Councils of Tasmania are the 29 administrative districts of the Australian state of Tasmania. Local government areas (LGAs), more generally known as councils, are the tier of government responsible for the management of local duties such as road maintenance, town planning and waste management.
The local government areas of Tasmania are grouped into six regions:
There are 29 local government areas of Tasmania:
| Local government area | Principal town | Region | Date established | Land area [1] | Demographics | Map | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| km2 | sq mi | Population [1] (2019) | Density [1] (per km2) | Classification | |||||
| Break O'Day | St Helens | North-east | 1993 | 3,523.9 | 1,361 | 6,288 | 1.8 | Rural |  |
| Brighton | Brighton | Hobart | 1863 | 171.2 | 66 | 17,675 | 103.3 | Urban |  |
| Burnie | Burnie | North-west and west | 1908 | 611.0 | 236 | 19,550 | 32.0 | Urban |  |
| Central Coast | Ulverstone | North-west and west | 1993 | 933.1 | 360 | 21,938 | 23.5 | Urban |  |
| Central Highlands | Hamilton | Central | 1993 | 7,982.4 | 3,082 | 2,130 | 0.3 | Rural |  |
| Circular Head | Smithton | North-west and west | 1907 | 4,898.0 | 1,891 | 8,078 | 1.6 | Rural |  |
| Clarence | Rosny Park | Hobart | 1860 | 378.0 | 146 | 57,807 | 152.9 | Urban |  |
| Derwent Valley | New Norfolk | South-east | 1994 | 4,108.1 | 1,586 | 10,424 | 2.5 | Rural |  |
| Devonport | Devonport | North-west and west | 1907 | 111.3 | 43 | 25,633 | 230.4 | Urban |  |
| Dorset | Scottsdale | North-east | 1993 | 3,230.5 | 1,247 | 6,634 | 2.1 | Rural |  |
| Flinders | Whitemark | North-east | 1907 | 1,996.6 | 771 | 1,010 | 0.5 | Rural |  |
| George Town | George Town | Launceston | 1907 | 653.4 | 252 | 6,968 | 10.7 | Rural |  |
| Glamorgan–Spring Bay | Triabunna | South-east | 1993 | 2,591.6 | 1,001 | 4,602 | 1.8 | Rural |  |
| Glenorchy | Glenorchy | Hobart | 1864 | 121.1 | 47 | 47,969 | 396.0 | Urban |  |
| Hobart | Hobart | Hobart | 1852 | 77.9 | 30 | 54,649 | 701.4 | Urban |  |
| Huon Valley | Huonville | South-east | 1993 | 5,507.4 | 2,126 | 17,561 | 3.2 | Rural |  |
| Kentish | Sheffield | North-west and west | 1907 | 1,156.2 | 446 | 6,315 | 5.5 | Rural |  |
| King Island | Currie | North-west and west | 1907 | 1,095.7 | 423 | 1,610 | 1.5 | Rural |  |
| Kingborough | Kingston | Hobart | 1907 | 720.1 | 278 | 38,310 | 53.2 | Urban |  |
| Latrobe | Latrobe | North-west and west | 1907 | 600.5 | 232 | 11,638 | 19.4 | Rural |  |
| Launceston | Launceston | Launceston | 1852 | 1,413.6 | 546 | 68,007 | 48.1 | Urban |  |
| Meander Valley | Westbury | Launceston | 1993 | 3,330.8 | 1,286 | 19,844 | 6.0 | Rural |  |
| Northern Midlands | Longford | Central | 1993 | 5,135.3 | 1,983 | 13,437 | 2.6 | Rural |  |
| Sorell | Sorell | South-east | 1862 | 583.8 | 225 | 15,603 | 26.7 | Rural |  |
| Southern Midlands | Oatlands | Central | 1993 | 2,615.5 | 1,010 | 6,290 | 2.4 | Rural |  |
| Tasman | Nubeena | South-east | 1907 | 660.4 | 255 | 2,414 | 3.7 | Rural |  |
| Waratah–Wynyard | Wynyard | North-west and west | 1993 | 3,535.9 | 1,365 | 13,828 | 3.9 | Rural |  |
| West Coast | Zeehan | North-west and west | 1993 | 9,583.5 | 3,700 | 4,175 | 0.4 | Rural |  |
| West Tamar | Beaconsfield | Launceston | 1993 | 691.1 | 267 | 24,070 | 34.8 | Urban |  |
The following is a list of councils areas grouped by region, and the major towns and suburbs within each LGA.
Greater Hobart contains six LGAs:
The south-east area councils contains four LGAs:
The north-east area councils contain three LGAs:
The Launceston area councils contain four LGAs:
The north-west and west coast councils contain nine LGAs:
The Central councils contain three LGAs:
Tasmania has had a number of former local government areas. In 1907, the 149 road trusts or town boards (LGAs) of Tasmania were reduced by mergers and amalgamations to 53 LGAs. By the time of a large scale overhaul in 1993, 46 LGAs were reduced to the present-day 29. [2]
Hobart is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least populated Australian state capital city, and second smallest if territories are taken into account, after Darwin, Northern Territory. Hobart is located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent, making it the most southern of Australia's capital cities. Its skyline is dominated by the 1,271-metre (4,170 ft) Mount Wellington, and its harbour forms the second-deepest natural port in the world, with much of the city's waterfront consisting of reclaimed land. The metropolitan area is often referred to as Greater Hobart, to differentiate it from the City of Hobart, one of the five local government areas that cover the city.
