Hunter Region
Hunter Region UTC+11) | |||||||||||||||
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Location | 162 km (101 mi) N of Sydney | ||||||||||||||
LGA(s) |
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The Hunter Region, also commonly known as the Hunter Valley, Newcastle Region, or simply Hunter, is a region in northern New South Wales, Australia, extending from approximately 162 km (101 mi) to 310 km (193 mi) north of Sydney. It contains the Hunter River and its tributaries with highland areas to the north and south.[2] Situated at the northern end of the Sydney Basin bioregion, the Hunter Valley is one of the largest river valleys on the NSW coast, and is most commonly known for its wineries and coal industry.
Most of the population of the Hunter Region lives within 25 km (16 mi) of the coast, with 55% of the entire population living in the cities of
The
History
For over 30,000 years the
The wine-making history of Hunter Valley begins with the European settlement of the Sydney and the New South Wales region of Australia in the late 18th century as a penal colony of the British Empire. The Hunter River itself was discovered, by accident, in 1797 by British Lieutenant John Shortland as he searched for escaped convicts. The region soon became a valuable source for timber and coal that fuelled the steamship trade coming out of Sydney.[6]
Land prospector John Howe cut a path through the Australian wilderness from Sydney up to the overland area in what is now known as the (Lower) Hunter Valley proper in 1820. Today, the modern Putty Road between the cities of Windsor and Singleton follows Howe's exact path and is a major thoroughfare for wine tourists coming into the Hunter Valley from Sydney.[6] As previous plantings in the coastal areas around Sydney succumbed to the humidity and wetness, and plantings to the west were limited by spring frost damage, northern reaches leading to the Hunter became, almost by default, the wine region of the new colony.[7]
The expansive growth of the Hunter Valley in the mid to late 19th century came directly from its monopoly position of the lucrative Sydney market. The provincial government of New South Wales had enacted regulations that placed prohibitive duties on wines from other areas such as Victoria and South Australia. Following World War I, many returning Australian veterans were given land grants in the Hunter Valley. This temporarily produced an up-tick in plantings but the global Great Depression as well as a series of devastating hail storms between 1929 and 1930 caused many growers to abandon their vineyards.[8]
Geography
Geology
The Hunter Region is considered a transitional area between the
The Permian rocks in the central and southeastern expanse of the Lower Hunter Valley were formed when the area was underneath a shallow marine estuary. The remnants of this period has left an extensive network of coal seams that fuelled the early population boom of the Hunter Valley in the 19th century as well a high degree of salinity in the water table of much of the area. The further north and west, towards the Brokenback Range and the Upper Hunter, the more Triassic sandstone that can be found leading eventually to the carboniferous rocks that form the northern boundary of the Hunter with the New England Fold Belt and the foothills of the Barrington Tops.[9]
Overall, the Hunter Valley has more soils (mostly hard, acidic patches of poorly draining heavy clay) that are unsuitable for viticulture than they have areas that are ideal for growing grapes. The soils of the Lower Hunter vary widely from sandy
Rivers
The main river in the region is the Hunter River, after which the region is named. Other rivers in the region include the Allyn, Avon, Barrington, Bow, Bowman, Chichester, Gloucester, Goulburn, Isis, Karuah, Krui, Mammy Johnsons, Merriwa, Munmurra, Pages, Paterson, Wangat and Williams rivers.
Despite being the area's namesake, the Hunter River itself is not the dominant feature of the region—falling behind the Brokenback Range for that distinction. The greater river system of the Hunter, which includes the Goulburn and important tributaries such as Giants Creek, do provide needed
Water supply
Fresh water supply for the region is provided from a number of sources, which are managed by the Hunter Water and State Water Corporations.[11] State Water Corporation's dams supply water for irrigation, industrial use at coal mines and the region's coal-fired power stations, and town water to upper Hunter Region towns. Hunter Water Corporation's dams supply the large urban population of more than 500,000 living near the coast and centred on the cities of Newcastle and Lake Macquarie.
