This version of the SOURCES AND DATA, January 2013 has been prepared for use with screen reader
software.
The PDF version also available at www.planmelbourne.vic.gov.au is recommended for general access.
SOURCES OF DATA –FACT SHEETS
PEOPLE
Over the next 30-40 years the population of Melbourne
is currently projected to grow from four million to six
million people.
Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and Community
Development, 2012
Over the past 40 years Melbourne grew by 1.5 million
people.
ABS, Historical Population data (various catalogues), 2011
The number of people aged 65 and over is expected to
double over the next 30-40 years.
Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and Community
Development, 2011 and ABS Population Projections, 2008
(catalogue 3222.0)
Melbourne’s population is growing at a faster rate than
regional Victoria’s.
Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and Community
Development, 2011 and ABS annual population estimates,
2008 (catalogue 3218.0)
Recently, Melbourne has been growing by around
1,200 people a week.
ABS Quarterly Population Estimates, 2008 (catalogue
3101.0) and Department of Planning and Community
Development, Annual Population Bulletin, 2011
In 2010 there were an estimated 54,600 births in
Melbourne, up from 44,000 in 2000.
ABS Births Australia, 2011 (catalogue 3301.0)
Victoria’s regional population is also growing. Around
630,000 more people are expected to live in regional
Victoria over the next 30-40 years. Around a third of
this growth likely to be in Geelong, Bendigo and
Ballarat.
Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and Community
Development, 2012
Over the past 20 years, Melbourne’s population growth
far exceeded that of the rest of Victoria, a reversal of
the pattern prior to 1991. Between 1920 and 1991 the
population of the City of Melbourne, Port Melbourne,
Richmond, South Melbourne, Fitzroy and Collingwood
almost halved. Between 2001-2006 all of Melbourne’s
31 Local Government Areas recorded population
growth.
ABS, Historical Population Data (censuses and various
catalogues), various years
Based on current trends, over the next 30-40 years the
proportion of homes comprising families with children
may decrease by four percent, while the proportion of
one-person households may increase by three percent
and couple-only households may increase by two
percent.
Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and Community
Development, 2012
Over the next 30-40 years, it is anticipated that 75
percent of Victoria’s population will continue to be in
Melbourne.
Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and Community
Development, 2012
Document Number: 2145983
Version: 6
Over the past 20 years, the growth areas have grown
by half a million people. It is projected that over the
next 30-40 years approximately one million more
people will live in these areas.
Document Number: 2145983
ABS, Regional Population Growth, 2010 (catalogue 3218.0)
and Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and
Community Development, 2012
Version: 6
HOUSING
Over the next 30-40 years we can expect that
Melbourne’s outward growth will reach the edge of its
current boundary.
Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and Community
Development, 2012
Currently there are around 1.6 million homes in
Melbourne.
Housing Development Data, 2009
New housing adds around two percent to the total
number of homes in Melbourne each year.
Department of Planning and Community Development
Analysis of Valuer-General Sales data, 2011
Around 320,000 first home buyers entered the market
between 2000 and 2011.
State Revenue Office, 2011
Over 75 percent of first home buyers bought existing
homes.
State Revenue Office, 2011
Between 2004-2009 there were around 132,000 homes Housing Development Data, 2009
built.
In 2006, over 73 percent of Melbourne’s households
owned or were buying their home, 23 percent lived in a
private rental home, and more than three percent lived
in social housing.
Census of Population and Housing: Basic Community
Profile, 2006 (catalogue 2001.0)
Growth areas have attracted around half a million
people over the past 20 years.
ABS, Regional Population Growth, 2010 (catalogue 3218.0)
Over the next 30-40 years, it is estimated that
Melbourne may require about one million more homes.
Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and Community
Development, 2012
Based on current trends, it is expected that the
Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and Community
proportion of homes comprising of families with
Development, 2012
children may decrease by four percent, while the
proportion of one-person households increases by
three percent and couple-only households increases by
two percent.
Since 2000 the median house price has almost tripled,
increasing from $190,000 to $500,000 in 2011.
