The Mid West region in Western Australia Case Study

The Mid West region in Western Australia - Case Study Example include: Murchison (Sandstone, Yalgoo, Murchison, Shires of Cue, Meekatharra Mount Magnet and Wiluna) Batavia Coast (Irwin, Chapman Valley, Northampton shires, and Greenough-City of Geraldton) North Midlands (Coorow, Morawa, Mullewa, Three Springs, Prenjori, Shires of Carnamah and Mingenew) (Government of Western Australia, 2011). Regional development has been a major concern in Mid Western Australia. Being the region where there exists social, economic and environmental diversity a state planning strategy has been launched by the â€Å"Western Australian Planning Commission† to figure out the effective usage of state-wide land till the year 2029. The strategies prove to be a guide for both the government and the local sector. Main areas of concern include: Population Transport Economy The community The regions â€Å"Public Utilities and services† Midwest and Western Australia Population: The population in the Mid West Region of Australia has rapidly progressed from the past two decades. Till June 2006, it was estimated to be almost 51,748. 9.3 % population are local residents that makes up 2.5 % of the total country population. The census results of 2001 declared that the population growth in the region is recorded to be 0.7% every year. This amount has further surpassed in the year 2006, when annual growth rate was reported to be 3.5% per annum. Present population of the region makes it the state’s six largest in a total of nine. It has been estimated that the number will reach 55,400 till the year 2016 while year 2031 might experience a population of 68,100 (Midwest development commission, 2008). The population distribution is uneven. City of Greenough has estimated population of 35022 i.e. 67% of the total region. In the year 2000-2006 the growth rate improved to 1.8% per annum in the coastal municipalities e.g. Irwin, Chapman Valley etc. Due to farm amalgamation, the population in farmlands is observed to decrease with the coming years including Morawa, Coorow and Carnamah. Among the inland shires the population is variable mostly because of the economic status of regions (Midwest development commission, 2008). Population Distribution 2001 - 2006 Local   Government   Authority 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 Annual Growth 2005-06 % AAGR   2000- 2005 % Carnamah 804 765 743 709 692 787 13.7 -0.4 Chapman Valley 876 884 892 957 984 957 -2.6 1.8 Coorow 1,375 1,366 1,362 1355 1320 1,256 -1.7 -1.8 Cue 394 391 370 366 352 359 2.0 -1.8 Geraldton/ Greenough 32,764 32,654 32,452 32,156 32,604 35,022 7.4 1.3 Irwin 3,059 2,996 2,989 3034 3247 3,240 -0.2 1.2 Meekatharra 1,453 1,466 1,486 1529 1529 1,296 -16.4 -2.3 Mingenew 584 585 582 557 525 501 -4.6 -3.0 Morawa 985 963 957 904 880 888 3.4 -2.1 Mount Magnet 851 841 829 757 719 496 -31.7 -10.2 Mullewa 1,118 1,120 1,104 1057 1057 1,011 -4.4 -2.0 Murchison 160 160 162 162 162 127 -21.6 -4.5 Northampton 3,333 3,329 3,320 3313 3237 3,360 3.8 0.2 Perenjori 612 589 585 584 573 5 64 -1.4 -1.6 Sandstone 133 143 150 150 150 130 -13.3 -0.5 Three Springs 751 746 745 743 722 713 -1.2 -1.0 Wiluna 898 924 955 951 960 770 -20.5 -3.0 Yalgoo 325 325 328 327 327 271 -17.1 -3.6 MID WEST (total) 50,475 50,247 50,011 49,611 50,015 51,748 3.5 0.5 Population increase in Mid-Western Region In comparison, the population of Western Australia improved to a great extent. Till June, 2010, the population of Western Australia was found to be 2.3 percent or nearly 511, 300 persons with the annual increase observed to be 1.8 percent (387, 100