Shire of Mornington Queensland | |||||||||||||||
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![]() Mornington Island from space, September 1991 | |||||||||||||||
Population | 1,025 (2021 census) [1] | ||||||||||||||
• Density | 0.8213/km2 (2.1272/sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
Established | 1978 | ||||||||||||||
Area | 1,248 km2 (481.9 sq mi) [2] | ||||||||||||||
Mayor | Kyle Hector Yanner | ||||||||||||||
Council seat | Gununa | ||||||||||||||
State electorate(s) | Traeger | ||||||||||||||
Federal division(s) | Kennedy | ||||||||||||||
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Website | Shire of Mornington | ||||||||||||||
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The Shire of Mornington is a local government area in northwestern Queensland, Australia. The shire covers the Wellesley Islands, which includes Mornington Island; the South Wellesley Islands; Bountiful Islands; and West Wellesley / Forsyth Islands groups in the Gulf of Carpentaria.
The administrative centre of the shire is the township of Gununa on Mornington Island. [3]
In the 2021 census, the Shire of Mornington had a population of 1,025 people. [1]
The shire includes the traditional lands of a number of Aboriginal Australian peoples.
The shire was formed in 1978 when the Queensland Government decided to take control of the islands over from the Uniting Church of Australia. The local community objected, and asked the Australian federal government to help overturn this decision. After negotiations, it was agreed that the community would become self-governing under a so-called "local government" model. [4]
The Shire Council covers 26 islands, which make up the Wellesley Islands, South Wellesley Islands, Bountiful Islands and Forsyth Islands (also known as West Wellesley) groups. [5]
The area has abundant flora and fauna, including tea trees, mangroves and sea oaks. The beaches are filled with a variety of marine life, including turtles and the endangered dugong. It is a fishing and diving locale with beaches and an emphasis on ecotourism. [6]
The islands of the shire are inhabited by the Lardil, Yangkaal, Kaiadilt and Gangalidda peoples. [5] An Australian Aboriginal language, Lardil (also known as Gununa, Ladil), is spoken on Mornington Island and on the Northern Wellesley Islands, all within the Mornington Shire. [7] Another Australian Aboriginal language, Yukulta (also known as Ganggalida), is spoken in the Gulf Country, which includes the local government areas of the Aboriginal Shire of Doomadgee and Shire of Mornington. [8]
In the 2001 census, the Shire of Mornington had a population of 934 people, of whom 88.2% were Indigenous (Aboriginal Australian or Torres Strait Islander). [9]
In the 2006 census, the Shire of Mornington had a population of 1,032 people. [10]
In the 2011 census, the Shire of Mornington had a population of 1,142 people. [11]
In the 2016 census, the Shire of Mornington had a population of 1,143 people, of whom 86.1% were Indigenous Australians. [12]
In the 2021 census, the Shire of Mornington had a population of 1,025 people. [1]
The Mornington Shire Council does not operate any public libraries. [13]
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Mornington Island, also known as Kunhanhaa, is an island in the Gulf of Carpentaria in the Shire of Mornington, Queensland, Australia. It is the northernmost and, at 1,018 km2 (393 sq mi), the largest of 22 islands that form the Wellesley Islands group. The largest town, Gununa, is in the south-western part of the island.
The Shire of Paroo is a local government area in South West Queensland, Australia. The administrative centre is the town of Cunnamulla. The Paroo Shire covers an area of 47,623 square kilometres (18,387 sq mi). In the 2021 census, the Shire of Paroo had a population of 1,679 people.
The Wellesley Islands, also known as the North Wellesley Islands, is a group of islands off the coast of Far North Queensland, Australia, in the Gulf of Carpentaria. It is a locality within the Shire of Mornington local government area. The traditional owners of the islands are the Lardil people. In the 2021 census, Wellesley Islands had a population of 1,022 people.
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The Aboriginal Shire of Doomadgee is a special local government area in North West Queensland, Queensland, Australia. It is managed under a Deed of Grant in Trust under the Local Government Act 2004.
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Gununa, sometimes spelt Gunana, is a rural town on Mornington Island within the locality of Wellesley Islands in the Shire of Mornington, Queensland, Australia. In the 2021 census, the town of Gununa had a population of 1,022 people.
The Aboriginal Shire of Hope Vale is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Queensland, Australia, north of the town of Cooktown. The majority of the Shire consists of Deed of Grant land that is held for the benefit of Aboriginal people particularly concerned with the land and their ancestors and descendants.