State Water Corporation's
Towns and cities
The Hunter Region includes four cities. In order of population these are
.Climate
The climate of Hunter Valley is
In the summer, the average daily temperature regularly exceeds 21.1 °C (70.0 °F) while during the winter the temperature averages around 14 °C (57.2 °F).[14] Temperatures during January average between 22.7–23.3 °C (72.9–73.9 °F), with the temperature becoming progressively hotter the further inland you move away from the cooling influence of the sea. During the spring the Hunter Valley receives an average of 7.3–7.5 hours of sunshine a day.[7]
Mid-latitude westerly winds bring high pressure weather front that alternate with cold fronts on the winter. This leads to generally drier conditions in the winter months of July and August. In the summer, southeasterly winds bring weather fronts harbouring extensive amounts of moisture.[9] Between October and April more than two thirds of the region's annual rainfall will fall with January and February being the wettest months.[7] Between the months of October–April, the 3pm average for relative humidity in the Lower Hunter is 49%, while it is 43% in the Upper Hunter.[6]
Climate data for Newcastle (coast) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 42.5 (108.5) |
40.9 (105.6) |
39.0 (102.2) |
36.8 (98.2) |
28.5 (83.3) |
26.1 (79.0) |
26.3 (79.3) |
29.9 (85.8) |
34.4 (93.9) |
36.7 (98.1) |
41.0 (105.8) |
42.0 (107.6) |
42.5 (108.5) |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 25.6 (78.1) |
25.4 (77.7) |
24.7 (76.5) |
22.8 (73.0) |
20.0 (68.0) |
17.5 (63.5) |
16.7 (62.1) |
18.1 (64.6) |
20.2 (68.4) |
22.2 (72.0) |
23.6 (74.5) |
24.9 (76.8) |
21.8 (71.2) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 19.2 (66.6) |
19.4 (66.9) |
18.3 (64.9) |
15.3 (59.5) |
12.0 (53.6) |
9.7 (49.5) |
8.5 (47.3) |
9.3 (48.7) |
11.5 (52.7) |
14.1 (57.4) |
16.2 (61.2) |
18.0 (64.4) |
14.3 (57.7) |
Record low °C (°F) | 12.0 (53.6) |
10.3 (50.5) |
11.1 (52.0) |
7.4 (45.3) |
4.7 (40.5) |
3.0 (37.4) |
1.8 (35.2) |
3.3 (37.9) |
5.0 (41.0) |
6.5 (43.7) |
7.2 (45.0) |
11.0 (51.8) |
1.8 (35.2) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 90.0 (3.54) |
107.4 (4.23) |
119.6 (4.71) |
116.9 (4.60) |
115.6 (4.55) |
117.5 (4.63) |
93.2 (3.67) |
73.2 (2.88) |
72.1 (2.84) |
72.5 (2.85) |
71.0 (2.80) |
80.9 (3.19) |
1,129.9 (44.48) |
Average precipitation days | 11.1 | 11.2 | 12.4 | 12.3 | 12.6 | 12.3 | 11.2 | 10.5 | 10.0 | 10.9 | 10.8 | 10.6 | 135.9 |
Average afternoon relative humidity (%)
|
72 | 74 | 72 | 66 | 64 | 63 | 59 | 56 | 59 | 64 | 68 | 71 | 66 |
Source: Bureau of Meteorology[15] |
Climate data for Scone Airport (Upper Hunter Valley region) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 43.5 (110.3) |
43.5 (110.3) |
41.0 (105.8) |
36.0 (96.8) |
28.7 (83.7) |
24.4 (75.9) |
24.5 (76.1) |
29.8 (85.6) |
34.1 (93.4) |
39.0 (102.2) |
43.4 (110.1) |
42.4 (108.3) |
43.5 (110.3) |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 31.1 (88.0) |
29.8 (85.6) |
27.9 (82.2) |
24.5 (76.1) |
20.1 (68.2) |
17.0 (62.6) |
16.3 (61.3) |
18.3 (64.9) |
21.5 (70.7) |
24.9 (76.8) |
27.7 (81.9) |
30.2 (86.4) |
24.1 (75.4) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 16.9 (62.4) |
16.9 (62.4) |
14.6 (58.3) |
11.3 (52.3) |
8.1 (46.6) |
6.0 (42.8) |
4.7 (40.5) |
5.5 (41.9) |
7.9 (46.2) |
10.8 (51.4) |
13.3 (55.9) |
15.7 (60.3) |
11.0 (51.8) |
Record low °C (°F) | 8.2 (46.8) |
8.6 (47.5) |