DPCD unpublished analysis of Valuer-General price data,
2011
During the same period the average wage in Victoria
has also increased from around $42,500 in 2000 to
$66,500 in 2011.
Estimates of Personal Income for Small Areas, Time Series,
2003-04 to 2008-09 (catalogue 6524.0.55.002)
Since 2000, the average weekly rent for a three
bedroom home in Melbourne has doubled, increasing
from $170 per week to around $340.
ABS Consumer Price Index, 2011 (catalogue 6401.0)
In June 2011, the percentage of rental properties in
Melbourne affordable to people on Centrelink incomes
has declined to less than ten percent of all rentals.
Department of Human Services, Rental Report -June
Quarter 2011
Between 2001 and 2011, construction industry prices
for new-dwelling construction rose by 54 per cent, 28
percentage points above the increase in the average
for all industries.
ABS, Australian National Accounts (catalogue 5206.0,
measured by New Dwelling Implicit Price Deflator versus
Domestic Final Demand IPD
Document Number: 2145983
Version: 6
Costs are disproportionately high for residential
construction over three storeys.
Urbis JHD, Dwelling Costs Study: Final Report, 2007
Mark Lochran, Director, Rider Hunt (now Rider Levett
Bucknall), “Honey, I Shrunk the Apartment”, Residential
Property Developer Magazine, 2007
Grattan Institute, The Housing We’d Choose, 2011
Rider Levett Bucknall, Riders Digest Australia, 2012.
In 2011 there were around 40,440 houses approved to
be built in Melbourne. This is nearly twice as many as
Sydney which had 22,230 housing approvals.
ABS, Building Approvals, Australia, 2011 (catalogue
8731.0)
Over 22,000 of Melbourne’s housing approvals were
for detached houses and over 18,400 were for other
housing types such as apartments, townhouses or
units.
Nearly one third of these approvals were in growth
area councils.
ABS, Building Approvals, Australia, 2011 (catalogue
8731.0)
New housing adds around two percent to the total
number to homes in Melbourne each year.
Housing Development Data, 2009
Between 2004-2009 there were around 132,000 homes
added to Melbourne’s housing stock, with the largest
amount of construction activity occurring in 2009.
Between 2004-2008 around 70 percent of homes built
in the established areas were detached houses, villas
or townhouses. The remaining 30 were apartments or
units.
SGS Economics and Planning, 2011
Around 320,000 first home buyers entered the market
between 2000 and 2011. Nearly 25 percent of first
home buyers purchased a new home, mostly in the
growth areas. Over 75 percent of first home buyers
purchase an existing home and the vast majority were
in the middle and outer areas.
State Revenue Office, 2011
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Version: 6
TRANSPORT
Over the next 30-40 years Melbourne’s transport
system may need to accommodate an estimated seven
million additional trips per day.
Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and Community
Development, 2012 and Department of Transport ,
Victorian Integrated Survey of Travel and Activity (VISTA)
2009
Currently close to 13 million trips across the city each
day.
VISTA, 2009
Melburnians make an average of three trips per day.
VISTA, 2009
Public transport patronage is anticipated to almost
double over the next 15 years.
Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and Community
Development, 2012 and VISTA 2009
Around 17 percent of travel to work is made on public
transport.
VISTA, 2009
60 percent of Melburnians travel on public transport at
least once a month.
VISTA, 2009
Travel by car accounts for 77 percent of all weekday
trips and this increase to 81 percent on the weekends.
VISTA, 2009
Almost 70 percent of all trips to the central city are
made by sustainable forms of transport (public
transport, walking or cycling).
VISTA, 2009
Walking is the main form of travel for trips less than
one kilometre.
VISTA, 2009
Travel by car, accounts for around 77 percent of all
weekday trips in Melbourne. Public transport accounts
for eight percent, walking 12 percent and cycling two
percent.
VISTA, 2009
In Melbourne train patronage has increased by 44
percent, tram patronage by 22 percent and bus
patronage by 34 percent. In regional Victoria, rail and
coach patronage has increased by 96 percent.
