Kinrooi

Kinrooi
Flag Coat of arms
Kinrooi Location in Belgium
Coordinates: 51°09′N 05°45′E
Country	Belgium
Region	Flemish Region
Community	Flemish Community
Province	Limburg
Arrondissement	Maaseik
Government
• Mayor	Hubert Brouns (CD&V)
• Governing party/ies	CD&V
Area
• Total	54.76 km2 (21.1 sq mi)
Population (1 January 2010)
• Total	12,227
• Density	223.3/km2 (578.3/sq mi)
Postal codes	3640
Area codes	089
Website	www.kinrooi.be
Map of Kinrooi

Kinrooi is a village located in the Belgian province of Limburg, between Kessenich and Bree.

Municipality

Kinrooi is a municipality since September 18, 1971, when the four municipalities Kinrooi, Kessenich, Geistingen-Ophoven and Molenbeersel were fused. There have been three mayors. The current mayor is Hubert Brouns. On January 1, 2006 Kinrooi had a total population of 11,977. The total area is 54.76 km² which gives a population density of 219 inhabitants per km².

History

Before, Kinrooi was a hamlet of the village of Kessenich. The flag reminds to that; the clarions stood on the shield of Kessenich. After the independence of Belgium in 1839 it became a little municipality, together with some near hamlets. In 2005 there are prehistoric remains found in the center, when it was being renovated.

Economy

Kinrooi's main economic activities are agriculture, tourism and the reclamation of gravel, sand and loam. The downside of this reclamation is that a lot of land surface gets lost. Tourism is also an important resource. Kinrooi attracts a lot of tourists because it has seven nature reserves that harbor rare animal and plant species, it has a marina and because it has several old windmills. Besides, there is a lot of watersporting, in the old gravel pools. One of them, lying in Ophoven, is now the greatest inner harbour of Europe.

External links

• Official website (Dutch)