Protected areas of Tasmania consists of protected areas located within Tasmania and its immediate onshore waters, including Macquarie Island. It includes areas of crown land managed by Tasmanian Government agencies as well as private reserves. As of 2016, 52% of Tasmania's land area has some form of reservation classification, the majority is managed by the Tasmania Parks & Wildlife Service. Marine protected areas cover about 7.9% of state waters.
Burnie is a port city on the north-west coast of Tasmania. When founded in 1827, it was named Emu Bay, being renamed after William Burnie, a director of the Van Diemen's Land Company, in the early 1840s. Burnie was proclaimed a city by Queen Elizabeth II on 26 April 1988.
The history of Tasmania begins at the end of the most recent ice age when it is believed that the island was joined to the Australian mainland. Little is known of the human history of the island until the British colonisation in the 19th century.
Clarence City Council is a local government body in Tasmania, and one of the five municipalities that constitutes the Greater Hobart Area. The Clarence local government area has a population of 56,945, covering the eastern shore of the Derwent River from Otago to the South Arm Peninsula and the smaller localities of Cambridge, Richmond, and Seven Mile Beach.
Kingborough Council is a local government body in Tasmania, and one of the five municipalities that constitutes the Greater Hobart Area. Kingborough is classified as an urban local government area and has a population of 37,734, it covers the transition from the southern urban areas of Hobart through Kingston, as well as encompassing Bruny Island.
Huon Valley Council is a local government body in Tasmania, covering most of the south of the state. Huon Valley is classified as a rural local government area and has a population of 17,219, towns and localities of the region include Cygnet, Dover, Franklin, Geeveston, Southport and the largest principal town, Huonville.
Derwent Valley Council is a local government body situated in southern-central Tasmania, west of Hobart. Derwent Valley is classified as a rural local government area and has a population of 10,290, it includes the localities of Bushy Park, Maydena and Strathgordon, with New Norfolk the major, principal town.
Penguin is a town on the north-west coast of Tasmania, Australia. It is in the Central Coast Council local government area and on the Bass Highway, between Burnie and Ulverstone. At the 2016 census, Penguin had a population of 3,849.
The Tasman Highway is a highway in Tasmania, Australia. Like the Midland Highway, it connects the major cities of Hobart and Launceston – however it takes a different route, via the north-eastern and eastern coasts of the state. The Highway also acts as a major commuter road to Hobart residents living on the eastern side of the Derwent River. The designation "Tasman Highway" arises from its location facing the Tasman Sea – named, like the state itself, after Abel Tasman. The highway is one of the longest in Tasmania - 410 km (250 mi), with an average traveling time of 41⁄2 hours.
The modern history of the Australian city of Hobart in Tasmania dates to its foundation as a British colony in 1804. Prior to British settlement, the area had been occupied for at least 8,000 years, but possibly for as long as 35,000 years, by the semi-nomadic Mouheneener tribe, a sub-group of the Nuenonne, or South-East tribe. The descendants of the indigenous Tasmanians now refer to themselves as 'Palawa'.
Metro Tasmania, commonly called Metro, a Tasmanian Government business enterprise, is the largest bus operator in the state of Tasmania, Australia, with operations in three of the four largest urban centres of Hobart, Launceston, and Burnie. Urban services in Devonport are provided by a private operator, Merseylink Coaches. Services are provided by Metro under a range of urban and non-urban contracts with the Transport Commission, a division within the Department of State Growth.
Buckingham Land District is one of the twenty land districts of Tasmania which are part of the Lands administrative divisions of Tasmania. It was formerly Buckingham County, one of the 18 counties of Tasmania and one of the first eleven proclaimed in 1836 and is bordered to the north by the River Derwent, and to the south by the Huon River. It includes Bruny Island. Hobart is located in the county. It was named after the then county of England.
Grove is a rural locality in the local government area (LGA) of Huon Valley in the South-east LGA region of Tasmania. The locality is about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) north-east of the town of Huonville. The 2016 census does not provide a population for the state suburb of Grove.
Sandfly is a suburb in the Kingborough Council local government area in Tasmania, Australia. A region of the Franklin Electorate, Sandfly is a historic area that sits between the suburbs of Longley, Lower Longley, Allens Rivulet, Margate, Leslie Vale and Kaoota. The population of Sandfly in 2011 was 156.
In the Australian state of Tasmania, there are many areas which are commonly known by regional names. Regions are areas that share similar characteristics. These characteristics may be natural such as the Furneaux Islands, the coastline, or the Central Highlands. Alternatively, the characteristics may be cultural, such as a viticulture land use. Tasmania is divided by numerous regional boundaries, based on different characteristics. In many cases boundaries defined by different government agencies are coterminous and are often cited by the Australian and local media that tend to distinguish between North West, West Coast, Southern, and East Coast.
The Tasmanian Heritage Register is the statutory heritage register of the Australian state of Tasmania. It is defined as a list of areas currently identified as having historic cultural heritage importance to Tasmania as a whole. The Register is kept by the Tasmanian Heritage Council within the meaning of the Tasmanian Historic Cultural Heritage Act 1995. It encompasses in addition the Heritage Register of the Tasmanian branch of the National Trust of Australia, which was merged into the Tasmanian Heritage Register. The enforcement of the heritage's requirements is managed by Heritage Tasmania.