Metlink, Department of Transport, 2011
Train patronage grew by over four percent in the 12
months to June 2011, contributing to a patronage
growth of 44 percent.
Metlink, Department of Transport, 2011
With 78 percent of the tram network operating on
shared roads, congestion has reduced the speed and
efficiency of trams over time.
Metlink, Department of Transport, 2011
Overall bus patronage has grown by more than 34
percent since 2005.
Metlink, Department of Transport, 2011
Over the next 20 years, air passenger travel to and
from Melbourne is expected to more than double,
increasing from 25 million per year to around 56
million.
Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional
Economics, Aircraft movements through capital city airports,
2009-30, Report 117, 2009 and Melbourne Airport, 2010
Document Number: 2145983
Version: 6
Over the past five years cycling has grown by about
eight percent each year.
Document Number: 2145983
VISTA, 2009
Version: 6
ECONOMY
With a workforce of over two million people, Melbourne
is Australia’s second largest labour market.
ABS Labour Force Survey, February 2012 (catalogue
6291.0.55.003)
Victoria is Australia’s second largest economy,
producing $317 billion in output in 2011 and accounting
for 23 percent of Australia’s Gross Domestic Product.
ABS, The Australian National Accounts: State Accounts,
Expenditure, Income and Industry Components of Gross
State Product, Victoria, Chain volume measures and current
prices, 2010, (catalogue 5220.0)
Metropolitan Melbourne accounts for approximately 80
percent of the Victorian Economy.
SGS Economics and Planning, 2011 and Victorian
Competition & Efficiency Commission, 2011
Victoria’s largest employing sectors are health care,
social assistance services, manufacturing and retail.
ABS Labour Force Survey, 2012 (catalogue 6291.0.55.003)
At June 2009, around 96 percent of employing
businesses in Victoria are small businesses, and on
average employ 19 people.
ABS Counts of Australian Businesses, 2010 (catalogue
8165.0)
Around 30 percent of Melbourne's jobs are located in
inner Melbourne suburbs and the remaining majority of
workers are spread across the broader suburbs
(middle, outer and growth areas).
ABS Census of Population and Housing, Journey to Work,
2006
Since the early 2000’s, growth in labour productivity in
Victoria has slowed and is now below the Australian
average.
Victorian Government, Victorian Budget Papers 2011-12,
Strategy and Outlook, 2011
In 2011 Victoria’s goods and services exports were
worth almost $34 billion.
ABS Australian National Accounts: State Accounts,
November 2011 (catalogue 5220.0)
Victoria’s trade with other Australian states and
territories was valued at approximately $99 billion in
2010-11.
Department of Premier and Cabinet, Internal Study,
(unpublished data), 2010
Victorian-based technology businesses account for
over 25 percent of Australia’s total expenditure on
business research and development.
ABS Research and Experimental Development, 2010
(catalogue 8112.0)
There are around 130,000 overseas student
placements at Melbourne universities and vocational
education and training institutions.
Australian Government, Australian Education International,
International Student Data, 2011
Although the number of people in the workforce will
increase, the ratio of working age people to nonworking age people is likely to decrease.
ABS Population by Age and Sex, Regions of Australia, 2010
and Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and
Community Development, 2011
In 2009, the national online retail sales for all sectors of
the economy were estimated to have totalled between
$19 and $24 billion.
Australian Government, Department of Broadband,
Communications and the Digital Economy, The Future of
Australian Retail, 2010
Across Australia, economies experienced strong
growth between 1999 and 2007, with the total value of
transactions doubling in many industries.
ABS, The Australian National Accounts: Input-Output
Tables, 2010 (catalogue 5209.0.55.001)
International trade has more than tripled over the past
ABS Australian National Accounts: State Accounts, 2011
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Version: 6
two decades.
(catalogue 5222.0)
At June 2011 there were 544,000 businesses operating ABS, Counts of Australian Businesses, Including Entries
in the State.
and Exits, 2011 (catalogue 8165.0)
Estimates suggest that the number of employing
businesses will increase by around 30 percent by
2020.
Department of Business and Innovation, 2011
Inner Melbourne currently accommodates 30 percent
of Melbourne’s jobs compared to eight percent of the
population.
