Southwest coast drainage division
(Redirected from Southwest Western Australia)
The Avon River, which eventually joins the Swan River near Perth, is the longest stream in the division.
Much of the drier inland areas has been cleared for agriculture.
Many species thrive in the wetter coastal areas.
The South-west coast drainage division covers the most fertile part of Western Australia: about 140,000 square kilometres, or a little less than 2% of the continent.
Streams flow generally south and west towards the Southern and Indian Oceans. For comparison, it is a little larger than England. It is one of the only two parts of mainland Australia that are both temperate and relatively fertile. .
The landscape is generally flat and sandy but there are several major features, in particular the Stirling Ranges near Albany, which reach 1096 metres at their highest point, and the Darling Escarpment.
The climate is temperate mediterranean. Summers are warm to hot and dry, winters are cool and wet. Mountains near the coast concentrate rainfall in that area, with parts of the extreme south-western corner receiving as much as 1,400 mm per year. Away from the coast, however, precipitation drops rapidly, with inland areas averaging about 250 mm per year.
Major environmental issues in the division include land clearing, climate change, rapid population growth, and severe dryland salinity.
| — The Australian drainage divisions — | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Indian Ocean | Timor Sea | Gulf of Carpentaria | Northeast coast |
| Western Plateau | Lake Eyre Basin | Murray-Darling Basin | Bulloo-Bancannia |
| Southwest coast | South Australian gulf | Tasmania | Southeast coast |
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