Mornington Peninsula
The area was originally home to the Mayone-bulluk and Boonwurrung-Balluk clans, and formed part of the Boonwurrung nation's territory prior to European settlement.
In 2002, around 180,000 people lived on the peninsula and in nearby areas, most in the built-up towns on its western shorelines which are sometimes regarded as outlying suburbs of greater Melbourne; there is a seasonal population of around 270,000.
[3] The peninsula is primarily a local tourist region, with popular natural attractions such as the variety of beaches, both sheltered and open-sea and many scenic sights and views.
[5] Indigenous Australians of the Mayone-bulluk and Boonwurrung-Balluk clans lived on the peninsula as part of the Boonwurrung People's territory prior to European settlement.
[6] The territory hosted six clans who lived along the Victorian coast from the Werribee River across to Western Port Bay and Wilsons Promontory.
These were quickly cleared to provide firewood for the growing city of Melbourne, and much of the peninsula was then covered with fruit orchards.
Nevertheless, much natural vegetation still exists, especially in an area of bushland in the south known as Greens Bush, and the coastal fringe bordering Bass Strait and Western Port Bay.
[citation needed] On 17 December 1967, Prime Minister Harold Holt went swimming at Cheviot Beach on what is now Point Nepean National Park.
The highest point, Arthurs Seat, located unusually close to the shoreline, stands at 305 metres (1,001 ft) above sea level.
The coast between Cape Schanck and Point Nepean consists of a long slow curvature of open-sea surf beaches, many too dangerous to swim in.
Its western shorelines form various headlands and bays in the sheltered waters of Port Phillip, hosting many shallow safe beaches.
The last strong earthquake to rock the Peninsula had a magnitude of 5.0 and occurred on 7 July 1971 at 7:55 am AEST with its epicentre off Flinders, along the southern end of the Tyabb Fault.
The peninsula is one of four biosphere reserves in Victoria, the other three being national parks, and the only one with a resident population that reaches some 250,000 people during the peak tourist season.
Some of the major parklands on the peninsula include: Land: Marine: A sewage outlet near Boag Rock, a couple of kilometres[quantify] up the coast from Gunnamatta Surf Beach, pumps treated sewage into the ocean which finds its way to swimmers and surfers at Gunnamatta during particular tidal conditions.
[citation needed] In March 2021, the Victorian State Government blocked a controversial project by energy company AGL to build a floating gas import terminal at Crib Point.
The number of orchards has been dramatically reduced, however there are many other producers on the Peninsula, specialising in berries, cherries, and other fruits, as well as market gardens.
[14] Mornington Peninsula tourism generates 10 per cent of local employment opportunities and is an important component of the economy.
[15] The suburb of Mornington has become a tourist hotspot with 1500 visitors traveling to the town's Main Street via ocean liners in recent years.