ABS Census of Population and Housing, Journey to Work,
2006
Suburban areas provide 70 percent of Melbourne’s
employment opportunities.
ABS Census of Population and Housing, Journey to Work,
2006
There has been substantial change in the growth
areas, with rapid residential development attracting half
a million people.
Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and Community
Development, 2012
Most growth area municipalities have a small share of
metropolitan employment.
ABS Census of Population and Housing , Journey to Work,
2006 (catalogue 3218.0)
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Version: 6
FREIGHT
Melbourne’s roads and rail may need to accommodate
more than twice as much freight and commercial traffic
over the next 20-30 years.
Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional
Economics, 2011
99 percent of metropolitan freight is carried on
Melbourne’s roads.
Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional
Economics, 2011
The Port of Melbourne handled a record 2.5 million
units in 2011.
Port of Melbourne Corporation, 2011
The Port of Melbourne handles around 35 percent of
the nation’s container trade.
Port of Melbourne Corporation, 2011
Melbourne Airport handles 30 percent of the national
air freight..
Victorian Air Freight Council, Melbourne Airport Corporation,
2012
Over the next 20-30 years the freight task carried by
trucks and light commercial vehicle traffic is expected
to more than double.
Department of Transport, 2008
The percentage of commercial vehicles on the roads is
expected to increase from around 15 percent to more
than 20 percent.
Department of Transport, 2008
More than three times as many shipping containers are
expected to be moving through the ports of Melbourne
and Hastings combined by 2035.
Port of Melbourne Corporation Chain Logistics Study, 2011
Up to 87 percent of all international containers
Port of Melbourne Corporation Chain Logistics Study, 2011
imported through the Port of Melbourne are destined
for a location within the metropolitan area, with nearly
all of this freight moved on roads. On top of this, 96
percent of inbound containers from interstate arriving at
the Dynon Rail Terminal are destined for a location
within metropolitan Melbourne
The Port of Hastings supports the general cargo, steel
and oil markets and in 2010-2011 handled around
910,000 tonnes of coastal exports.
Port of Hastings Corporation Trade Statistics, 2011
99 percent of metropolitan freight by volume is carried
on Melbourne’s roads. Currently there are over
500,000 commercial vehicles on Melbourne’s roads
and this is anticipated to more than double over the
next 20-30 years.
Department of Transport 2008
Melbourne Airport is second only to Sydney Airport for
total freight lifted in Australia and handles around 30
percent of the national air freight.
Victorian Air Freight Council, Melbourne Airport Corporation,
2012
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COMMUNITIES
Melburnians said...
 95 percent of Melburnians feel safe walking alone
in their local area during the day.
 80 percent feel that their local area is a well
planned and pleasant environment.
 87 percent feel that their local area has good
services and facilities like shops, childcare,
schools and libraries.
 83 percent feel that their local area has easy
access to recreational and leisure facilities.
 57 percent feel that their local area has a wide
range of community and support groups.
 40 percent participate in organised sport.
 28 percent of Melburnians volunteer.
Indicators Of Community Strength at the Local Government
Area level in Victoria, 2008 and Community Indicators
Victoria Survey, Melbourne University, 2007 (safety
indicators)
In a 2010 AUSPOLL survey, Melbourne residents
identified the top four attributes in making a city
a good place to live:
 being a safe place for people and their property;
 having good healthcare services;
 being an affordable place to have a good
standard of living;
 having good employment and economic
opportunities.
Australian Cities Liveability Index Survey, AUSPOLL, 2010
In Victoria there are over 2,200 places and objects
considered of State significance and over 130,000 of
local significance.
Heritage Victoria, 2011
The number of Victorians aged over 65 years is
expected to double over the next 30-40 years
Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and Community
Development, 2012
Those with multiple chronic disease leaps from 28
percent in the 50-64 age group to nearly 50 percent in
the 65 and over age group.
Metropolitan Health Plan, May 2011
Victorians aged over 65 reported that:
 76 percent have lived in the same
neighbourhood for over ten years.
