Local Community and Economy
The strait between Maria Island and the east coast of mainland Tasmania is called Mercury Passage and was named after the ship HMS Mercury, commanded by John Henry Cox, who charted the area in 1789. There are two towns of size in this part of the East Coast: Orford at the mouth of the Prosser River and Triabunna, some eight kilometres further north at the head of Spring Bay.
There is one town on Maria Island, called Darlington. It lies near the northern tip of the island. Darlington is beautiful and historic and has many wonderful old buildings, but it has no permanent inhabitants other than a few park rangers. All the rest—up to several hundred during the summer holidays—are tourists who come and go.
Tourism is important to the local economy. In nearby Triabunna other major industries are fishing, forestry and farming. An export woodchip mill is located at Freestone Point 5 km south of the town. Rock lobster (known locally as crayfish), scalefish, scallops and abalone are taken near the island by both commercial and recreational fishermen, and mussels are farmed in Mercury Passage.
Read more about this topic: Maria Island
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