27°C (80°F) with an average minimum temperature of 19°C (66°F). At its extreme it can get very hot, often having a couple of days exceed 40°C (104°F) in the later half of summer. In winter (June to August), the average maximum temperature is 15°C (59°F) with an average minimum temperature of 9°C (48°F). Mandurah's proximity to the ocean moderates diurnal temperatures somewhat, with temperatures a few kilometres inland often 4 or 5 degrees warmer or cooler at night. Mandurah's climate is remarkable for producing one of the highest densities of tornadoes in the world [1].
 Weather averages for Mandurah, Western Australia  |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 29.3 (85) |
29.6 (85) |
27.6 (82) |
24.4 (76) |
20.6 (69) |
18.1 (65) |
17.3 (63) |
17.7 (64) |
19.2 (67) |
21.2 (70) |
24.4 (76) |
27.0 (81) |
23.0 (73) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 17.2 (63) |
17.1 (63) |
15.8 (60) |
13.9 (57) |
11.2 (52) |
9.7 (49) |
9.0 (48) |
9.2 (49) |
9.9 (50) |
10.7 (51) |
13.6 (56) |
15.5 (60) |
12.7 (55) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 9.6 (0.38) |
13.3 (0.52) |
19.6 (0.77) |
44.0 (1.73) |
126.2 (4.97) |
189.7 (7.47) |
175.4 (6.91) |
126.6 (4.98) |
84.7 (3.33) |
51.8 (2.04) |
22.8 (0.9) |
11.6 (0.46) |
875.1 (34.45) |
| Source: [3] | |||||||||||||
[edit] History
The Noongar (or Bibbulmun) people, who inhabited the South West of Western Australia, named the area Mandjar ('meeting place'). After European settlement the name changed, possibly due to mispronunciation, to Mandurah.
In December 1829, Thomas Peel arrived in Western Australia from the United Kingdom with workmen, equipment and stores on the ship Gilmore. He had financed the trip in exchange for a grant of land in the Swan River Colony. Unfortunately for him, the contract stipulated that he was to arrive by no later than 1 November 1829 and, as such, his original land grant was forfeited. Undaunted, Peel built a small settlement named Clarence south of the Swan River colony at what is known today as Woodman Point. Many problems with the settlement along with Peel's own ill-health led him to lead the remaining Clarence settlers to the area known today as Mandurah. Thomas Peel died in 1865 but Mandurah continued to grow, albeit very slowly, over the years.
[edit] Transport
The Mandurah Estuary Bridge was constructed in 1985 to 1986, and was the first incrementally launched box girder bridge in Australia. The Dawesville Channel (also known as the Dawesville Cut), a large man-made channel, was opened in April 1994. The channel was created to allow saline seawater from the Indian Ocean to flush into the Peel Inlet to reduce the incidence of algal blooms which had plagued the estuary for many years.
Transperth’s Mandurah railway line, opened in December 2007, links Mandurah to Perth, while the Kwinana Freeway and Forrest Highway, opening July 2009, providing a bypass of the city. There will also be a direct link onto the freeway from the Australian Highway 1 by 2010.
[edit] Water use
Mandurah is at the centre of a water recycling project known as the Halls Head Indirect Water Reuse Project. Based in Mandurah it has recently been awarded the Western Australian Water Corporation Award for Water Treatment and Recycling. An aquifer is used to filter the areas sewage water providing safe, quality irrigation water for local parks, gardens and ovals [2].
[edit] Sport
Mandurah is home to the Peel Thunder Football Club in the West Australian Football League, Mandurah City in the Football West State League and the Pirates Rugby Union club in the RugbyWA competition. Greyhound racing is held weekly at the Greyhounds WA Mandurah venue.[4] Mandurah also hosts an SBL (State Basketball League) team called Mandurah Magic.
[edit] References
- ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). "Mandurah (Urban Centre/Locality)". 2006 Census QuickStats. http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/ABSNavigation/prenav/LocationSearch?collection=Census&period=2006&areacode=UCL516800&producttype=QuickStats&breadcrumb=PL&action=401. Retrieved on 2008-02-13. Map
- ^ Australian homes the world's least affordable, survey says | NEWS.com.au
- ^ "Climate statistics for Mandurah" (in English). Australian Bureau of Meteorology. http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/tables/cw_009887.shtml.
- ^ Greyhounds WA Mandurah
[edit] External links
- City of Mandurah website
- Visitors to Mandurah website
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