- published: 10 Jan 2015
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The Hunter Region, more commonly known as the Hunter Valley, is a region of New South Wales, Australia, extending from approximately 120 km (75 mi) to 310 km (193 mi) north of Sydney with an approximate population of 645,395 people. Most of the population of the Hunter Region lives within 25 km (16 mi) of the coast, with 55% of the entire population living in the cities of Newcastle and Lake Macquarie. There are numerous other towns and villages scattered across the valley in the eleven Local Government Areas that make up the region. The eleven LGAs are:
The Hunter Region contains the Hunter River and its tributaries with highland areas to the north and south. The Hunter Valley is one of the largest river valleys on the NSW coast, and is most commonly known for its wineries and coal industry.
The main river is the Hunter River, after which the region is named. There are several other rivers including the Williams, Karuah, Chichester, Goulburn, Pages, Paterson, Avon and Gloucester.
Fresh water supply for the region is provided from a number of sources.Glenbawn, Chichester and Lostock are dams on the Hunter, Chichester and Paterson rivers respectively. Grahamstown Dam, the largest dam in the region, is supplied with water diverted from the Williams River just north of the Seaham Weir. A proposal to build Tillegra Dam on the Williams River has existed since the 1950s. In addition to the dams, fresh water for the lower Hunter region is supplied from the Tomago Sandbeds.