Geology of Land
Australia is often considered a geologically stable continent, yet its landscapes tell a powerful story of fire and transformation. Beneath its plains, mountains, and deserts lies a volcanic history spanning tens of millions of years. From ancient lava flows and vast basalt plains to relatively recent eruptions within the last few thousand years, volcanoes have played a significant role in shaping the land, ecosystems, and human histories of Australia .
Across the continent, volcanic activity has created plains, cones, lava fields, and crater lakes. These features form part of a broader geological system driven by heat from deep within the Earth’s mantle. For Aboriginal peoples, these landscapes are not simply geological features—they are living expressions of creation, embedded in story, law, and cultural knowledge of Country.
How Volcanoes Work
Volcanoes are surface expressions of Earth’s internal energy. Heat from the mantle generates magma, which rises through fractures in the Earth’s crust. When pressure builds and gases expand near the surface, eruptions occur, releasing lava, ash, and volcanic gases (Joyce 2010).
In Australia, most volcanic activity has been basaltic. This type of magma is relatively fluid, allowing lava to spread over large areas rather than building steep volcanic peaks. As a result, Australia’s volcanic landscapes are typically broad and low-profile, forming extensive plains rather than towering mountains.
Types of Volcanoes in Australia
Australia’s volcanic features vary widely depending on eruption style, environment, and geological history.
Scoria (cinder) cones are among the most recognisable volcanic forms. These steep-sided hills are built from fragmented lava ejected during eruptions. They are found in volcanic fields across south-eastern Australia and parts of Queensland.
Shield volcanoes, formed by fluid basalt lava, create wide, gently sloping landforms. Ancient shield volcanoes in eastern Australia, such as those in northern New South Wales and Queensland, once rose to significant heights before eroding over millions of years.
Maar craters and tuff rings form when magma interacts explosively with groundwater. These eruptions create broad craters, often later filled with lakes, found in regions such as south-eastern Australia.
Australia’s volcanic systems are typically monogenetic, meaning each volcano erupts only once. However, volcanic fields can remain active over long periods, with eruptions occurring at different locations over millions of years (Cas et al. 2017).
Major Volcanic Regions of Australia
The Newer Volcanics Province (South-Eastern Australia)
Stretching across western Victoria and into South Australia, the Newer Volcanics Province is one of the largest basalt plains in the world. Activity began around 8 million years ago and continued into the Holocene, with the most recent eruptions occurring approximately 5,000 years ago at Mount Gambier and Mount Schank (Cohen et al. 2017).
This region contains hundreds of volcanic features, including lava flows, scoria cones, and crater lakes. The basalt soils created by these eruptions are among the most fertile in Australia, supporting grasslands and diverse ecosystems.
Eastern Australia Volcanic Chains
Along the eastern seaboard, ancient volcanic activity formed large shield volcanoes associated with mantle hotspots. These include the Tweed Volcano (Mount Warning/Wollumbin region), the Glass House Mountains in Queensland, and volcanic remnants across northern New South Wales.
Over millions of years, erosion has exposed the internal structures of these volcanoes, leaving behind dramatic landscapes of volcanic plugs, ridges, and plateaus.
Northern and Central Australia
Volcanic activity in northern Australia includes older basalt flows and volcanic provinces in regions such as the Northern Territory and Queensland. These landscapes are often deeply weathered, forming plateaus and escarpments that influence river systems and ecosystems.
Western Australia and Kimberley Region
Western Australia contains some of the oldest volcanic rocks on Earth. In the Pilbara region, ancient volcanic sequences are preserved alongside some of the earliest evidence of life, linking volcanic activity directly to the conditions that supported early biological development.
Volcanoes, Ecosystems, and Land Formation
Volcanic activity has played a fundamental role in shaping Australia’s ecosystems. Basalt-rich soils derived from lava flows are highly fertile, supporting grasslands, forests, and agricultural systems.
In south-eastern Australia, volcanic plains supported extensive grasslands dominated by species such as murnong (yam daisy), which were actively managed and cultivated by Aboriginal peoples (Gott 2015). Lava flows also created wetlands, lakes, and water systems that became critical habitats for fish, birds, and other species.
