Karratha, Western Australia
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| Karratha Western Australia |
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 Location of Karratha in Western Australia (red) |
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| Population: | 10,796 (2001) | ||||||
| Established: | 1960s | ||||||
| Postcode: | 6714 | ||||||
| Location: | 1,575 km from Perth | ||||||
| LGA: | Shire of Roebourne | ||||||
| State District: | North West Coastal | ||||||
| Federal Division: | Kalgoorlie | ||||||
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Karratha (; post code: 6714) is an important centre in the resource-rich WA's northwest. It is located approximately 1,575 km (980 miles) north of Perth and can be reached by the North West Coastal Highway.
Its economic base includes local iron ore, salt mining, ammonia and export operations, together with the North West Shelf Natural Gas Project, Australia's largest natural resource development. All this makes it the biggest town in the northwest after Port Hedland with a population around 10,000. Karratha came into being in the late 1960s due to the tremendous growth of the iron ore industry and the need for a new regional centre caused by the lack of land in Dampier. Karratha also has the biggest shopping centre in the Pilbara, called Centro Karratha.
Karratha is comprised of five main suburbs: Bulgarra, Pegs Creek, Millars Well, Nickol and the newer Baynton; and one industrial suburb, Stove Hill.
The town name came from the cattle station that the land for the town was resumed from. Karratha in aboriginal means good country or soft earth.
[edit] External links
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- Street map from Street Directory, MSN Maps and Multimap.
- Satellite image from Google Maps, WikiMapia and Terraserver.
- Walkabout - Karratha
- Karratha Tourism
- Map of Karratha
- Landgate History of Place Names
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