| Liverpool Plains Shire New South Wales |
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Location in New South Wales |
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| Population: | 7,941(2009)[1] | ||||||||||||
| • Density: | 1.55/km² (4.0/sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Area: | 5086 km² (1,963.7 sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Mayor: | Ian Lobsey | ||||||||||||
| Council Seat: | Quirindi (60 Station Street) | ||||||||||||
| Region: | North West Slopes | ||||||||||||
| State District: | Upper Hunter, Tamworth | ||||||||||||
| Federal Division: | New England | ||||||||||||
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The Liverpool Plains is a geographical area and Local Government Area (LGA) in the North West Slopes, New South Wales.
The Shire was formed on 17 March 2004 by the amalgamation of Quirindi Shire with parts of three other shires: Parry, Murrurundi and Gunnedah.
The Liverpool Plains have a generally flat to undulating terrain formed from the remnants of old volcanoes such as that of the Liverpool Ranges to the southwest. To the south and east, it merges into the higher and cooler Northern Tablelands.
The Liverpool Plains is generally regarded as the richest agricultural region in Australia owing to its rich black soils, which originally supported a mixed grassland vegetation containing both annual and perennial grasses, which early in the region's history were used to feed cattle and sheep.
Wheat and cotton are the chief crops, although production fluctuates wildly according to rainfall and soil erosion is a major problem occurring both after droughts and floods. The climate is hot in summer, mild in winter, and of moderate rainfall. The average is generally around 635 millimetres (25 inches) with a slight summer maximum, but is quite erratic and can vary from 1,150 millimetres (45 inches) in very wet years to as little as 370 millimetres (15 inches). Temperatures in summer frequently exceed 35°C (95°F) and make cropping without irrigation risky without sophisticated meteorological forecasting techniques.