Green Hill, Queensland

For the town of Greenhill in the Isaac Region, see Ilbilbie, Queensland.

Green Hill Queensland
Looking south-east along Nebbia Access Road, Green Hill, 2018
Green Hill
Coordinates	17°01′23″S145°50′00″E / 17.0230°S 145.8333°E / -17.0230; 145.8333 (Green Hill (centre of locality))
Population	177 (2021 census) [1]
• Density	4.683/km2 (12.13/sq mi)
Postcode(s)	4865
Area	37.8 km2 (14.6 sq mi)
Time zone	AEST (UTC+10:00)
Location	6.4 km (4 mi) NNE of Gordonvale 23 km (14 mi) S of Cairns CBD 332 km (206 mi) NNW of Townsville 1,667 km (1,036 mi) NNW of Brisbane
LGA(s)	Cairns Region
State electorate(s)	Mulgrave
Federal division(s)	Kennedy
Suburbs around Green Hill: East Trinity East Trinity Yarrabah Packers Camp Green Hill Yarrabah Gordonvale Aloomba Aloomba

Green Hill is a rural locality in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. ^[2] In the 2021 census, Green Hill had a population of 177 people. ^[1]

Geography

Looking east along Greenhill Road over the low-lying farmland with the Malbon Thompson Range rising beyond, 2018

Pine Creek Yarrabah Road forms the western boundary of the locality, while the eastern boundary is formed by the ridgeline of the Malbon Thompson Range. The land in the west of the locality is lower-lying (10–50 metres above sea level) freehold land used for agriculture (predominantly sugarcane) and some rural residences. The land in the east of the locality is mountainous and undeveloped land rising rapidly from 50 metres (160 ft) above sea level to the mountain ridge on the eastern boundary, where the highest peak is Grey Peaks in the south-east of the locality in the Malbon Thompson Range ( 17°02′45″S145°51′55″E / 17.0458°S 145.8652°E / -17.0458; 145.8652 (Grey Peaks) ) at 644 metres (2,113 ft) above sea level. ^{[3] [4]}

The north-east of the locality is protected as the Malbon Thompson Forest Reserve, while the south-east of the locality is the Grey Peaks National Park. ^[3] There are no access roads tand no public facilities in the Grey Peaks National Park. Due to the steep terrain, the area has not been logged and contains a mixture of sclerophyll and rainforest vegetation. The sclerophyll forest contains red mahogany Eucalyptus pellita and red turpentine Syncarpia glomulifera trees. ^[5]

Apart from these protected areas, the land in the locality is almost entirely used to grow sugarcane. ^[3] There is a network of cane tramways in the western part of the locality to transport the harvested sugarcane to the Mulgrave Sugar Mill. ^[3]

View from Gray Road with the Green Hill geographical feature

Green Hill is in the south-west of the locality ( 17°02′24″S145°48′31″E / 17.0401°S 145.8086°E / -17.0401; 145.8086 (Green Hill) ) at 131 metres (430 ft) above sea level. ^{[3] [6]} The hill is the remnant of a volcano that erupted about 986,000 years ago. It is believed that the volcano's eruption altered the course of the Mulgrave River so that instead of having its mouth on Trinity Inlet, the mouth become directly onto the Coral Sea some 40 km further south. ^[7] However, further research has shown river sediments above the basalt flows and it is now believed that other factors such as alluvial sediments may have altered the river's course and that perhaps it has alternated between the two mouths over time. ^[8]

History

Green Hill is situated in the Yidinji traditional Aboriginal country. ^[9]

The locality was originally called Crescent Hill, but was renamed Green Hill around the 1890s. ^[10]

Demographics

Traditional "Queenslander" house with wide verandas, Green Hill, 2018

In the 2016 census, Green Hill had a population of 159 people. ^[11]

In the 2021 census, Green Hill had a population of 177 people. ^[1]

Education

There are no schools in the locality. The nearest primary and secondary schools are Gordonvale State School and Gordonvale State High School both in neighbouring Gordonvale to the south-west. ^[3]

References

1. Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Green Hill (SAL)". 2021 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
2. "Green Hill – locality in Cairns Region (entry 48662)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government . Retrieved 18 September 2020.
3. "Queensland Globe". State of Queensland . Retrieved 5 November 2020.
4. "Grey Peaks – mountain in Cairns Regional (entry 14871)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government . Retrieved 18 September 2020.
5. "Grey Peaks National Park". Department of National Parks, Sport and Racing. Queensland Government. 15 October 2012. Archived from the original on 3 April 2018. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
6. "Green Hill – hill in Cairns Regional (entry 43017)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government . Retrieved 18 September 2020.
7. "17°S 146°E Cairns – Queensland by Degrees". Royal Geographical Society of Queensland. Archived from the original on 18 March 2018. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
8. "Chapter 2: The Cairns Setting" (PDF). Geoscience Australia . Australian Government. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 September 2007.
9. "First people cultural history". Cairns Regional Council. Archived from the original on 9 April 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
10. "G Suburbs" (PDF). Cairns Regional Council. Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 March 2015. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
11. Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Green Hill (SSC)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 20 October 2018.