- NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT STRATEGY FOR THE NORTHERN AGRICULTURAL REGION OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA
The Shire of Northampton has an extensive and diverse Indian Ocean coastline extending northwards to the Murchison River at Kalbarri. Coastal environments include sandy beaches and dunes, limestone and sandstone cliffs, nearshore reefs, sheltered lagoons, river mouths and coastal wetlands. Horrocks and Port Gregory have sheltered coastal waters associated with offshore reef systems, while Kalbarri lies at the mouth of the Murchison River and is characterised by beaches, rocky shores and spectacular coastal cliffs. Nearshore reefs and other marine habitats support diverse marine life and important recreational and commercial fisheries. The coast is central to recreation and tourism within the Shire. Fishing, boating, swimming, surfing, snorkelling and diving are important activities, while Kalbarri National Park, the Murchison River mouth, coastal cliffs, Horrocks and Port Gregory attract visitors for their natural landscapes and marine environments. Coastal erosion, inundation, shoreline change and recreational pressure require ongoing management. Coastal planning seeks to protect environmental and landscape values while providing appropriate access, recreation and development, with specific management and adaptation planning undertaken for locations including Horrocks, Port Gregory and Kalbarri.
The Shire of Northampton has an extensive and diverse Indian Ocean coastline extending northwards to the Murchison River at Kalbarri. Coastal environments include sandy beaches and dunes, limestone and sandstone cliffs, nearshore reefs, sheltered lagoons, river mouths and coastal wetlands. Horrocks and Port Gregory have sheltered coastal waters associated with offshore reef systems, while Kalbarri lies at the mouth of the Murchison River and is characterised by beaches, rocky shores and spectacular coastal cliffs. Nearshore reefs and other marine habitats support diverse marine life and important recreational and commercial fisheries. The coast is central to recreation and tourism within the Shire. Fishing, boating, swimming, surfing, snorkelling and diving are important activities, while Kalbarri National Park, the Murchison River mouth, coastal cliffs, Horrocks and Port Gregory attract visitors for their natural landscapes and marine environments. Coastal erosion, inundation, shoreline change and recreational pressure require ongoing management. Coastal planning seeks to protect environmental and landscape values while providing appropriate access, recreation and development, with specific management and adaptation planning undertaken for locations including Horrocks, Port Gregory and Kalbarri.
The Shire of Northampton has a diverse economy based on agriculture, tourism, fishing, mining and resources, local services and other industries. Economic activity varies considerably across the Shire, reflecting the agricultural hinterland around Northampton and Binnu and the tourism and marine-based economy of Kalbarri and the coastal communities.
Broadacre cropping and livestock production are major economic activities across the agricultural areas of the Shire. Farming supports agricultural services, grain handling, transport and other businesses, with Northampton providing an important service centre for the surrounding rural district.
Tourism is particularly important at Kalbarri, where Kalbarri National Park, the Murchison River, coastal cliffs, beaches and marine recreation attract visitors throughout the year. Horrocks and Port Gregory also support tourism associated with fishing, beaches, boating and coastal recreation.
Commercial fishing and aquaculture-related activities, mining and mineral processing, and other industrial activities further diversify the economy. The Shire is also seeking opportunities associated with renewable energy and new industries while maintaining the viability of its established agricultural, fishing and tourism sectors.
The Shire of Northampton has a diverse geological and physical landscape. Much of the central Shire is underlain by ancient crystalline rocks of the Northampton Complex, while sedimentary rocks and younger deposits occur elsewhere. The landscape includes the Victoria Plateau and sandplain in the east and north, dissected country through the west and south, and younger coastal landforms along the Indian Ocean.
The Victoria Plateau is characterised by broad lateritic surfaces and overlying sandplains. Along its western margins, erosion by rivers has produced dissected landscapes of plateau remnants, breakaways, slopes and valleys. Around Northampton, Isseka and Ajana, erosion has exposed older basement rocks. Coastal landscapes include Tamala Limestone, older dune systems and younger Quindalup dunes, together with estuarine and lagoon environments such as Hutt Lagoon.
Soils vary considerably across the Shire. Yellow to red sands are widespread, with yellow sands more prominent in higher-rainfall western areas and redder sands becoming more common towards the east. Red-brown loams and clays occur through parts of the Northampton area, while alluvial valleys support sandy loams, loams and other relatively fertile soils. Lateritic gravels and shallow soils occur on plateau remnants and breakaways, and younger coastal dunes are dominated by calcareous sands.
