Cumberland Plain
Encyclopedia
The Cumberland Plain is a region in the Sydney Basin
of New South Wales
, Australia
. The plain extends from 10 kilometres north of Windsor
in the north, to Picton
in the south; and
from the Nepean-Hawkesbury River in the west almost to Sydney City's Inner West
in the east. Much of the Sydney
metropolitan area
is located on the Plain.
The plain takes its name from Cumberland County
, in which it is situated, one of the cadastral land divisions
of New South Wales. The name Cumberland was conferred on the County by Governor Phillip in honour of Ernest Augustus
, Duke of Cumberland.
, Baulkham Hills Shire
, City of Blacktown
, Camden Council, City of Canada Bay
, City of Fairfield
, City of Hawkesbury
, Hornsby Shire
, City of Holroyd
, City of Liverpool, City of Parramatta
, City of Penrith
, City of Ryde
and Wollondilly Shire; and parts of City of Campbelltown and several inner-western councils.
The Hawkesbury
/Nepean, Parramatta and Cooks
rivers run through parts of the plain.
shales
and sandstones. The region mostly consists of low rolling hills and wide valleys in a rain shadow
area near the Blue Mountains. There are volcanic rocks from low hills in the shale landscapes. Swamps and lagoons are existent on the floodplain of the Nepean River
. Soils are usually red and yellow in texture.
over the plain has placed enormous pressure on the woodlands and other local ecological communities, only 13 per cent of which remain uncleared.
Cleared and used first for agriculture and then for urban development, most of the ecological communities that originally flourished on the plain are now considered endangered. They include:
Cumberland Plain Woodland, of which around six per cent remains in isolated stands, was the first Australian ecological community to be assigned this status.
Cumberland Plain communities are protected in a number of council reserves, plus the Lower Prospect Canal Reserve, Scheyville National Park, Windsor Downs Nature Reserve, Leacock Regional Park and Mulgoa Nature Reserve and Mount Annan Botanic Garden
.
Sydney Basin
The Sydney Basin is a sedimentary basin on the east coast of New South Wales, Australia consisting of Permian and Triassic sedimentary rocks...
of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The plain extends from 10 kilometres north of Windsor
Windsor, New South Wales
Windsor is a town in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Windsor is located in the local government area of the City of Hawkesbury. It sits on the Hawkesbury River, on the north-western outskirts of the Sydney metropolitan area. At the 2006 census, Windsor had a population of...
in the north, to Picton
Picton, New South Wales
Picton is a small town in the Macarthur Region of New South Wales, Australia, in the Wollondilly Shire. The town is located 80 kilometres South-west of Sydney, close to Camden and Campbelltown. It is also the administrative centre of Wollondilly Shire....
in the south; and
from the Nepean-Hawkesbury River in the west almost to Sydney City's Inner West
Inner West (Sydney)
The Inner West is a general term which is used to describe the metropolitan area directly to the west of the Sydney central business district, New South Wales, Australia...
in the east. Much of the Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
metropolitan area
Metropolitan area
The term metropolitan area refers to a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories, sharing industry, infrastructure, and housing. A metropolitan area usually encompasses multiple jurisdictions and municipalities: neighborhoods, townships,...
is located on the Plain.
The plain takes its name from Cumberland County
Cumberland County, New South Wales
Cumberland County is a county in the State of New South Wales, Australia. Most of the Sydney metropolitan area is located within the County of Cumberland....
, in which it is situated, one of the cadastral land divisions
Cadastral divisions of Australia
Lands administrative divisions of Australia refers to the parts of Australia which are divided into the cadastral units of counties, parishes, hundreds, and other divisions for the purposes of land ownership...
of New South Wales. The name Cumberland was conferred on the County by Governor Phillip in honour of Ernest Augustus
Ernest Augustus I of Hanover
Ernest Augustus I was King of Hanover from 20 June 1837 until his death. He was the fifth son and eighth child of George III, who reigned in both the United Kingdom and Hanover...
, Duke of Cumberland.
Geography
The Cumberland Plain is located within the local government areas of Auburn CouncilAuburn Council
Auburn Council is the governing body of a local government area in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, about 15 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district...
, Baulkham Hills Shire
Baulkham Hills Shire
The Hills Shire is a local government area of in the north western region of Sydney, Australia. The area encompasses 380 square kilometres stretching from North Parramatta in the south to Wiseman's Ferry on the Hawkesbury River in the north.-Incomes:According to the Australian Bureau of...
, City of Blacktown
City of Blacktown
The City of Blacktown is a Local Government Area in the heart of Western Sydney, situated on the Cumberland Plain, approximately 35 km from Sydney CBD. It is bounded by the Local Government Areas of Penrith, Parramatta, Fairfield, Holroyd, Hawkesbury and The Hills Shire. It occupies an area...
, Camden Council, City of Canada Bay
City of Canada Bay
The City of Canada Bay is a Local Government Area of New South Wales, Australia and located in the metropolitan area of Sydney. The city was formed in December 2000, following the merger of Concord and Drummoyne councils...
