The Spectacles is a mixed-use

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...

located in the

City of Kwinana The City of Kwinana is a local government area of Western Australia. It covers an area of approximately 118 square kilometres in metropolitan Perth, and lies about 38 km south of Perth central business district, via the Kwinana Freew ...

within the

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

Metropolitan Region, the state capital 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 comprises almost entirely a

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

reserve, The Spectacles Wetlands, surrounded by degraded native

bushland In Australia, bushland is a blanket term for land which supports remnant vegetation or land which is disturbed but still retains a predominance of the original floristics and structure. Human survival in bushland has a whole mythology evolving ...

. A small number of

residential A residential area is a land used in which housing predominates, as opposed to industrial and commercial areas. Housing may vary significantly between, and through, residential areas. These include single-family housing, multi-family residen ...

housing properties lie in the south-eastern corner of the suburb. The Spectacles wetland area is considered to be the most valuable asset of Kwinana's natural environment, covering 3.7 square kilometres. It is named The Spectacles because it comprises two lakes connected by a drain, giving it the appearance of a pair of

spectacles Glasses, also known as eyeglasses or spectacles, are vision eyewear, with lenses (clear or tinted) mounted in a frame that holds them in front of a person's eyes, typically utilizing a bridge over the nose and hinged arms (known as temples o ...

from an aerial perspective. One third of The Spectacles is owned by

Alcoa Alcoa Corporation (an acronym for Aluminum Company of America) is a Pittsburgh-based industrial corporation. It is the world's eighth-largest producer of aluminum. Alcoa conducts operations in 10 countries. Alcoa is a major producer of primary ...

and was originally intended for residue disposal. As The Spectacles was not suitable for this purpose and the

conservation Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. Conservation may also refer to: Environment and natural resources * Nature conservation, the protection and manageme ...

value of the wetlands was recognised, Alcoa funded extensive rehabilitation and provided parking, picnic areas, walk trails, cycle paths, a board walk and bird hides to enable viewing of a number of species of native birds, including the rufous night heron. The Spectacles actually contains two major wetlands, including the southernmost wetlands within

Beeliar Regional Park Beeliar Regional Park is a conservation park approximately south of the central business district in Perth, Western Australia, located within the Citys of Cockburn, Kwinana and Melville. The regional park is named after the indigenous Beel ...

and is surrounded by

banksia ''Banksia'' is a genus of around 170 species in the plant family Proteaceae. These Australian wildflowers and popular garden plants are easily recognised by their characteristic flower spikes, and fruiting "cones" and heads. ''Banksias'' range i ...

woodland. To date $250,000 has been spent on many different walk trails, signage and boardwalks in this area.

References

External links

* * * Suburbs of Perth, Western Australia Swan Coastal Plain Protected areas of Western Australia Suburbs in the City of Kwinana {{PerthAU-geo-stub