 77 percent walk for recreation, exercise or to get
to or from places.
 77 percent report their health as excellent, very
good or good (compared to 81 percent all
Victorians).
Victorian Population Health Survey 2009, Department of
Health, 2011
Around 95 percent Melburnians feel safe walking alone
in their local area during the day, but only 64 percent
feel safe at night.
Community Indicators Victoria Survey, Melbourne
University, 2007
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INFRASTRUCTURE
Currently there is around:
 500,000 kilometres of cables distributing electricity
to most of the State.
 1,900 kilometres of the Principal Gas Transmission
System, transporting gas to Melbourne and large
population centres in regional Victoria. It is then
transported by 25,000 kilometres of the reticulation
network.
[NO NEW UPDATES]
Report to the Council of Australian
Governments, Victoria’s Infrastructure: Status and
Prospects, 2007
1,537 State Government schools.
Department of Education and Early Childhood
Development, Summary Statistics Victorian Schools,
February, 2012
151 public hospital campuses.
How Many Hospitals are There Report, Australian
Government, Australian Institute of Health and Welfare,
2010-11
Melbourne was ranked most liveable city in 2012 with its
healthcare, education and infrastructure receiving the
maximum score of 100.
A Summary of the Liveability Ranking and Overview,
Economist Intelligence Unit, 2012
The Eastern Treatment Plant removes around 14 tonnes
of rubbish from our sewage every day. That's about ten
family cars full of rubbish.
[NO NEW UPDATES]
In 2010-11 solid waste generated per Victorian increased
by 70 kilograms to 2.15 tonnes.
Education - Your Role, Melbourne Water Website, 2011
If current trends continue, 30 percent more waste will be
generated in 2030 and 3.2 million tonnes more will need
to be reprocessed.
[NO NEW UPDATES]
Average annual infrastructure construction in Australia
between 2007-2010 was almost double that of the
previous eleven years.
[NO NEW UPDATES]
In the past 20 years, the growth areas on the edge of the
city have attracted half a million people. Based on
current trends, over the next 30-40 years, approximately
one million more people will live in these areas.
[NO NEW UPDATES]
In 2012 the number of students enrolled in Victorian
Government schools accounted for around 63 percent of
all school enrolments.
[NO NEW UPDATES]
Melburnians aged over 65 years is expected to double
by 2041 and there is likely to be greater demands on our
health services.
[NO NEW UPDATES]
Those with multiple chronic disease leaps from 28
percent in the 50-64 age group to nearly 50 percent in
the 65 and over age group.
[NO NEW UPDATES]
Metropolitan Waste and Resource Recovery Strategic Plan,
Department of Sustainability and Environment , 2009
Document Number: 2145983
Towards Zero Waste Strategy 2010–2011 Progress Report,
Sustainability Victoria, 2012
State of Australian Cities, Australian Government
Department of Infrastructure and Transport, 2011
ABS Annual Population Estimates, 2011 (catalogue 3218.0)
Annual Report 2011-2012, Department of Education and
Early Childhood Development , 2012
Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and Community
Development, 2012
Ageing in Victoria: A plan for an age-friendly society 20102020, Department of Planning and Community
Development, 2010
Version: 6
Between 30 June 2007 and 30 June 2011 the prisoner
population increased from 4,183 prisoners to 4,737
prisoners, an increase of over 13 percent.
Corrections Victoria, 2011
The number of issues dealt with by courts, the Victoria
Civil and Administrative Tribunal, and the Dispute
Settlement Centre of Victoria also decreased from
394,223 in 2010-11 to 385,984.
Annual Report 2011-2012, Department of Justice, 2012
Demands for sport and recreation areas remains strong,
with around 83 percent of Victorians aged 15 years and
over participating in physical activity.
[NO NEW UPDATES]
Melbourne’s potable water use in 2010 was 356
gigalitres. Around 63 percent was for residential use and
27 percent was non-residential use.
[NO NEW UPDATES]
Australia has the eighth largest telecommunications
market in the world. The Economist Intelligence Unit’s
latest e-readiness rankings - an indicator of the ability of
businesses to conduct e-commerce - placed Australia
ninth in the world.
