Gippsland Plain
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Gippsland is a rural region that makes up the southeastern part of Victoria,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
, mostly comprising the coastal plains to the rainward (southern) side of the Victorian Alps (the southernmost section of the
Great Dividing Range The Great Dividing Range, also known as the East Australian Cordillera or the Eastern Highlands, is a cordillera system in eastern Australia consisting of an expansive collection of mountain ranges, plateaus and rolling hills, that runs rough ...
). It covers an elongated area of located further east of the
Shire of Cardinia The Shire of Cardinia is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, in the south-east of Melbourne between Western Port and the Yarra Ranges on the outskirts of Melbourne. It has an area of 1,283 square kilometres, and had a population of ...
( Melbourne's outermost southeastern suburbs) between
Dandenong Ranges The Dandenong Ranges (commonly just The Dandenongs) are a set of low mountain ranges, rising to 633 metres at Mount Dandenong, approximately east of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The ranges consist mostly of rolling hills, steeply weathere ...
and Mornington Peninsula, and is bounded to the north by the mountain ranges and plateaus/
highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...
s of the High Country (which separate it from
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region in Victoria's northeast), to the southwest by the
Western Port Bay Western Port, (Boonwurrung: ''Warn Marin'') commonly but unofficially known as Western Port Bay, is a large tidal bay in southern Victoria, Australia, opening into Bass Strait. It is the second largest bay in the state. Geographically, it is do ...
, to the south and east by the
Bass Strait Bass Strait () is a strait separating the island state of Tasmania from the Australian mainland (more specifically the coast of Victoria, with the exception of the land border across Boundary Islet). The strait provides the most direct waterwa ...
and the Tasman Sea, and to the east and northeast by the Black-Allan Line (the easternmost section of the Victoria/ New South Wales state border). The Gippsland region is generally divided by the Strzelecki Ranges and tributaries of the Gippsland Lakes into five statistical sub-regions — namely the West Gippsland, South Gippsland, Latrobe Valley,
Central Gippsland The area known as Central Gippsland, also termed North Gippsland, is a region of Gippsland in Victoria, Australia, roughly corresponding to Shire of Wellington. Often this region is considered part of a larger "East Gippsland". Central Gippsl ...
and East Gippsland. As at the
2016 Australian census The 2016 Australian census was the 17th national population census held in Australia. The census was officially conducted with effect on Tuesday, 9 August 2016. The total population of the Commonwealth of Australia was counted as – an incre ...
, Gippsland had a population of , with the principal population centres of the region, in descending order of population, , Warragul, Drouin, Bairnsdale, , Sale, , Wonthaggi, , and Phillip Island. Gippsland is best known for its primary production such as mining, power generation and farming as well as its tourist destinations — Phillip Island, Wilsons Promontory, the Gippsland Lakes, Walhalla, the
Baw Baw Plateau The Baw Baw National Park is a national park located on the boundary between the Victorian Alps and Gippsland regions of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The national park is situated approximately east of Melbourne, Australia, Melbo ...
, and the Strzelecki Ranges.


History

The traditional owners are Indigenous Australians of the Gunai nation and in part of West Gippsland the Bunurong nation. Before permanent European colonisation, the area was visited by
sealers Sealer may refer either to a person or ship engaged in seal hunting, or to a sealant; associated terms include: Seal hunting * Sealer Hill, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica * Sealers' Oven, bread oven of mud and stone built by sealers around 180 ...
and
wattle Wattle or wattles may refer to: Plants *''Acacia sensu lato'', polyphyletic genus of plants commonly known as wattle, especially in Australia and South Africa **''Acacia'', large genus of shrubs and trees, native to Australasia **Black wattle, c ...
bark gatherers who did not settle. Samuel Anderson (1803-1863),The Andersons of Westernport "Horton and Morris" 1983 a Scottish immigrant from Kirkcudbright, agriculturist and explorer, arrived in Hobart, Tasmania in 1830, and in 1835 established a squatter agricultural settlement on the Bass River in Gippsland, the third permanent colonial settlement in Victoria (then called the Port Phillip District). His business partner Robert Massie joined him in 1837. Both had worked for the Van Diemen's Land Company at Circular Head, Tasmania. Samuel's brothers Hugh (1808-1898) and Thomas (1814-1903) arrived at Bass shortly after, where they established a successful farming venture. Further European colonisation followed two separate expeditions to the area. During his expedition to the South (December 1839 - May 1840) in March 1840, Polish explorer Paweł Edmund Strzelecki led an expedition across Gunai country, and gave his own names to many of their natural landmarks and places. Following these expeditions, the name "Gippsland" stuck, a name chosen by Strzelecki in honour of the
New South Wales Governor The governor of New South Wales is the viceregal representative of the Australian monarch, King Charles III, in the state of New South Wales. In an analogous way to the governor-general of Australia at the national level, the governors of the A ...
, George Gipps, his sponsor. See als
Strzelecki - a magic name in Gippsland''
Angus McMillan led the second European expedition between 1840, naming Gunai country "Caledonia Australis". The naming of this geographical region, however, remained the name given by P. E. Strzelecki - Gippsland The township of
Bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...
was surveyed and colonised in the early 1860s. The intensive colonisation of south Gippsland began late in the 1870s. A story of that process is told in, ''The land of the Lyre Bird'' (1920). Gippsland will serve as one of the hosts for the
2026 Commonwealth Games The 2026 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XXIII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Victoria 2026, is a multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth scheduled to take place across four regional sites in the Australian state ...
in regional Victoria.


