Cockburn Sound (

Nyungar The Noongar (, also spelt Noongah, Nyungar , Nyoongar, Nyoongah, Nyungah, Nyugah, and Yunga ) are Aboriginal Australian peoples who live in the south-west corner of Western Australia, from Geraldton on the west coast to Esperance on the so ...

Aboriginal Australian Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the Torres Strait Islands ...

name: Derbal Nara) is an inlet of the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...

on the coast of

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

. It extends from the south of the mouth of the Swan River at

Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...

for about 25 km to Point Peron near Rockingham and is located at . The total area of the sound is about 100 km². It is bounded on the east by the mainland council areas of Cockburn and Kwinana, on the west by Garden Island and

Carnac Island Carnac Island (Noongar: ''Ngoorloormayup'') is a , A Class, island nature reserve about south-west of Fremantle and north of Garden Island in Western Australia. History Carnac Island is aeolianite limestone remnant of Pleistocene dunes. It ...

, and includes several rocky outcrops and reefs. The Gage Roads shipping channel lies to the north. The sound was named in 1827 by Captain James Stirling, probably after Admiral

Sir George Cockburn Admiral of the Fleet Sir George Cockburn, 10th Baronet, (22 April 1772 – 19 August 1853) was a British Royal Navy officer. As a captain he was present at the Battle of Cape St Vincent in February 1797 during the French Revolutionary Wars a ...

. The Perth Seawater Desalination Plant can be found here.

Water pollution

Several media reports have been made on pollution of the water in Cockburn Sound, where in late 2015 an estimated 2,100 fish died as a result of

algal bloom An algal bloom or algae bloom is a rapid increase or accumulation in the population of algae in freshwater or marine water systems. It is often recognized by the discoloration in the water from the algae's pigments. The term ''algae'' encompas ...

s through poor local water quality. Reports from 2010 suggest the monitoring of pollutants was not adequate, using degradation of sea-grass since 2005 as a key indicator. Media coverage in December 2016 indicates the leaking of firefighting chemicals from the local defence base at Garden Island could be a factor, however the report was only made available in September 2016. Prior official reports indicate the water quality was improving. However, there is doubt towards the scope of the report, as it does not include factors such as thermal stress from increased water temperature and oxygen stress as a result of climate change and localised desalination.

References

External links

Cockburn Sound Management Council Annual Report from 2005
{{Authority control Bodies of water of the Indian Ocean

Water pollution

See also

References

External links