[NO NEW UPDATES]
Participation in Exercise, Recreation and Sport Survey,
2010 Annual Report, Standing Committee on Recreation
and Sport, 2011
Document Number: 2145983
Living Melbourne, Living Victoria Roadmap, State
Government of Victoria, 2011
Digital economy rankings 2010: Beyond e-readiness,
Economist Intelligence Unit, 2010
Version: 6
ENVIRONMENT
The Victorian Environmental Assessment Council
estimates that there is around 146,000 hectares of land
in Melbourne with native vegetation.
Victorian Environment Assessment Council, 2010
There are around 495 native vertebrate species
recorded in and around Melbourne.
Victorian Environment Assessment Council, 2010
Road based freight and private motor vehicles are the
major source of urban air pollution.
Environment Protection Agency, 2011
The recent drought generated the longest of period of
low water inflows into Melbourne’s dams and
catchments on record.
Melbourne Water, Water Storage Report , 2011
Between 2000-2001 and 2009-2010, Victoria’s overall
energy consumption has grown by 4.4 percent and
greenhouse gas emissions from the energy industries
sector by around four percent.
ABS, State and Territory Statistical Indicators, 2012
(catalogue 1367.0) and National Greenhouse Accounts
2011, Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency.
Over the same period, residential electricity
consumption grew by 11.5 percent and residential gas
consumption by 21.9 percent.
Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics,
Energy Update, 2011
The number of days in Melbourne over 35oC could
increase from nine days in 1990 to 11-13 days per year;
and
Report on Climate Change and Greenhouse Gas Emissions
in Victoria, Department of Sustainability and Environment
2012
There may be fewer and heavier rainfall days, and more
consecutive dry days.
Since 1910, the Victorian average annual mean
temperature has increased by about 0.8°C.
Between 1997-2009, Victoria experienced its driest
period on record, with total annual rainfall decreasing by
13 percent. In contrast, frequent heavy rain events
during 2010-2011 resulted in above average rainfall
conditions across Victoria. January 2011 was the
wettest January in Victoria’s records.
Report on Climate Change and Greenhouse Gas Emissions
in Victoria, Department of Sustainability and Environment
2012
Western Region Sustainable Water Strategy, DSE 2011
Even with the recent wet weather, total rainfall over the
past 15 years remains below average across most of
Victoria, including Melbourne.
Bureau of Meteorology, 2011
The Bureau of Meteorology reported that the two
hailstone storms in March 2010 resulted in losses
estimated to exceed $1 billion.
Bureau of Meteorology and Insurance Council of Australia,
2011
Victoria’s electricity demand is growing by around 1.6
percent every year.
Australian Energy Market Operator, Electricity Statement of
Opportunities, 2011
Maximum peak demand such as on a hot summer
afternoon, is expected to grow by an average of 2.2
percent per year.
Australian Energy Market Operator, Electricity Statement of
Opportunities, 2011
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Version: 6
PERI-URBAN
There are around 97 settlements within Melbourne’s
peri-urban areas.
Department of Planning and Community Development,
unpublished data, 2012
Worldwide, there is recognition by growing cities of the
need to manage peri-urban areas and the important
assets they contain. This has been a part of
Melbourne’s planning policy for over 40 years.
Michael Buxton and Robin Goodman (2002), Maintaining
Melbourne’s Green Wedge, School of Social Science and
Planning – RMIT University
Planning Policies for the Melbourne Metropolitan Region,
Melbourne and Metropolitan Board of Works, 1971
Peri-urban areas have wildlife found nowhere else in
the world, such as the Southern Brown Bandicoot.
Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water,
Population and Communities. Species Profile and Treats
Database, 2011
Since 2001, some of the fastest growing municipalities
have been located in the peri-urban areas.
ABS, Average Annual Population Growth, Victorian SLAs,
2011 (catalogue 3218.0)
Between 2001-2011 the Surf Coast, Mitchell and
Golden Plains shires had the highest growth
rate percentage.
