The Denmark River is located in the Great Southern region 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 ...

. The river rises near Pardelup and meanders in a southerly direction until it flows through

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

into

Wilson Inlet Wilson Inlet is a shallow, seasonally open estuary located on the coast of the Great Southern region of Western Australia. Description The inlet receives water from the two main rivers: the Denmark River and the Hay River and some smaller ...

(along with the Hay River). The

traditional owners Native title is the designation given to the common law doctrine of Aboriginal title in Australia, which is the recognition by Australian law that Indigenous Australians (both Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander people) have right ...

of the area are the

Noongar 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 ...

people, who know the river as Kwoorabup, meaning the place of the

Western brush wallaby The western brush wallaby (''Notamacropus irma''), also known as the black-gloved wallaby, is a species of wallaby found in the southwestern coastal region of Western Australia. The wallaby's main threat is predation by the introduced red fox (' ...

(place we return to). The river was given its English name in December 1829 by naval ship's surgeon

Thomas Braidwood Wilson Thomas Braidwood Wilson FRGS (bapt. 29 April 1792 – 11 November 1843) was an Australian surgeon and explorer. He was baptised in Kirknewton, West Lothian, Scotland, the son of James, and Catherine Boak. Sea voyages Wilson studied at Edinbur ...

after his mentor,

naval surgeon A naval surgeon, or less commonly ship's doctor, is the person responsible for the health of the ship's company aboard a warship. The term appears often in reference to Royal Navy's medical personnel during the Age of Sail. Ancient uses Speciali ...

Alexander Denmark, Physician of the Fleet, Resident Physician at the Royal Hospital Haslar, and past-Physician to the Mediterranean Fleet. Wilson found the river while exploring the area in company of the native Mokare, John Kent (officer in charge of the Commissariat at King George Sound), two convicts and Private William Gough of the 39th Regiment, while his ship ''Governor Phillips'' was being repaired at

King George Sound King George Sound ( nys , Menang Koort) is a sound on the south coast of Western Australia. Named King George the Third's Sound in 1791, it was referred to as King George's Sound from 1805. The name "King George Sound" gradually came into use ...

. A surveyor noted in 1833 that the local Aboriginal people, the Noongar, called the river "Koorrabup" meaning "place of the black swan". The river flows through Denmark Pipehead Dam. The two tributaries of the river are Scotsdale Brook and Cleerillup Creek. The southern portion of the river was protected under a management plan of the

Shire of Denmark The Shire of Denmark is a local government area in the Great Southern region of Western Australia, about west of Albany and about south-southeast of the state capital, Perth. The Shire of Denmark covers an area of , and its seat of governm ...

in 2011. The ceremonial site has been used by Noongar people for over 10,000 years as a place of dance, song, marriage preparation, initiation and food gathering. The area has high cultural significance due largely to its totemic significance and creation by the

Wagyl The Wagyl (also written Waugal and Waagal and variants) is the Noongar manifestation of the Rainbow Serpent in Australian Aboriginal mythology, from the culture based around the south-west of Western Australia. The Noongar describe the Wagyl as ...

in the Dreaming.

Salinity

Historically the Denmark River's water quality declined as a result of

land clearing Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. The most concentrated d ...

in the catchment area since European settlement. It is estimated that 40% of the river's upper catchment area was cleared and as a result salinity levels increased from 40 mg/L in the 1940s to a peak of 1520 mg/L in 1987 at the Mt Lindesay gauging station. In 2004 it was announced that salinity levels in the river were decreasing, believed to be the first major river in Australia that had shown a reversal in salinity trends, and that it is possible that the river could provide drinking quality water in the future. By 2012 average annual salinity levels had dropped to 470 mg/L, below

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of ...

guidelines for

drinking water Drinking water is water that is used in drink or food preparation; potable water is water that is safe to be used as drinking water. The amount of drinking water required to maintain good health varies, and depends on physical activity level, a ...

for the first time in nearly 40 years. The improved water quality means Denmark Dam has been returned as a drinking water source and back-up water supply for Denmark. The drop in salinity is mainly attributed to the revegetation of previously cleared farmland with

Tasmanian blue gum ''Eucalyptus globulus'' subsp. ''globulus'', commonly known as the Tasmanian blue gum, southern blue gum, or blue gum, is a subspecies of tree that is Endemism, endemic to southeastern Australia. It has mostly smooth bark with some persistent sl ...

plantations.

References

{{Authority control Rivers of the Great Southern region