RDA Adelaide Hills, Fleurieu and Kangaroo Island

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RDA Adelaide Hills, Fleurieu and Kangaroo Island

About the area

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Key Statistics

Location

The RDA Adelaide Hills, Fleurieu and Kangaroo Island Region is located to the east, south and south-west of Adelaide, between 10 and 110 kilometres from the Adelaide CBD. The RDA Adelaide Hills, Fleurieu and Kangaroo Island Region is bounded by the City of Tea Tree Gully, the City of Playford and the Barossa Council area in the north, the Mid Murray Council area and the Rural City of Murray Bridge in the east, Lake Alexandrina, The Coorong District Council area and the Southern Ocean in the south, and the Southern Ocean, the City of Onkaparinga, the City of Mitcham, the City of Burnside and the City of Campbelltown in the west.

Included Areas

The RDA Adelaide Hills, Fleurieu and Kangaroo Island Region includes six municipalities: the Adelaide Hills Council area, the Alexandrina Council area, the Kangaroo Island Council area, the District Council of Mount Barker area, the City of Victor Harbor and the District Council of Yankalilla area.

Land Use

p>The RDA Adelaide Hills, Fleurieu and Kangaroo Island Region is predominantly rural, with substantial rural-residential areas and growing township and holiday areas. The Region includes the major centres of Mount Barker and Victor Harbor, the townships of Goolwa, Kingscote, Normanville, Port Elliot, Stirling, Strathalbyn and Yankalilla, and numerous smaller townships, villages and settlements. The Region encompasses a total land area of 8,752 square kilometres, including significant areas of coastline, water catchments and conservation areas. Rural land is used mainly for agriculture, particularly sheep and cattle grazing, crop and fruit growing, viticulture, fishing and forestry. Tourism is an important industry, with considerable holiday accommodation in the coastal settlements.

Indigenous Meaning

The original inhabitants of the RDA Adelaide Hills, Fleurieu and Kangaroo Island Region were the Kaurna, Ngarrindjeri, Peramangk and Ramindjeri Aboriginal people.

Settlement

European settlement dates from the 1830s. Gradual growth took place during the mid 1800s as small townships were established. Land was used mainly for sheep and cattle grazing, with some grain growing. Expansion occurred during the late 1800s, continuing into the early 1900s, aided by improved access. The most significant development occurred from the post-war years, aided by tourism, with growth particularly from the 1980s.

Major Features

Major features of the RDA Adelaide Hills, Fleurieu and Kangaroo Island Region include Belair National Park, Coorong National Park, Flinders Chase National Park, numerous Conservation Parks, various Wilderness Protection Areas, numerous beaches, several reservoirs, Remarkable Rocks, Admirals Arch, Seal Bay, Little Sahara, The Bluff (Rosetta Head), Encounter Bay, Kelly Hill Caves, Cape Borda Lighthouse, Cape Willoughby Lighthouse, Encounter Marine Park, Mount Lofty and the Mount Lofty Ranges, Ingalalla Waterfalls, Glacier Rock, Mount Barker, Granite Island Recreation Park, Mount Lofty Botanic Garden, Penneshaw Penguin Centre, Cleland Wildlife Park, Gorge Wildlife Park, Kangaroo Island Wildlife Park, Warrawong Wildlife Sanctuary, Urimbirra Wildlife Park, Raptor Domain, National Motor Museum, Encounter Coast Discovery Centre, South Australian Whale Centre, Victor Harbor Horse Drawn Tram, SteamRanger Heritage Railway, Encounter Bikeway, the Heysen Trail, Woodside Barracks, TAFE SA (Mount Barker and Victor Harbor Campuses), Flinders University Rural Clinical School (Victor Harbor), South Coast District Hospital, Hindmarsh Island, Lake Alexandrina, several golf clubs and numerous wineries and vineyards.

Transport

The RDA Adelaide Hills, Fleurieu and Kangaroo Island Region is served by the Playford Highway, the South Eastern Freeway (Princes Highway), Inman Valley Road, Port Elliot Road, Victor Harbor Road, Waitpinga Road, the Adelaide-Melbourne railway line and the SeaLink Ferry between Cape Jervis and Penneshaw (Kangaroo Island).

RDA Adelaide Hills, Fleurieu and Kangaroo Island

economic profile