4.7 (40.5) |
1.3 (34.3) |
−1.0 (30.2) |
−2.0 (28.4) |
−2.7 (27.1) |
−3.0 (26.6) |
−1.3 (29.7) |
0.5 (32.9) |
5.0 (41.0) |
6.4 (43.5) |
−3.0 (26.6) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 82.3 (3.24) |
77.3 (3.04) |
52.2 (2.06) |
38.9 (1.53) |
46.5 (1.83) |
45.5 (1.79) |
36.5 (1.44) |
38.1 (1.50) |
38.5 (1.52) |
57.8 (2.28) |
62.0 (2.44) |
67.9 (2.67) |
643.1 (25.32) |
Average precipitation days | 8.3 | 7.8 | 7.1 | 6.7 | 7.4 | 9.4 | 8.1 | 7.6 | 7.0 | 8.8 | 8.6 | 8.6 | 95.4 |
Source: [16] |
Industries
The main industries in the Hunter Region are
Coal mining
The most important economic activity in the valley is coal mining (through businesses such as Rio Tinto and BHP), mostly for export. The Port of Newcastle is the world's largest export facility for coal, most of which is brought to the port by rail. Coal ships are often seen off the coast of Newcastle.
Electricity generation
Electricity generation at the Eraring, Bayswater, Liddell, Munmorah, Redbank and Vales Point coal-fired power stations is a major industry of the region.
Horse breeding
The Hunter Valley is Australia's main region for the breeding and rearing of Thoroughbred horses and most of the country's best racehorses.[17][18] The Upper Hunter area around Scone is one of the largest horse breeding areas in the world.
Tourism
Commonly known as "Wine Country",[19] the Hunter Valley is a major tourist destination in New South Wales and is the 6th most visited place in Australia attracting more than 2.5 million people annually. There are regular events held in the Hunter for visitors, including the Hunter Valley Steam Trains running the first three Sundays of each month and regular scenic cruises on the Hunter River and Lake Macquarie.[20][21]
Wine production
The Hunter Valley Wine Zone
Some of the oldest vines in the Hunter Valley were planted in 1924 around the village of Fordwich.
Much of the rolling countryside around Pokolbin is under vine and has a large number of
Administration
Political representation
For the purposes of Australian federal elections for the House of Representatives, the Hunter Region is contained within the divisions of Hunter,[24] Lyne,[25] Newcastle,[26] Paterson,[27] and Shortland.[28]
For the purposes of New South Wales elections for the
Demography and area
The following local government areas are contained within the region:
Hunter rank | Local government area | Estimate resident population 30 June 2020[1] | 1 year growth rate | Population density (people/km2) |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | City of Lake Macquarie | 207,775 | 0.9 | 320.3 |
2 | City of Newcastle | 167,363 | 1.1 | 896.2 |
3 | City of Maitland | 87,395 | 2.6 | 223.2 |
4 | Port Stephens Council | 74,506 | 1.4 | 86.8 |
5 | City of Cessnock | 61,256 | 2.1 | 31.2 |
6 | Singleton Council | 23,380 | -0.3 | 4.8 |
7 | Muswellbrook Shire | 16,355 | -0.1 | 4.8 |
8 | Upper Hunter Shire | 14,167 | -0.1 | 1.7 |
9 | Dungog Shire | 9,664 | 2.6 | 4.3 |
Hunter | 661,861 | 1.3 | 29.2 |
Environmental protection
The Hunter Region contains the Goulburn River National Park, Myall Lakes National Park, Barrington Tops National Park, Werakata National Park, Watagans National Park, Mount Royal National Park, Polkolbin State Forest, Putty State Forest, Chichester State Forest, Running Creek Nature Reserve, The Glen Nature Reserve, Black Bulga State Conservation Area, Myall River State Forest, and Karuah Nature Reserve.
