Kiunga | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 6°7′S141°18′E / 6.117°S 141.300°E | |
Country | Papua New Guinea |
Province | Western Province |
District | North Fly |
LLG | Kiunga Urban, Kiunga Rural |
Elevation | 33 m (108 ft) |
Population (2013) | |
• Total | 18,747 |
• Rank | 18th |
Languages | |
• Main languages | Tok Pisin, English |
• Traditional language | Aekyom & Yongom |
Time zone | UTC+10 (AEST) |
Climate | Af |
Kiunga is a port town on the Fly River [1] in the Western Province of Papua New Guinea, [2] just upstream from the D'Albertis Junction with the Ok Tedi River. [3] It is the southernmost terminus of the Kiunga-Tabubil Highway. Local industry rests on a cornerstone of freight and haulage, particularly from the Ok Tedi Mine and provisioning for the much larger town of Tabubil. Natural rubber has been an emerging industry more recently, with a processing/manufacturing plant being built in town. [4]
Surrounding swamps and rainforest lowlands are of interest to birdwatchers, with a high chance of observing crowned pigeon, yellow-eyed starling, large fig parrot and flame bowerbird as well as a large variety of more common species.
Kiunga has reliable 24-hour power. Locals are friendly, and there is no significant crime. Dial-up internet access is possible during business hours. Short term accommodation is available. Although Kiunga is accessible by road, this provides access only from Tabubil via the Kiunga-Tabubil Highway.
There are flights to and from the capital, Port Moresby, by both Airlines PNG and Air Niugini. Kiunga weather station readings are available online. [5] Its local geology is clay on limestone.
According to data for 2013, the city's population was 18,747 people. [6] Historical data is listed below.
1980 | 1990 | 2000 | 2013 |
---|---|---|---|
1,400 | 4,000 | 8,265 | 18,747 |
Kiunga has a tropical rainforest climate (Af) with very heavy rainfall year-round.
Climate data for Kiunga | |||||||||||||
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Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Average high °C (°F) | 31.7 (89.1) | 31.6 (88.9) | 31.7 (89.1) | 31.4 (88.5) | 31.0 (87.8) | 30.1 (86.2) | 29.3 (84.7) | 29.9 (85.8) | 30.5 (86.9) | 31.5 (88.7) | 32.4 (90.3) | 32.0 (89.6) | 31.1 (88.0) |
Daily mean °C (°F) | 27.2 (81.0) | 27.1 (80.8) | 27.2 (81.0) | 27.0 (80.6) | 26.9 (80.4) | 26.2 (79.2) | 25.6 (78.1) | 25.9 (78.6) | 26.2 (79.2) | 26.8 (80.2) | 27.5 (81.5) | 27.4 (81.3) | 26.7 (80.2) |
Average low °C (°F) | 22.7 (72.9) | 22.6 (72.7) | 22.7 (72.9) | 22.7 (72.9) | 22.9 (73.2) | 22.4 (72.3) | 22.0 (71.6) | 21.9 (71.4) | 22.0 (71.6) | 22.1 (71.8) | 22.6 (72.7) | 22.9 (73.2) | 22.5 (72.4) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 456 (18.0) | 403 (15.9) | 529 (20.8) | 399 (15.7) | 397 (15.6) | 317 (12.5) | 305 (12.0) | 317 (12.5) | 323 (12.7) | 339 (13.3) | 312 (12.3) | 424 (16.7) | 4,521 (178) |
Source: Climate-Data.org [7] |
The Wopkai people, or Wopkaimin, are a small aboriginal tribe of the Faiwol people that lives in the remote Star Mountains in western Papua New Guinea in what is known as the Fly River socio-ecological region. They speak the Wopkai dialect of the Faiwol language.
Kavieng is the capital of the Papua New Guinean province of New Ireland and the largest town on the island of the same name. The town is located at Balgai Bay, on the northern tip of the island. As of 2009, it had a population of 17,248.
The Ok Tedi is a river in New Guinea. The Ok Tedi Mine is located near the headwaters of the river, which is sourced in the Star Mountains. It is the second largest tributary of the Fly River. Nearly the entirety of the river runs through the North Fly District of the Western Province of Papua New Guinea, but the river crosses the international boundary with Indonesia for less than one kilometre. The largest settlement of the Western Province, Tabubil is located near its banks.
Western Province is a coastal province in southwestern Papua New Guinea, bordering the Indonesian provinces of Highland Papua and South Papua. The provincial capital is Daru. The largest town in the province is Tabubil. Other major settlements are Kiunga, Ningerum, Olsobip and Balimo.
Mount Hagen is the third largest city in Papua New Guinea, with a population of 46,250. It is the capital of the Western Highlands Province and is located in the large fertile Wahgi Valley in central mainland Papua New Guinea, at an elevation of 1,677 m (5,502 ft).