The Shire extends across parts of the Geraldton Hills (GES01) subregion of the Geraldton Sandplains bioregion and the Kalbarri (GS01) subregion of the Carnarvon bioregion. Its large geographic extent supports diverse vegetation, ranging from species-rich heathlands and shrublands on coastal and inland sandplains to Acacia shrublands, mallee and eucalypt woodlands associated with valleys, river systems and inland landscapes.
Several ecological communities of conservation significance occur within the Shire. These include the Priority 1 Shrublands of the Northampton area, dominated by Melaleuca species over exposed Kockatea Shale. This community occurs on unusual exposures of Kockatea Shale and supports distinctive heath and shrubland vegetation.
The Plant assemblages of the Moresby Range system are also recognised as a Priority 1 ecological community. The community includes Melaleuca megacephala and Hakea pycnoneura thickets on stony slopes, Verticordia-dominated low heath and other shrublands associated with the distinctive lateritic landscapes of the Moresby Range.
In the northern part of the Shire, the Kalbarri ironstone community is a Priority 1 ecological community associated with shallow red soils over ironstone. It comprises winter-wet Melaleuca and mallee shrublands over herbs and supports flora associated with these unusual iron-rich substrates.
The nationally listed Subtropical and Temperate Coastal Saltmarsh ecological community also occurs within coastal parts of the Shire. It is listed as Vulnerable under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 and includes salt-tolerant vegetation associated with intertidal and supratidal coastal environments.
Land use within the Shire of Northampton varies considerably from south to north. Agriculture is concentrated primarily in the southern and central parts of the Shire, where broadacre cropping and livestock production occupy extensive areas around Northampton, Binnu and surrounding rural districts.
Further north, pastoral and other extensive rural land uses occur alongside large areas of Crown land and conservation estate. Kalbarri National Park protects extensive areas surrounding the lower Murchison River and its gorges, as well as significant coastal and inland environments. Other reserves protect important coastal, riverine and native vegetation habitats throughout the Shire.
Urban, commercial and community land uses are concentrated in Northampton, Kalbarri, Horrocks and Port Gregory, with smaller settlements and rural communities elsewhere. Tourism and recreation are particularly significant land uses around Kalbarri and the coastal settlements, while fishing, mining, resource-related activities and renewable-energy development also contribute to the Shire’s diverse land-use pattern.
Land-use planning seeks to maintain productive agricultural and rural land while protecting biodiversity, waterways, coastal environments, landscape and heritage values. Managing development and recreational pressures around settlements, conservation areas and the coast is particularly important in maintaining the Shire’s environmental values.
The Shire of Northampton has a dispersed population living across the major centres of Northampton and Kalbarri, the smaller coastal communities of Horrocks and Port Gregory, and farming and rural properties throughout the district. Northampton provides services to the surrounding agricultural area, while Kalbarri is a major tourism and coastal community.
At the 2021 Census, the Shire of Northampton had 3,227 residents. The median age was 53 years, and 184 people — 5.7% of the population — identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander.
Agriculture, tourism, fishing, resources and local services influence employment and community life across different parts of the Shire. Its geographically dispersed communities make access to services, community organisations, sporting and recreational facilities and volunteering important to local communities.
Water resources within the Shire of Northampton vary considerably across its large geographic area. The Murchison River is the dominant waterway in the north, flowing through Kalbarri National Park and extensive gorge systems before reaching the Indian Ocean at Kalbarri. Further south, smaller rivers, seasonal streams, pools, soaks and springs occur across the agricultural and coastal landscapes. Hutt Lagoon near Port Gregory is one of the Shire’s most distinctive water environments. Other wetlands are relatively limited, although temporary wetlands occur along stream systems and permanent or semi-permanent pools provide important habitat within some river systems. Groundwater resources also vary considerably. Kalbarri is supplied from groundwater associated with the Tumblagooda Sandstone, while groundwater in much of the southern Shire can be saline and limited in quantity. Northampton receives scheme water via the Geraldton–Northampton pipeline, while other communities use a combination of groundwater and local water-supply infrastructure. Water security, groundwater protection, salinity, water quality and sustainable use are important management considerations. In agricultural areas, reliable emergency water supplies are particularly important during dry periods, while protection of river systems, wetlands and drinking-water sources is essential for communities and environmental values.
| Drainage Basin | Length (km) | Catchment Area (km2) | Average Stream Salinity (mg/L) | Key Characteristics |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greenough | 50 | 715/td> | 1000-35000 | Drains the farming areas in and around the Waterloo Range, comprising small estuaries, with average depths of less than 3 metres. Only open to the ocean for a few days, mainly during the months of June and August. |
