Western River Wilderness Protection Area

For other uses, see Western River.

Western River Wilderness Protection Area, formerly the Western River Conservation Park and the Western River National Park, is a protected area in the Australian state of South Australia located on the north coast of Kangaroo Island about 30 kilometres (19 mi) west of Parndana in the gazetted locality of Western River. Waterfall Creek, with its scenic Billy Goat Waterfall, are within the area.

Western River Wilderness Protection Area South Australia
IUCN category Ib (wilderness area)^[1]
Western River Wilderness Protection Area
Nearest town or city	Parndana
Coordinates	35°42′00″S 136°54′30″E / 35.70000°S 136.90833°E / -35.70000; 136.90833
Established	21 January 1971^[2]
Area	24.67 km^2 (9.5 sq mi)^[3]
Managing authorities	Department for Environment and Water
See also	Protected areas of South Australia

Description

The wilderness protection area has an area of 24.67 square kilometres (9.53 sq mi). The topography is rugged, with numerous steep slopes and deep gullies. The vegetation consists mainly of open forest, woodland and scrub associations dominated by Eucalyptus cladocalyx, E. baxteri, E. diversifolia and E. cosmophylla. There are also areas of Allocasuarina muelleriana open heath and A. verticillata low open forest. It contains nesting and feeding habitat for Glossy Black Cockatoos.^[4][5]

The wilderness protection area is classified as an IUCN Category Ib protected area.^[1]

Scenic features include the coastal cliffs and the waterfall on Waterfall Creek,^[4] known as Billy Goat Watefall^[6] or Falls (or Billygoat Falls).^[7]

History

The land under protection first gained protected area status as the Western River National Park proclaimed on 21 January 1971 under the National Parks Act 1966 in respect to land in sections 8 and 47 in the cadastral unit of the Hundred of Gosse.^[2]

On 27 April 1972, the national park was reconstituted as the Western River Conservation Park under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972.^[8]

On 15 October 1993, the majority of its extent was proclaimed under the Wilderness Protection Act 1992 as a wilderness protection area with the remainder being added on the 5 October 2006.^{[9][10][11][12]}

In 1980, it was listed on the now-defunct Register of the National Estate.^[5]

Wilderness qualities

The following qualities have been identified by the government agency managing the wilderness protection area:^[10]

While there are some relatively minor impacts of modern technology, the area has distinctive wilderness attributes and warrants protection and restoration in accordance with the provisions of the Act. In addition to its rugged terrain and high coastal cliffs that are characteristic of the northern coast of Kangaroo Island, Western River Wilderness Protection Area is highly valued for the presence of habitat for the endangered Glossy Black-cockatoo. Plant species diversity is high and the vegetation exhibits a wide cross-section of Kangaroo Island vegetation.

References

1. "CAPAD 2012 South Australia Summary (see 'DETAIL' tab)". CAPAD 2012. Australian Government - Department of the Environment. 6 February 2014. Retrieved 6 February 2014.
2. Shard, A.J. (21 January 1971). "NATIONAL PARKS ACT, 1966: VARIOUS NATIONAL PARKS DECLARED" (PDF). The South Australian Government Gazette. South Australian Government. pp. 186–187. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
3. "Protected Areas Information System - reserve list (as of 17 Feb 2014)" (PDF). Department of Environment Water and Natural Resources. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
4. Anon (1987). Conservation Parks of Kangaroo Island Management Plan (PDF). Adelaide: Department of Environment and Planning, South Australia. ISBN 0-7243-8983-0.
5. "Western River Conservation Park - listing on the now-defunct Register of the National Estate (Place ID 7449)". Australian Heritage Database. Australian Government. 21 October 1980. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
6. "Waterfall Creek Hike, Western River Wilderness Protection Area". Walking SA. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
7. "Billygoat Falls Walking Trail". All Trails. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
8. "No. 56 of 1972 (National Parks and Wildlife Act, 1972)". The South Australian Government Gazette. Government of South Australia: 660 & 701. 27 April 1972. Retrieved 27 May 2018.
9. Wiese, B.J. (15 October 1993). "WILDERNESS PROTECTION ACT 1992 SECTION 22(1): CONSTITUTION OF RAVINE DES CASOARS WILDERNESS PROTECTION AREA" (PDF). The South Australian Government Gazette. Government of South Australia. p. 1755. Retrieved 25 January 2019.
10. "Wilderness Advisory Committee Annual Report 2012-13" (PDF). Annual Report: 19. September 2013. ISSN 1832-9357. Retrieved 17 March 2014.
11. "Search result for "Western River Wilderness Protection Area" (Record no SA0020593 with the following layers selected - "Suburbs and Localities", "Place names (gazetteer)" and "Development Plan Layers")". Property Location Browser. Government of South Australia. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
12. "Wilderness Protection (Western River Wilderness Protection Area) Proclamation 2006". The South Australian Government Gazette. Government of South Australia. 5 October 2006. p. 3662. Retrieved 26 January 2019.

External links

• Western River Wilderness Protection Area webpage on protected planet