| Hunter Region New South Wales |
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View across the Hunter Valley |
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Hunter Region
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| Population: | 645,395[1] | ||||||||||||
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| Location: | 120 km (75 mi) N of Sydney | ||||||||||||
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The Hunter Region, more commonly known as the Hunter Valley, is a region of New South Wales, Australia, extending from approximately 120 km (75 mi) to 310 km (193 mi) north of Sydney with an approximate population of 645,395 people.[1] Most of the population of the Hunter Region lives within 25 km (16 mi) of the coast, with 55% of the entire population living in the cities of Newcastle and Lake Macquarie. There are numerous other towns and villages scattered across the valley in the eleven Local Government Areas that make up the region. The eleven LGAs are:[2]
The Hunter Region contains the Hunter River and its tributaries with highland areas to the north and south.[3] The Hunter Valley is one of the largest river valleys on the NSW coast, and is most commonly known for its wineries and coal industry.
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The main river is the Hunter River, after which the region is named. There are several other rivers including the Williams, Karuah, Chichester, Goulburn, Pages, Paterson, Avon and Gloucester.
Fresh water supply for the region is provided from a number of sources.[4] Glenbawn, Chichester and Lostock are dams on the Hunter, Chichester and Paterson rivers respectively. Grahamstown Dam, the largest dam in the region, is supplied with water diverted from the Williams River just north of the Seaham Weir.[4] A proposal to build Tillegra Dam on the Williams River has existed since the 1950s.[4] In addition to the dams, fresh water for the lower Hunter region is supplied from the Tomago Sandbeds.
Newcastle, situated at the mouth of the Hunter River, is the largest city in the region. Its immediate metropolitan area includes Lake Macquarie, though its statistical division also includes the Maitland, Cessnock and Port Stephens areas. Other major centres of the Hunter Region are Dungog, Forster/Tuncurry, Gloucester, Kurri Kurri, Muswellbrook, Scone and Singleton.
The main industries in the Hunter Region are coal mining, agriculture, viticulture and wine making, tourism, horse breeding, electricity production, dairy farming and beef cattle farming, and associated service industries. The Hunter Region is one of Australia's most famous wine-growing regions, known for both its red and white wine varieties.
The most important economic activity in the valley is coal mining (through businesses such as Rio Tinto & BHP Billiton), mostly for export. There is increasing tension between the coal mining industry and some other industries because of the environmental impacts of coal mining including dust, water usage, water contamination, and destruction of agricultural land, and the impact of coal trucks on local and regional roads. The port at Newcastle is the world's largest export facility for coal, most of which is brought to the port via railway. Coal ships are often seen off the coast of Newcastle. Climate change activists have staged direct actions at the coal port on a number of occasions.
Electricity generation at the Eraring, Bayswater, Liddell, Munmorah, Redbank and Vales Point coal fired power stations is a major industry of the region.
The Hunter Valley is Australia's main region for the breeding and rearing of Thoroughbred horses.[5] The Upper Hunter area around Scone is one of the largest horse breeding areas in the world.
The Hunter Valley is a major tourist destination in New South Wales and is the 6th most visited place in Australia attracting more than 2.5 million people annually. There are regular events held in the Hunter for visitors, including the Hunter Valley Steam Trains running the first three Sundays of each month and regular scenic cruises on the Hunter River and Lake Macquarie.
Pokolbin is the centre of the Hunter Valley Wine Country. It is located between the towns of Cessnock and Branxton, about 50 km (31 mi) west of Newcastle. The wine country is primarily located within the Cessnock and Singleton LGAs. Its proximity to Sydney has been an influence on the area’s investments in wine production and its emergence as a tourist destination. Much of the rolling countryside around Pokolbin is under vine with the traditional varieties Shiraz and Semillon as well as extensive plantings of Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and small quantities of Pinot Noir. The Pokolbin area has a large number of vineyards, restaurants, shops, golf courses and country guesthouses. Other parts of the valley including the Wollombi Valley and Broke Fordwich Wine Region are also well known for wine.Approximately 48,300 people reside in the area.
The Hunter region contains the Goulburn River National Park, Myall Lakes National Park, Barrington Tops National Park, Werakata National Park, Watagans National Park, Mount Royal National Park, Polkolbin State Forest, Putty State Forest, Chichester State Forest, Running Creek Nature Reserve, The Glen Nature Reserve, Black Bulga State Conservation Area, Myall River State Forest and Karuah Nature Reserve,