Kalka, South Australia
Encyclopedia
Kalka is an Aboriginal
community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands
in South Australia
administered under the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Land Rights Act
. At the 2006 census
, Kalka had a population of 114.
, right alongside the Gunbarrel Highway
. The Kalka community is just kilometres from the Surveyor-General's Corner (the intersection of the South Australia
, Western Australia
and Northern Territory
borders). The community of Pipalyatjara
is situated 15 kilometres away by road, on the south side of the mountain ridge of which Kalka sits on the north. Kalka is situated at the foot of the Tomkinson Ranges.
, Kalka experiences summer maximum temperatures of an average of 37.2 degrees celsius in January and a winter maximum average temperature of 19.9 degrees celsius in July. Overnight lows range from a mean minimum temperature of 23.5 degrees in January to 6.8 degrees in June.
Annual rainfall averages 284.2 millimetres.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics
' 2001 Census indicated a total population of 139, with 90.6% being Indigenous Australians
. The residents are mainly Anangu
people with a small non-Anangu population.
A fortnightly truck brings fresh, frozen and dry groceries and other freight to the community.
There is no school or health clinic at Kalka, both services of which are supplied from nearby Pipalyatjara.
A Technical and Further Education (TAFE) facility provides education on running a store or office, computer and Internet use. The TAFE also assists students in getting their driver's licence.
The Kalka community also has a small community store (said to be the only Anangu-run store on the APY Lands), a craft facility, children's playground, basketball court, administrative office and mechanic garage.
The South Australian Department for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation
(DAARE) provide many essesntial services.
Essential services support comes via Pipalyatjara
.
Kalka does not have a permanent police presence. South Australian police are based at Marla and run patrols in the area. Unlike other communities on the APY Lands, no community constable is based at Kalka..
A mobile polling booth visits nearby Pipalyatjara
for elections every 4 years to elect the Parliament of South Australia
.
A permit is required for a member of the public to visit any community on the APY Lands, as they are freehold lands
owned by the Aboriginal people
.
Alix Delaroza's mum lives here.
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands
Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara
Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara is a large Aboriginal local government area located in the remote north west of South Australia...
in South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
administered under the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Land Rights Act
Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Land Rights Act, 1981
The Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Land Rights Act, 1981 grants certain land and other rights to the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara people in South Australia....
. At the 2006 census
Census in Australia
The Australian census is administered once every five years by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The most recent census was conducted on 9 August 2011; the next will be conducted in 2016. Prior to the introduction of regular censuses in 1961, they had also been run in 1901, 1911, 1921, 1933,...
, Kalka had a population of 114.
Geography
Kalka is situated in the far northwest of South AustraliaSouth Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
, right alongside the Gunbarrel Highway
Gunbarrel Highway
The Gunbarrel Highway is an isolated desert track in the Northern Territory, South Australia and Western Australia. It consists of about of washaways, heavy corrugations, stone, sand and flood plains...
. The Kalka community is just kilometres from the Surveyor-General's Corner (the intersection of the South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
, Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
and Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
borders). The community of Pipalyatjara
Pipalyatjara, South Australia
Pipalyatjara is an Aboriginal community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands in South Australia, comprising one of the six main communities on "The Lands"...
is situated 15 kilometres away by road, on the south side of the mountain ridge of which Kalka sits on the north. Kalka is situated at the foot of the Tomkinson Ranges.
Climate
Based upon the climate records of the nearest weather station at Giles across the border and slightly to the northwest in Western AustraliaWestern Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
, Kalka experiences summer maximum temperatures of an average of 37.2 degrees celsius in January and a winter maximum average temperature of 19.9 degrees celsius in July. Overnight lows range from a mean minimum temperature of 23.5 degrees in January to 6.8 degrees in June.
Annual rainfall averages 284.2 millimetres.
Population
According to local media, Kalka's population is approximately 150 people.The Australian Bureau of Statistics
Australian Bureau of Statistics
The Australian Bureau of Statistics is Australia's national statistical agency. It was created as the Commonwealth Bureau of Census and Statistics on 8 December 1905, when the Census and Statistics Act 1905 was given Royal assent. It had its beginnings in section 51 of the Constitution of Australia...
' 2001 Census indicated a total population of 139, with 90.6% being Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
. The residents are mainly Anangu
Anangu
Anangu, more accurately "Aṉaŋu" or "Arnangu" is a word found in a number of eastern varieties of the Western Desert Language , an Australian Aboriginal language of the Pama–Nyungan family, spoken in the desert regions of western and central Australia. Before the arrival of non-Aboriginal people in...
people with a small non-Anangu population.
History
PY Media reports:Kalka Community is the administrative and residential centre for Pitjantjatjara Homelands Council. PHC is an incorporated Aboriginal organisation that exists to further the social, economic, political and cultural interests of its members. PHC was born out of the Aboriginal homelands movement of the 1970s when Anangu left the missions and government settlements to the east and west and returned to their traditional country. Many Anangu had been brought into or were attracted into these settlements during the 1950s and 1960s when the Australian Government ran the Maralinga atomic bomb tests and Woomera rocket tests. Kalka was originally planned as a resource centre for surrounding homelands but by the early 1990s it had developed into a small Aboriginal community with the full range of housing, infrastructure and service needs.
Facilities
Kalka Community has an unsealed airstrip. None of the roads within the community are sealed, though work to seal the roads was scheduled for completion by mid-2007 .A fortnightly truck brings fresh, frozen and dry groceries and other freight to the community.
There is no school or health clinic at Kalka, both services of which are supplied from nearby Pipalyatjara.
A Technical and Further Education (TAFE) facility provides education on running a store or office, computer and Internet use. The TAFE also assists students in getting their driver's licence.
The Kalka community also has a small community store (said to be the only Anangu-run store on the APY Lands), a craft facility, children's playground, basketball court, administrative office and mechanic garage.
The South Australian Department for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation
(DAARE) provide many essesntial services.
Essential services support comes via Pipalyatjara
Pipalyatjara, South Australia
Pipalyatjara is an Aboriginal community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands in South Australia, comprising one of the six main communities on "The Lands"...
.
Kalka does not have a permanent police presence. South Australian police are based at Marla and run patrols in the area. Unlike other communities on the APY Lands, no community constable is based at Kalka..
A mobile polling booth visits nearby Pipalyatjara
Pipalyatjara, South Australia
Pipalyatjara is an Aboriginal community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands in South Australia, comprising one of the six main communities on "The Lands"...
for elections every 4 years to elect the Parliament of South Australia
Parliament of South Australia
The Parliament of South Australia is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of South Australia. It consists of the Legislative Council and the House of Assembly. It follows a Westminster system of parliamentary government....
.
A permit is required for a member of the public to visit any community on the APY Lands, as they are freehold lands
Fee simple
In English law, a fee simple is an estate in land, a form of freehold ownership. It is the most common way that real estate is owned in common law countries, and is ordinarily the most complete ownership interest that can be had in real property short of allodial title, which is often reserved...
owned by the Aboriginal people
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
.
Alix Delaroza's mum lives here.