Western Downs Region
| Western Downs Region Queensland | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Location within Queensland | |||||||||||||||
| Population | 32,071 (2010)[1] | ||||||||||||||
| • Density | 0.843108/km2 (2.18364/sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| Established | 2008 | ||||||||||||||
| Area | 38,039 km2 (14,686.9 sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| Mayor | Ray Brown | ||||||||||||||
| Federal division(s) | Maranoa | ||||||||||||||
| Website | Western Downs Region | ||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
The Western Downs Region is a local government area in Queensland, Australia. The Council covers an area 38,039 square kilometres (14,687 sq mi), which is approximately the same size as the country of Switzerland, although with a population at the last census of a little over 32 000, it is over 235 times less densely populated.
The area is home to prime farming land and thus agriculture is a major industry in the area. Dalby, the biggest town in the region is home to the second largest cattle saleyards in Australia. The Dalby Saleyards process over 200 000 cattle annually in its state of the art facility which is comparable to Rockhampton and Casio
History
Western Downs Region was created in March 2008 as a result of the report of the Local Government Reform Commission released in July 2007. The new Council, located in the Darling Downs region contains the entire area of five previous local government areas;
as well as Division 2 of Shire of Taroom.
The report recommended that the new local government area should not be divided into wards and elect ten councillors and a mayor. The report estimated that the resident population in 2006 was 30,018 and the operating budget was A$74 million.
Originally called Dalby Regional Council, a name change to Western Downs was approved in August 2009.[2]
Towns and localities
The Regional Council covers the towns of:
| Town | Population | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Bell | 544 (2011) | 39km NE of Dalby |
| Brigalow | 404 (2011) | 62km NW of Dalby, 20km SE of Chinchilla |
| Chinchilla | 5,487 | 82km NW of Dalby |
| Condamine | 426 | 125km W of Dalby, 59km SW of Chinchilla |
| Dalby | 12,299 | 210km NW of Brisbane, 82km SE of Chinchilla |
| Drillham | ||
| Dulacca | ||
| Glenmorgan | ||
| Jandowae | ||
- Bell
- Brigalow
- Chinchilla
- Condamine
- Dalby
- Drillham
- Dulacca
- Glenmorgan
- Jandowae
- Jimbour
- Kaimkillenbun
- Kogan
- Miles
- Moonie
- Tara
- The Gums
- Wandoan
- Warra
and the localities of:
Mayors
References
- ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 March 2011). "Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2009–10". Retrieved 11 June 2011.
- ^ "Council set to launch new identity". Western Downs Regional Council. 5 August 2009. Archived from the original on 2 October 2009. Retrieved 21 January 2014.
- ^ "2008 Dalby Regional Council - Mayoral Election - Election Summary". Electoral Commission of Queensland. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
- ^ "2012 Western Downs Regional Council - Mayoral Election - Election Summary". Electoral Commission of Queensland. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
- ^ "Councillor Profiles". Western Downs Regional Council. Retrieved 21 January 2014.
External links
Media related to Western Downs Region at Wikimedia Commons