Pastoral leases in Western Australia
Pastoral leases in Western Australia are increasingly known as 'stations', and more particular – as either sheep stations or cattle stations.
They are usually found in country that is designated as rangelands.
Some 527 pastoral leases exist in Western Australia.
Stations/pastoral leases are a significant part of Western Australian history. At different stages enquiries, pleas for extensions of lease times and royal commissions have been made into the industry.
Nearly 90 million hectares or 36% of the area of Western Australia are covered by these stations. Despite the very low population involved in general management of stations, significant numbers of seasonal workers (shearers and others) have moved through the sheep stations to shear for wool. Also more recently stations have been used as holding places of feral goats for export and meat production.
Administration
The current administration of leases is conducted by the Pastoral Lands Board of Western Australia which succeeded the Pastoral Board after changes to the Land Act of 1933 and the new Land Administration Act of 1998. Further current policies and details of governance are updated within publications and websites administered by the Pastoral Lands Board. In Western Australia, all leases are up for renewal or surrender in 2015.
To view more information on the administration of pastoral leases go to:
http://www.lands.wa.gov.au/Pastoral-Leases/Pastoral-Lands-Board/Pages/default.aspx
Department of Parks and Wildlife
Former pastoral properties managed by the Department of Parks and Wildlife for conservation
The department manages over five million hectares of former pastoral lease land in the southern rangelands of Western Australia which has been purchased by the government to help complete the state’s conservation reserve system.
To view the Department of Parks and Wildlife report on the Management of former pastoral properties purchased for nature conservation in the southern rangelands go to:
Department of Parks and Wildlife - Management of former pastoral properties purchased for nature conservation in the southern rangelands
To view more information on the conservation and management of pastoral leases go to:
https://www.dpaw.wa.gov.au/images/documents/conservation-management/off-road-conservation/Management_of_former_pastoral_properties_in_the_southern_rangelands.pdf
Pastoral station names associated with Yalgoo.
The list is from various sources – abandoned, amalgamated, relinquished, and historical (no longer current) leases may be in the list.
Note that some of these stations may lie outside of the local government boundary.