Our Region

Our Region

The Goldfields-Esperance region is located in the south-eastern corner of Western Australia and incorporates ten local government areas.

A land area of 955,276 km² making the region the largest regional boundary in Western Australia. It is bounded geographically by the Little Sandy Desert and Gibson Desert to the North; the Wheatbelt region to the West; the Great Australia Bight to the South; and the South Australian and Northern Territory borders to the East.

The region has played a significant role in the development of Western Australia and the nation since the end of the nineteenth century. Indeed, the very decision to create the Federation of Australia hinged on the decision made in the Goldfields in 1900.

Gold was discovered in Coolgardie in 1892.  The visionary C.Y.O'Connor engineered the Goldfields Water Supply Scheme that brought much needed water to the miners in 1903. Agriculture in Esperance and pastoral lands in the Goldfields opened up, and nickel boomed in the 1960s.

Against this historical backdrop, the Goldfields-Esperance region continues to be significant for the State of Western Australia and the nation.