Within the Hunter, many endangered ecological communities (EECs) have been declared under the
- Grey Box–Grey Gum Wet Sclerophyll Forest[40]
- Hunter Floodplain Red Gum Woodland[41]
- Hunter Lowland Redgum Forest[42]
- Hunter Valley Vine Thicket[43]
- Hunter Valley Weeping Myall Woodland[44]
- Lower Hunter Valley Dry Rainforest[45]
- Warkworth Sands Woodland. This EEC occurs on aeolian sands, south east of Singleton (but may occur elsewhere in the Bioregion.)[46]
Statehood movement
There is an active movement campaigning for the Hunter Region to secede from New South Wales to form its own state. The sale of the Port of Newcastle and the refusal of the NSW state government to build a container terminal in Newcastle has been cited as the motivation behind the campaign.[47] The movement's demands include a Royal commission into the feasibility of Hunter Valley Statehood as soon as possible, and a referendum on Hunter Valley statehood by 2030.[48]
Chapter VI of the Constitution of Australia allows new states to be formed, but only with the consent of the Parliament of the state in question.
See also
Notes
- ^ Population figure is the combined population of all LGAs in the region.
References
- ^ a b "Regional population, 2019-20 financial year". Australian Bureau of Statistics. 30 March 2021. Archived from the original on 30 March 2021. Retrieved 18 December 2021.
- ^ "Department of Local Government – Regions". NSW Department of Local Government. Archived from the original on 9 August 2007. Retrieved 5 August 2007.
- ^ "Hunter, Central Coast population to top million mark within decades". ABC News. 9 September 2013. Archived from the original on 3 May 2022. Retrieved 3 May 2022.
- ^ a b c d Johnson, Hugh, and Jancis Robinson. The World Atlas of Wine. London: Mitchell Beazley, 2005. Print.
- ^ Clarke, Oz, and Margaret Rand. Oz Clarke's Encyclopedia of Grapes. New York: Harcourt, 2001. Print.
- ^ a b c d "Hunter Valley Wine Country." Hunter Valley Wine Country Tourism Archived 1 January 2011 at the Wayback Machine 8 May 2010
- ^ a b c Halliday, James. "Regional Spotlight – Hunter Valley. Archived 29 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine" Wine Pros. 29 October 2001. Web. 25 May 2010.
- ^ "Hunter Valley – Australian Wine Regions Archived 21 February 2011 at the Wayback Machine" Wine Diva Australia." Wine Diva. 1 June 2010
- ^ a b c d "Hunter Valley Research Foundation Archived 18 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine" Web. 1 June 2010.
- ^ NSW Scientific Committee (28 February 2011). "Warkworth Sands woodland in the Sydney Basin Bioregion - endangered ecological community listing: final determination | NSW Environment, Energy and Science". www.environment.nsw.gov.au. Archived from the original on 18 October 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
- ^ a b c "Tillegra Dam Proposal" (PDF). Hunter Water Corporation. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 February 2011. Retrieved 3 October 2010.
- The Newcastle Herald. Archivedfrom the original on 20 August 2012. Retrieved 29 November 2010.
- ^ MacNeil, Karen. The Wine Bible. New York: Workman Pub., 2001. Print.
- ^ Australian climate variability & change - Average maps bom.gov.au Archived 7 April 2022 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Newcastle Nobbys Signal Station AWS". Climate statistics for Australian locations. Bureau of Meteorology. April 2013. Retrieved 13 April 2013.
- ^ "Climate statistics for Scone SCS". Bureau of Meteorology. Archived from the original on 10 June 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2013.
- ^ Barrie, Douglas M., The Australian Bloodhorse, Angus & Robertson, Sydney, 1956
- ^ Thomas, Ray, Expanding coal mining in Hunter Valley threatens breeding industry and autumn racing revamp, The Daily Telegraph, 15 August 2013
- ^ Magro, Rebecca. "The Weekender: Hunter Valley, New South Wales – Hunter and Bligh". Hunter and Bligh. Archived from the original on 25 September 2020. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
- ^ "Hunter Valley". VisitNSW.com. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
- ^ "Travel to The Hunter" (PDF). Destination NSW. June 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 April 2013. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
- ^ "Hunter". Wine Australia. 2015. Archived from the original on 30 January 2016. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
- ^ "Hunter Valley". Visit NSW. 16 May 2017. Archived from the original on 8 May 2017. Retrieved 16 May 2017.