Over time, volcanic landscapes have evolved into some of Australia’s most ecologically significant regions. However, many of these ecosystems are now threatened, with native grasslands and woodlands listed as critically endangered due to land clearing and development (DCCEEW 2021).
Stone, Tools, and Material Culture
Volcanic rocks have long been central to Aboriginal technologies and cultural practices. Basalt, one of the most common volcanic rocks in Australia, was used for grinding stones, tools, and construction.
In south-eastern Australia, greenstone (a form of metamorphosed volcanic rock) was quarried and traded across vast distances. The Mount William quarry is one of the most significant examples, where stone axe blanks were produced and distributed through extensive trade networks (McBryde 1984).
Other volcanic-derived materials such as silcrete and chert were used to produce sharp tools, including blades, scrapers, and spear points. These materials demonstrate the deep understanding Aboriginal peoples had of geological resources and their properties.
Volcanoes in Aboriginal Knowledge and Story
Across Australia, volcanic landscapes are deeply embedded in Aboriginal cultural knowledge. These places are often associated with ancestral beings and creation stories that describe the formation of the land.
In some regions, volcanic eruptions are remembered through oral traditions that describe fire, ash, and transformation of the landscape. These stories align with geological evidence of relatively recent volcanic activity, suggesting that some eruptions may have been witnessed by Aboriginal peoples.
The Budj Bim Cultural Landscape in south-western Victoria provides one of the most powerful examples of this connection. The lava flows from Budj Bim (Mount Eccles) were engineered into an extensive aquaculture system used to trap and farm eels. This system, now recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage site, demonstrates the integration of geology, ecology, and cultural knowledge over thousands of years (UNESCO 2019).
Volcanic landscapes are also connected to the sky through cultural astronomy. Stone arrangements, such as Wurdi Youang, align with solar movements, linking landforms, celestial patterns, and seasonal cycles (Norris et al. 2012).
Are Australian Volcanoes Active?
Although Australia is not located on a major tectonic plate boundary, it is not volcanically extinct. The most recent eruptions occurred only a few thousand years ago, meaning volcanic systems are considered dormant rather than extinct.
Scientific studies suggest that future eruptions are possible, particularly in regions such as the Newer Volcanics Province. While the likelihood of eruption in any given year is low, the geological systems responsible for volcanism remain active beneath the continent (Global Volcanism Program 2021).
Conclusion
The volcanoes of Australia are more than geological features—they are foundational to the continent’s landscapes, ecosystems, and cultural histories. From ancient volcanic rocks that supported the earliest life to recent eruptions that shaped fertile plains and wetlands, volcanism has played a continuous role in the evolution of Country.
Understanding volcanoes through both science and Indigenous knowledge reveals a deeper truth: the land is not static, but alive and constantly changing. These volcanic landscapes carry stories of fire, creation, adaptation, and survival, connecting deep geological time with living cultural traditions.
Across Australia, volcanoes remain a powerful reminder of the forces that continue to shape the Earth—and our place within it.
References
Cas, R., Hayman, P. & Van Otterloo, J. 2017, Volcanoes in Australia, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Cohen, B.E., Knesel, K.M., Vasconcelos, P.M. & Thiede, D.S. 2017, ‘Holocene eruptions of the Newer Volcanics Province, south-eastern Australia’, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, vol. 459, pp. 1–13.
DCCEEW 2021, Natural Temperate Grassland and Grassy Eucalypt Woodland of the Victorian Volcanic Plain: Conservation Advice, Australian Government, Canberra.
Global Volcanism Program 2021, Newer Volcanics Province, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC.
Gott, B. 2015, ‘Aboriginal use of plants in south-eastern Australia’, Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria, vol. 127, no. 2, pp. 64–73.
Joyce, E.B. 2010, The Geomorphology of Victoria, Oxford University Press, Melbourne.
McBryde, I. 1984, Kulin Greenstone Quarries: The Social Context of Production and Distribution for the Mt William Site, ANU Press, Canberra.
Norris, R., Hamacher, D. & Morieson, J. 2012, ‘Wurdi Youang: an Aboriginal stone arrangement with possible solar indications’, Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage, vol. 15, no. 2, pp. 90–98.
UNESCO 2019, Budj Bim Cultural Landscape: World Heritage Listing, UNESCO, Paris.
Written, Researched and Directed by James Vegter
Magic Lands Alliance