Tabubil is a town located in the Star Mountains area of the North Fly District of Western Province, Papua New Guinea. The town, including the adjoining relocated village of Wangabin and the industrial area of Laydown, is the largest settlement in the province, although the provincial capital, Daru is a similar size. It had a recorded population of 10,270 at the 2011 census.
The Ok Tedi Mine is an open-pit copper and gold mine in Papua New Guinea located near the headwaters of the Ok Tedi River, in the Star Mountains Rural LLG of the North Fly District of the Western Province of Papua New Guinea.
Kokopo is the capital of East New Britain Province in Papua New Guinea. It is administered under Kokopo/Vunamami Urban LLG. The capital was moved from Rabaul in 1994 when the volcanoes Tavurvur and Vulcan erupted. As a result, the population of the town increased more than sixfold from 3,150 in 1990 to 20,262 in 2000.
Tabubil Airport is an international airport in Tabubil, Papua New Guinea. Asia Pacific Airlines operates out of Tabubil as its hub.
The Ok Tedi environmental disaster caused severe harm to the environment along 1,000 km (620 mi) of the Ok Tedi River and the Fly River in the Western Province of Papua New Guinea between around 1984 and 2013. The lives of 50,000 people have been disrupted. One of the worst environmental disasters caused by humans, it is a consequence of the discharge of about two billion tons of untreated mining waste into the Ok Tedi from the Ok Tedi Mine, an open pit mine situated in the province.
The Kiunga-Tabubil Highway is an all-weather gravel road that runs from the river port town of Kiunga through Ningerum and Tabubil to the Ok Tedi Mine site, in the remote North Fly District of the Western Province of Papua New Guinea. The road is around 137 kilometres (85 mi) long, but this changes as sections are rehashed.
The North Fly District of the Western Province of Papua New Guinea is the northernmost, smallest, and arguably the most remote of the three districts of the province. It contains the Local-Level Government (LLG) areas of Kiunga Rural, Kiunga Urban, Ningerum Rural, Olsobip Rural and Star Mountains Rural, and the townships of Kiunga, Tabubil, Olsobip and Ningerum.
Star Mountains Rural LLG is a local-level government situated in the Star Mountains in North Fly District of Western Province of Papua New Guinea. In the year 2000, the LLG had 1691 homes, and a population of 12,114 people. The current population is more likely to now be around 15,000 people. The main population centre in the LLG is Tabubil. Finalbin and the Ok Tedi Mine are also in this LLG.
Kiunga Rural LLG is a local-level government area situated in North Fly District of Western Province of Papua New Guinea. In the year 2000, the LLG had a population of 13,249 people. The township of Kiunga is within the boundaries of this LLG, but has its own urban LLG.
Kiunga Urban LLG is a local-level government area situated in North Fly District of Western Province of Papua New Guinea. In the year 2000, the LLG had a population of 8265 people. The township of Kiunga, which is governed by this LLG is the government seat of the district.
Ningerum is a small town on the Kiunga-Tabubil Highway, about equidistant between the two centres of Kiunga and Tabubil. Ningerum is the seat of the Ningerum Rural LLG, which was the second most populous LLG in the North Fly District of the Western Province of Papua New Guinea during the 2000 census. The town is served by Ningerum Airport.
The Middle Fly District of the Western Province of Papua New Guinea is a large, coastal district that forms the central area of the Fly River basin. It contains the Local-Level Government areas of: Balimo Urban, Bamu Rural, Gogodaia Rural, Lake Murray Rural, and Nomad Rural, and the population centres of Balimo, Bamu, Gogodala and Nomad. It also contains the largest lake in the country, Lake Murray.
This page is a list of districts of Papua New Guinea.
The glass blue-eye is a species of fish in the subfamily Pseudomugilinae. It is endemic to Papua New Guinea where it is only known to occur in a few small creeks adjacent to a 15–20 kilometres (9.3–12.4 mi) stretch of the Ok Tedi Mine supply road between the settlements of Kiunga and Tabubil in the Upper Fly River system close to the frontier with Irian Jaya. This species has a mainly transparent body with silvery gill covers and belly, there are black spots on the margins of the scales and there are black markings on the fins and lateral line, with the fins being shaded with yellow, with the exception of the transparent pectoral fins. It attains a standard length of 3 centimetres (1.2 in). This species was described by Gerald R. Allen in 1983 and its specific name honours the site biologist at the Ok Tedi Mine, David Balloch, for the support and assistance he gave Allen.
Roy Biyama was a Papua New Guinean politician. He was a member of the National Parliament of Papua New Guinea from 2002 until his death, representing the electorate of Middle Fly Open. He was a member of four parties: the Papua New Guinea Revival Party, the People's Action Party, the United Resources Party and the People's National Congress. He served as Minister for Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology (2003-2004), Minister for Labour and Industrial Relations (2004-2006) and Minister Assisting the Prime Minister (2006-2007) in the Somare government. He had also been Governor of Western Province since February 2017.