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The Twelve Apostles

I would like to write my e-portfolio about the picture that Mr. Allred is using as the background for his website (since not too many people know about it) or in other words the Twelve Apostles Rocks. The Twelve Apostles is a collection of limestone stacks off the shore of the Port Campbell National Park, by the Great Ocean Road in Victoria,

Australia. They are giant rock stacks (up to 45 meters high) created as a result of the constant erosion of the limestone cliffs off the mainland which began 10-20 million years ago. As a result of the erosion, the softer limestone formed caves and arches in the cliffs, creating commandeering and iconic rock stacks along the coastline. Tamara Fackrell 2

The apostles were formed by erosion: the harsh weather conditions from the Southern

Ocean gradually eroded the soft limestone to form caves in the cliffs, which then became arches, which in turn collapsed; leaving rock stacks up to 45 meters high. The site was known as the Sow and Piglets until 1922 (Muttonbird Island, near Loch Ard

Gorge, was the Sow, and the smaller rock stacks the Piglets); after which it was renamed to The Apostles for tourism purposes. The formation eventually became known as the Twelve Apostles, despite only ever having nine stacks.

The Twelve Apostles in 1989.

In 2002, the Port Campbell Professional Fishermens Association unsuccessfully attempted to block the creation of a proposed marine national park at the Twelve

Apostles location, but were satisfied with the later Victorian Government decision to not Tamara Fackrell 3 allow seismic exploration at the same site by Benaris Energy; believing it would harm marine life.

The stacks are susceptible to further erosion from the waves. On 3 July 2005, a 50 meter tall stack collapsed, leaving eight remaining. On 25 September 2009, it was thought that another of the stacks fell, but this was actually one of the smaller stacks of the Three Sisters formation. The rate of erosion at the base of the limestone pillars is approximately 2 cm (a little under an inch) per year. Due to wave action eroding the cliff face existing headlands are expected to become new limestone stacks in the future. Tamara Fackrell 4

Today, the Twelve apostles are used as one of the most popular tourist attractions in Australia.