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Eyre, Lake

Eyre, Lake, shallow salt lake, 3,430 sq mi (8,884 sq km), central South Australia state, Australia; largest lake in Australia. The lake, 39 ft (12 m) below sea level, is the continent's lowest point. Located in the arid interior of Australia, the lake is frequently dry. During the winter rainy season, numerous stream beds carry floodwaters into the lake. A move in 1995 to designate the lake's basin as a world heritage site pitted environmentalists and the federal government against the state government and parties concerned with pastoral and mining rights.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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