Background
The vast Yellabinna wilderness is the largest expanse of relatively undisturbed mallee in Australia. This 4 million hectare area of high wilderness value lies to the north of Ceduna and includes the ‘mulitple use’ Yellabinna Regional Reserve, and Pureba and Yumbarra Conservation Parks.
The Yellabinna wilderness encompasses large areas of mallee-covered dunefields with areas of open woodland. What appears at first to be a largely uniform landscape is in fact full of subtle distinctions, as well as spectacular salt lakes and clay pans, and rocky outcrops containing rockholes with their own communities of plants and animals. These rockholes were once the refuges of the Aboriginal people of the area, who would retreat to permanent water at Ooldea at particularly dry times.
The great value of Yellabinna lies in its essentially undisturbed nature and its large size at the zone of transition between the semi-arid and arid areas of South Australia. Remaining woodland on the margins of agricultural regions is connected through Yellabinna to the semi-arid and arid regions to the north. Acacia and eucalyptus communities in the west and east are also linked through Yellabinna. Its vastness and relative lack of disturbance mean that Yellabinna wilderness provides refuges for plants and animals marginalised and made extinct elsewhere. Species like the Grevillea Treuriana are only found in Yellabinna, and a number of species like the Goodenia glandulosa and the tiny Ctenophorus fionii (a small rock dragon) are at the very edge of their range. See Yellabinna Fact Sheet for list of significant species.
oa_sa_yellabinna_ptilotus_300.jpg Yellabina Skyline
Ptilotus Exaltus, Yellabinna Yellabinna Sunset Skyline
The Yellabinna area also marks a transition zone between the red sands derived from the ancient continental rocks of Australia and white sands of coastal origin. A number of ranges of formerly coastal dune ridges cross the area, preserved like nowhere else on earth.
Although Yellabinna escaped the pastoral industry due to a lack of groundwater, protection of its wilderness values is not assured. Tracks created by visitors to the area are proliferating. Mineral exploration can leave scars on the landscape has been shown to lead to inappropriate visitor access and the introduction/increase in feral plants and animals. With the de-proclamation of the Yumbarra Conservation Park, all of the area is now open to mineral exploration.
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Campaign Focus
Following recommendations of the government’s Wilderness Advisory Committee in 1996, The Wilderness Society is campaigning for 1,200,000 hectares of this area to be protected under the Wilderness Protection Act – the highest level of protection in state law. This would protect an adequately sized sample with enough natural integrity to allow the continuation of the unique environmental processes that have shaped this area.
We are also suggesting that a National Park be declared adjacent to the proposed Wilderness Protection Area along the main access track through Yellabinna. The proposed National Park would run along Goog’s Track and take in the spectacular Mt Finke at the north end of the current Yellabinna Regional Reserve. The proposed Wilderness Protection Area would give maximum protection to the core area of wilderness, while a National Park would better promote and manage public access and enjoyment of this unique area. The rest of the Regional Reserve would remain as a buffer for the core areas.
oa_sa_map_yellabinna_wild-prot-area_np_500.jpg
Proposed Yellabinna Wilderness Protection area
The green area on the map is the Yellabinna dune field, the gray and green on gray are Regional Reserves. The red is an indication of where the Wilderness Protection Area should sit, with the yellow being the proposed National Park.
There are a range of campaign activities planned for the Yellabinna campaign. Contact the TWS Office for more details.
Yellabinna Photos: Bill Doyle (See his UnknownSA website)
For more information, please contact:
Greg Ogle
South Australian Campaign Coordinator
Email Greg Ogle
Created: 14 May 2002 | Last updated: 14 May 2002