Geography

Gippsland is traditionally subdivided into four or five main subregions or districts: * West Gippsland (roughly equivalent to the Baw Baw Shire) * South Gippsland (Bass Coast and South Gippsland Shires) *the Latrobe Valley (Latrobe City and areas of Baw Baw to the north) * East Gippsland (Shires of Wellington and East Gippsland). *Sometimes a fifth region,
Central Gippsland The area known as Central Gippsland, also termed North Gippsland, is a region of Gippsland in Victoria, Australia, roughly corresponding to Shire of Wellington. Often this region is considered part of a larger "East Gippsland". Central Gippsl ...
(corresponding approximately to the Shire of Wellington), is added to refer to the drier zone between the Gippsland Lakes and Yarram. Gippsland Plains Grassy Woodland is an endangered vegetation community within the region.


Climate

The climate of Gippsland is temperate and generally humid, except in the central region around Sale, where annual rainfall averages around . In the Strzelecki Ranges annual rainfall can be as high as , while on the high mountains of East Gippsland it probably reaches similar levels – much of it falling as snow. In lower levels east of the Snowy River, mean annual rainfall is typically about and less variable than in the coastal districts of New South Wales. Mean maximum temperatures in lower areas range from in January to in July. In the highlands of the
Baw Baw Plateau The Baw Baw National Park is a national park located on the boundary between the Victorian Alps and Gippsland regions of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The national park is situated approximately east of Melbourne, Australia, Melbo ...
and the remote Errinundra Plateau, temperatures range from a maximum of to a minimum of . However, in winter, mean minima in these areas can be as low as , leading to heavy snowfalls that often isolate the Errinundra Plateau between June and October.


Natural resources

The soils in Gippsland are generally very infertile, being profoundly deficient in nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and calcium. Apart from frequently flooded areas, they are classed as
Spodosols In soil science, podzols are the typical soils of coniferous or boreal forests and also the typical soils of eucalypt forests and heathlands in southern Australia. In Western Europe, podzols develop on heathland, which is often a construct of huma ...
, Psamments and
Ultisols Ultisols, commonly known as red clay soils, are one of twelve soil orders in the United States Department of Agriculture soil taxonomy. The word "Ultisol" is derived from "ultimate", because Ultisols were seen as the ultimate product of continu ...
. Consequently, heavy fertilisation is required for agriculture or pastoral development. Despite this, parts of Gippsland have become highly productive dairying and vegetable-growing regions: the region supplies Melbourne with most of its needs in these commodities. A few alluvial soils (chiefly near the Snowy) have much better native fertility, and these have always been intensively cultivated. In the extreme northeast is a small section of the
Monaro Tableland Monaro may refer to: * Monaro (New South Wales), a region in the south of the Australian state ** Division of Eden-Monaro, federal electorate ** Electoral district of Monaro, state electorate * Monaro Highway, the main state highway from Canberra t ...
used for grazing beef cattle. Gippsland possesses very few deposits of metallic minerals ( gold rushes in the nineteenth century around
Foster Foster may refer to: People * Foster (surname) * Foster Brooks (1912–2001), American actor * Foster Moreau (born 1997), American football player * Foster Sarell (born 1998), American football player * John Foster Dulles (1888–1959), American ...
, Buchan petered out quickly). However, the deep underground gold mines operated at Walhalla for a fifty-year period between 1863 and 1913. Gippsland has no deposits of major industrial nonmetallic minerals, but it does feature the world's largest brown coal deposits and, around Sale and offshore in the
Bass Strait Bass Strait () is a strait separating the island state of Tasmania from the Australian mainland (more specifically the coast of Victoria, with the exception of the land border across Boundary Islet). The strait provides the most direct waterwa ...
, some of the largest deposits of oil and natural gas in Australia. Like the rest of Australia, the seas around Gippsland are of very low productivity as there is no upwelling due to the warm currents in the Tasman Sea. Nonetheless, towns such as
Marlo Marlo is a name which may refer to: People Given name or nickname Notable people with the given name or nickname include: *Marlo Dahl (born 1972), Canadian curler *Marlo Hoogstraten (also known as MaRLo), Dutch DJ * Martin "Marlo" Hyland (1969–2 ...
and
Mallacoota Mallacoota is a small town in the East Gippsland region in the state of Victoria, Australia. At the 2016 census, Mallacoota had a population of 1,063. At holiday times, particularly Easter and Christmas, the population increases by about 8,000 ...
depended for a long time on the fishing of
abalone Abalone ( or ; via Spanish , from Rumsen ''aulón'') is a common name for any of a group of small to very large marine gastropod molluscs in the family (biology), family Haliotidae. Other common name In biology, a common name of a taxon o ...
, whose shells could fetch very high prices because of their use for pearls and pearl inlays.