, City of Fairfield
City of Fairfield
The City of Fairfield is a Local Government Area in the south-west of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia.- Suburbs in the local government area :Suburbs in the City of Fairfield are:* Abbotsbury* Bonnyrigg* Bonnyrigg Heights* Bossley Park...
, City of Hawkesbury
City of Hawkesbury
The City of Hawkesbury is a Local Government Area of New South Wales, Australia, part of which is at the fringe of the Sydney metropolitan area, about 50 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district...
, Hornsby Shire
Hornsby Shire
Hornsby Shire is a Local Government Area in the Northern region of Sydney, Australia. The Shire stretches from the suburb of Eastwood in the south to the Hawkesbury River town of Wisemans Ferry, some to the north...
, City of Holroyd
City of Holroyd
Holroyd is a Local Government Area and suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, located in the Western Sydney region. Originally known as the Municipality of Prospect and Sherwood it was incorporated in February 1872, in 1927 it was renamed the Municipality of Holroyd after Arthur Holroyd,...
, City of Liverpool, City of Parramatta
City of Parramatta
The City of Parramatta is a Local Government Area in western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia.Initially in 1861 it was formed as Municipality of Parramatta...
, City of Penrith
City of Penrith
The City of Penrith is a Local Government Area in Sydney, located about west of Sydney's central business district.- History :The Municipality of Penrith was incorporated on 12 May 1871 under the Municipalities Act 1858. On 3 March 1890, St Marys was separately incorporated, and on 26 July 1893...
, City of Ryde
City of Ryde
The City of Ryde is a Local Government Area in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, on the Lower North Shore and Greater Western Sydney over West Ryde and Eastwood District....
and Wollondilly Shire; and parts of City of Campbelltown and several inner-western councils.
The Hawkesbury
Hawkesbury River
The Hawkesbury River, also known as Deerubbun, is one of the major rivers of the coastal region of New South Wales, Australia. The Hawkesbury River and its tributaries virtually encircle the metropolitan region of Sydney.-Geography:-Course:...
/Nepean, Parramatta and Cooks
Cooks River
The Cooks River is a 23 kilometre long urban waterway of south-western Sydney, New South Wales, Australia emptying into Botany Bay. The course of the river has been altered to accommodate various developments along its shore...
rivers run through parts of the plain.
Geology
The area lies on TriassicTriassic
The Triassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about 250 to 200 Mya . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic. Both the start and end of the Triassic are marked by major extinction events...
shales
Shalës
Shalës is a municipality in the Elbasan District, Elbasan County, central Albania. The municipality consists of the villages Shalës, Licaj, Kurtalli, Xibrake, Xherie and Kodras....
and sandstones. The region mostly consists of low rolling hills and wide valleys in a rain shadow
Rain shadow
A rain shadow is a dry area on the lee side of a mountainous area. The mountains block the passage of rain-producing weather systems, casting a "shadow" of dryness behind them. As shown by the diagram to the right, the warm moist air is "pulled" by the prevailing winds over a mountain...
area near the Blue Mountains. There are volcanic rocks from low hills in the shale landscapes. Swamps and lagoons are existent on the floodplain of the Nepean River
Nepean River
The Nepean River is a river in the coastal region of New South Wales, Australia.The headwaters of the Nepean River rise near Robertson, about 100 kilometres south of Sydney and about 15 kilometres from the coast. The river flows north in an unpopulated water catchment area into Nepean Dam, which...
. Soils are usually red and yellow in texture.
Ecology
At the time of European settlement, the Cumberland Plain contained 1,070 km² of woodlands and forests. The westward expansion of SydneySydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
over the plain has placed enormous pressure on the woodlands and other local ecological communities, only 13 per cent of which remain uncleared.
Cleared and used first for agriculture and then for urban development, most of the ecological communities that originally flourished on the plain are now considered endangered. They include:
- Cumberland Plain woodland
- Shale/sandstone transition forest
- Sydney coastal river-flat forest
- Elderslie banksia scrub
- Blue gum high forest
- Sydney turpentine ironbark forest
- Western Sydney dry rainforest
- Castlereagh swamp woodland
- Agnes Banks woodland
- Cooks River/Castlereagh ironbark forest
- Moist shale woodland
- Shale gravel transition forest
Cumberland Plain Woodland, of which around six per cent remains in isolated stands, was the first Australian ecological community to be assigned this status.
Cumberland Plain communities are protected in a number of council reserves, plus the Lower Prospect Canal Reserve, Scheyville National Park, Windsor Downs Nature Reserve, Leacock Regional Park and Mulgoa Nature Reserve and Mount Annan Botanic Garden
Mount Annan Botanic Garden
Mount Annan Botanic Garden is a 416 hectare botanical garden in a hilly area of the southwestern Sydney suburb of Mount Annan, between Campbelltown and Camden, Australia. The Garden opened to the public in 1988, specializing in native plants, with a collection of over 4000 species. It is the...
.