The Pallinup River is a river located in the Great Southern region of

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

. It was previously known as Salt River. The Pallinup rises 10 km southeast of Broomehill, and flows in a southeasterly direction toward the coast passing through Kybelup Pool and discharging into the

Southern Ocean The Southern Ocean, also known as the Antarctic Ocean, comprises the southernmost waters of the world ocean, generally taken to be south of 60th parallel south, 60° S latitude and encircling Antarctica. With a size of , it is the seco ...

via Beaufort Inlet. The river is one of the longest rivers in the region and its tributaries flow through the towns of Borden and Gnowangerup. The local

Noongar The Noongar (, also spelt Noongah, Nyungar , Nyoongar, Nyoongah, Nyungah, Nyugah, and Yunga ) are Aboriginal Australian people who live in the South West, Western Australia, south-west corner of Western Australia, from Geraldton, Western Aus ...

people also know the river as the Mara River; it is regarded as a place of historical importance as the Noongar have camped, fished and traded along the banks of the river for generations. The river is

ephemeral Ephemerality (from the Greek word , meaning 'lasting only one day') is the concept of things being transitory, existing only briefly. Academically, the term ephemeral constitutionally describes a diverse assortment of things and experiences, fr ...

and the

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...

at Beaufort Inlet can be closed to the sea for long period of time by a sand bar in the channel. The water in the river is considered to be saline with salinity levels varying from 3 ‰ when the river is flowing to over 50‰ in pools during summer.

Tributaries

The Pallinup has many tributaries, including Warperup Creek, Six Mile Creek, Pendenup Creek, Peendebup Creek, Monjebup Creek and Corackerup Creek. No potable surface water sources are present in the Pallinup. The water quality ranges from brackish to saline. The best quality water streams exist in the

Stirling Range National Park Stirling Range National Park is a national park in the Great Southern (Western Australia), Great Southern region of Western Australia, approximately south-east of Perth. There is also an eponymous Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality, ...

area of the catchment, which is the occasional source of snow-melt water.

Condition

The Pallinup is showing signs of degradation. Increased salinity, loss of

riparian A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. In some regions, the terms riparian woodland, riparian forest, riparian buffer zone, riparian corridor, and riparian strip are used to characterize a ripar ...

vegetation, weed invasion, erosion and high nutrient levels are all problematic. Much of the river is fenced but sections were lost in the 1955 and 1982 flood events. It is estimated that 85% of the catchment area is cleared mostly in the upper reaches of the river.

References

Rivers of the Great Southern region {{WesternAustralia-river-stub