- ^ "Profile of the electoral division of Hunter (NSW)". Current federal electoral divisions. Australian Electoral Commission. 26 September 2013. Archived from the original on 24 December 2013. Retrieved 22 December 2013.
- ^ "Lyne". Australian Electoral Commission. 26 July 2012. Archived from the original on 29 October 2009. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
- ^ "Newcastle". Australian Electoral Commission. 26 July 2012. Archived from the original on 21 May 2011. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
- ^ "Paterson". Australian Electoral Commission. 26 July 2012. Archived from the original on 29 October 2009. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
- ^ "Shortland". Australian Electoral Commission. 26 July 2012. Archived from the original on 24 December 2013. Retrieved 6 October 2012.
- ^ "Cessnock". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 22 November 2019. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
- ^ "Charlestown". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 22 November 2019. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
- ^ "Lake Macquarie". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 25 February 2020. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
- ^ "Maitland". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 23 November 2019. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
- ^ "Myall Lakes". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 30 November 2020. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
- ^ "Newcastle". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 23 November 2019. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
- ^ "Port Stephens". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 27 February 2020. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
- ^ "Swansea". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 23 November 2019. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
- ^ "Upper Hunter". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 28 February 2020. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
- ^ "Wallsend". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 25 February 2020. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
- ^ "Wyong". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 28 February 2020. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
- ^ NSW Scientific Committee (2011). "Grey Box – Grey Gum Wet Sclerophyll Forest in the NSW North Coast Bioregion – Determination to make a minor amendment to Part 3 of Schedule 1 of the Threatened Species Conservation Act". NSW Office of Environment and Heritage. Archived from the original on 4 September 2018. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
- ^ NSW Scientific Committee (2011). "Hunter Floodplain Red Gum Woodland in the NSW North Coast and Sydney Basin Bioregions – Determination to make a minor amendment to Part 3 of Schedule 1 of the Threatened Species Conservation Act". NSW Office of Environment and Heritage. Archived from the original on 4 September 2018. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
- ^ NSW Scientific Committee (2011). "Hunter Lowland Redgum Forest in the Sydney Basin and NSW North Coast Bioregions – Determination to make a minor amendment to Part 3 of Schedule 1 of the Threatened Species Conservation Act". NSW Office of Environment and Heritage. Archived from the original on 4 September 2018. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
- ^ NSW Scientific Committee (2011). "Hunter Valley Vine Thicket in the NSW North Coast and Sydney Basin Bioregions – Determination to make a minor amendment to Part 3 of Schedule 1 of the Threatened Species Conservation Act". NSW Office of Environment and Heritage. Archived from the original on 4 September 2018. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
- ^ NSW Scientific Committee (2011). "Hunter Valley Weeping Myall Woodland of the Sydney Basin bioregion – Determination to make a minor amendment to Part 3 of Schedule 1 of the Threatened Species Conservation Act". NSW Office of Environment and Heritage. Archived from the original on 4 September 2018. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
- ^ NSW Scientific Committee (2011). "Lower Hunter Valley Dry Rainforest in the Sydney Basin and NSW North Coast Bioregions – Determination to make a minor amendment to Part 2 of Schedule 2 of the Threatened Species Conservation Act". NSW Office of Environment and Heritage. Archived from the original on 4 September 2018. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
- ^ NSW Scientific Committee. (2011) "Warkworth Sands Woodland in the Sydney Basin Bioregion – Determination to make a minor amendment to Part 3 of Schedule 1 of the Threatened Species Conservation Act". NSW Office of Environment and Heritage. Archived from the original on 4 September 2018. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
- ^ Thompson, Rod (29 September 2021). "Group calls for Hunter Valley statehood after Sydney snubbings". Newcastle Weekly. Archived from the original on 5 October 2021. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
- ^ "Who We Are". Hunter Valley Statehood Movement. Archived from the original on 5 October 2021. Retrieved 5 October 2021.