Administration


Political representation

For Australian federal elections for the House of Representatives, the electoral divisions of
Flinders Flinders may refer to: Places Antarctica * Flinders Peak, near the west coast of the Antarctic Peninsula Australia New South Wales * Flinders County, New South Wales * Shellharbour Junction railway station, Shellharbour * Flinders, New South Wa ...
, Monash, and Gippsland lay entirely or partly in the Gippsland region. Flinders and McMillan are currently held by the Liberal Party, while Gippsland is held by the Nationals. For elections for the Victorian Legislative Assembly, the electoral districts of
Bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...
, Narracan, Morwell, Gippsland South and Gippsland East lay entirely or partly in the Gippsland region. Bass is held by Labor, Narracan is held by the Liberals while Gippsland East and Gippsland South are held by the Nationals. The remaining seat, Morwell, is held by Russell Northe, an independent who was originally elected as a Nationals MP.


Local government areas

Gippsland contains six
local government areas A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a state, province, division, or territory. The phrase i ...
:


Environmental protection

The Gippsland region contains the
Alfred National Park The Alfred National Park is a national park located in the East Gippsland region of the Australian States and territories of Australia, state of Victoria (Australia), Victoria. The national park is situated approximately east of Melbourne, Aus ...
, Baw Baw National Park,
Coopracambra National Park The Coopracambra National Park is a national park located in the Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia. The national park is situated approximately east of Melbourne and south of Canberra, near the town of . Features The northern boundar ...
, Croajingolong National Park, Errinundra National Park,
Gippsland Lakes Coastal Park The Gippsland Lakes Coastal Park is a coastal park in the East Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia. The park is located approximately east of the capital city of Melbourne. Location and features The park was established in April 1979 and ...
, Lind National Park, Mitchell River National Park, Morwell National Park, Snowy River National Park,
Tarra-Bulga National Park The Tarra-Bulga National Park is a small national park located in the South Gippsland region of eastern Victoria, Australia approximately south east of Melbourne. The park is located south of Traralgon on the Traralgon-Balook Road and north o ...
,
The Lakes National Park The Lakes National Park is a national park in the East Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia. The national park is located approximately east of the capital city of Melbourne. Location and features The park is set on the east shore of the ...
, and Wilsons Promontory National Park. There are also large areas of State forest that contribute towards conservation objectives.


See also

*
Geography of Victoria Victoria is the southernmost mainland state of Australia. With an area of , it is Australia's sixth largest state/territory, comparable in size to the island of Great Britain or the U.S. state of Utah. It is bound to the northwest by South Aust ...
*
Regions of Victoria The regions of Victoria vary according to the different ways that the Australian state of Victoria is divided into distinct geographic regions. The most commonly used regions are those created by the state government for the purposes of economic ...
*
Giant Gippsland earthworm The giant Gippsland earthworm, ''Megascolides australis'', is one of Australia's 1,000 native earthworm species. Description These giant earthworms average long and in diameter and can reach in length; however, their body is able to expand an ...
*
Gippsland massacres The Gippsland massacres were a series of mass murders of Gunai Kurnai people, an Aboriginal Australian people living in East Gippsland, Victoria, committed by European settlers and the Aboriginal Police during the Australian frontier wars. H ...
*
White woman of Gippsland The white woman of Gippsland, or the captive woman of Gippsland, was supposedly a European woman rumoured to have been held against her will by Aboriginal Kurnai people in the Gippsland region of Australia in the 1840s. Her supposed plight excit ...
*
Old Gippstown Old Gippstown is an open-air museum and reconstructed pioneer township located in Moe, Victoria, Australia. It portrays the settlement era of Gippsland from the 1850s through to the 1950s. Set in three hectares of parkland, the Park is now visi ...
* Gippsland Art Gallery


Notes


References

{{Authority control Regions of Victoria (Australia)