Dairying and Other Rural Industries

Abstract

Fig. XI shows the present geographical distribution of the industry.1 In Queensland the farthest limit is on the Daintree River in Latitude 16? S., and its chief development is in the coastal districts near Brisbane and on the plateaus of the Darling Downs and the Atherton tableland. In New South Wales the most progressive district has been that of the Northern rivers, i.e., on the eastern slopes of the Dividing Range and in the northern half of the state, where numerous rivers have developed fairly level fertile valleys. Here again the summer is the season of greatest rainfall. Other areas of considerable importance are scattered along the south coast and in the neighbourhood of Sydney, and in these, rainfall is more evenly distributed through the year. In Victoria the two chief dairying districts are also between the mountains and the sea; the eastern one is South Gippsland whilst the basalt plain of the western district is a strong rival.