Around two-thirds of visitors to peri-urban areas are
from Melbourne.
Planning Sustainable Futures for Melbourne’s Peri-Urban
Region, Summary Report, Royal Melbourne Institute of
Technology (Buxton et al), 2008
The peri-urban areas contains three internationally
significant Ramsar listed wetland areas -Western Port,
Edithvale-Seaford Wetlands and Port Phillip Bay
(Western Shoreline) and Bellarine Peninsula.
Australia's Ramsar Sites, Department of Sustainability,
Environment, Water, Population and Communities, 2010
The Port Phillip and Western Port area around
Melbourne is the second highest producer of
agricultural products per hectare in Victoria, with
agricultural output per hectare approximately four times
the State average.
Planning Sustainable Futures for Melbourne’s Peri-Urban
Region, Summary Report, Royal Melbourne Institute of
Technology (Buxton et al), 2008
The Western Treatment Plant treats around 50 percent
of Melbourne’s sewage and the Eastern Treatment
Plant treats around 40 percent – both of which are
located in Green Wedge areas.
Melbourne Water Website, as at 1 March 2012
Tourism within peri-urban areas is continuing to grow
and 4,362 tourism businesses have been registered.
Planning Sustainable Futures for Melbourne’s Peri-urban
Region, Summary Report, Royal Melbourne Institute of
Technology, (Buxton et al), 2008
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Version: 6
REGIONAL
Regional Victoria accounts for around a quarter of the
State’s population. The major regional cities of
Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo and the Latrobe Valley are
home to over a third of regional Victoria’s population.
ABS, Annual Population Estimates, 2011 (catalogue
3218.0)
Annual food exports are valued at over $6.5 billion, of
which $1.23 billion is farmed food.
Department of Primary Industries, 2008
About a third of regional Victoria’s future growth is
likely to occur in Geelong, Bendigo and Ballarat.
Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and Community
Development, 2012
Between 2005-2011 growth in regional rail patronage
has doubled.
Metlink, Department of Transport, 2011
Domestic day trip visitors were estimated to have spent
over $2 billion in regional Victoria in 2010.
Tourism Victoria, 2010
Victoria’s regional population growth is at its highest
rate since 1982. In 2009-2010 the average growth rate
reached 1.4 per cent, an increase of around 20,300
people annually.
ABS, Annual Population Estimates, 2011 (catalogue
3218.0)
Over the next 30-40 years it is estimated that there will
be an additional 630,000 people in regional Victoria. .
About 40 percent of this growth is expected to occur in
Geelong, Bendigo and Ballarat.
Victoria in Future, Department of Planning and Community
Development, 2012
The population of Greater Geelong is growing at
around 1.7 percent and has reached over 220,000
people.
ABS, Average Annual Population Growth, 2011 (catalogue
3218.0)
Located within the region is the new growth area
Armstrong Creek, consisting of 2,500 hectares of
developable land and the potential to provide housing
for between 55,000 – 65,000 people.
City of Greater Geelong, 2011
Ballarat’s population is around 96,000 with an annual
growth rate of two percent.
ABS, Average Annual Population Growth ates, 2011
(catalogue 3218.0)
Ballarat is one of Victoria’s premier tourist destinations
attracting around 1.8 million domestic day trip visitors
each year and contributing $139 million to the local
economy.
City of Ballarat, 2011
Bendigo has a population of over 104,000.
ABS, Average Annual Population Growth, 2011 (catalogue
3218.0)
While manufacturing is Bendigo’s largest industry there
has been substantial growth in all business sectors and
some 51,000 people are employed in Bendigo.
Bendigo is home to over 4000 businesses, including
finance, IT, business and personal services,
manufacturing, health, education and government.
City of Greater Bendigo, 2011
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The Latrobe Valley cluster of cities has a population of
over 76,000 and an annual growth rate is 1.1 percent.
ABS, Annual Population Estimates, 2011 (catalogue
3218.0)
Latrobe Valley generates 85 percent of Victoria’s
electricity and has major industries, such as timber
processing and manufacturing of paper products.
Latrobe City Council, 2011
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