Nhulunbuy, Northern Territory

Nhulunbuy
Northern Territory

Nhulunbuy

Coordinates

12°10′57″S 136°46′55″E / 12.18250°S 136.78194°ECoordinates: 12°10′57″S 136°46′55″E / 12.18250°S 136.78194°E

Population

3,933 (2011 census)

• Density

552.4/km² (1,430.7/sq mi)

Postcode(s)

0881, 0880

Elevation

20 m (66 ft)

Area

7.12 km² (2.7 sq mi)

Location

996 km (619 mi) from Darwin
12 km (7 mi) from Yirrkala

Territory electorate(s)

Nhulunbuy

Federal Division(s)

Lingiari

Mean max temp	Mean min temp	Annual rainfall
30.8 °C ^{87 °F}	23.3 °C ^{74 °F}	1,305.3 mm ^{51.4 in}

Nhulunbuy is a township that was created on the Gove Peninsula in the Northern Territory of Australia when a bauxite mine and deep water port were established nearby in the late 1960s, followed by an alumina refinery. At the 2011 census, Nhulunbuy had a population of 3,933 with a median age of 32. The closure of the alumina refinery in May 2014 resulted in 1,100 workers being redeployed or made redundant, substantially reducing this population.

This area in Northeast Arnhem Land has been home to the Yolngu Aboriginal people for at least 40,000 years.

Matthew Flinders, in his circumnavigation of Australia in 1803, met the Macassan trading fleet near present-day Nhulunbuy, an encounter that led to the establishment of settlements on Melville Island and the Coburg Peninsula. A beach close to the township is named Macassan Beach in honour of this encounter.

In 1963, a Federal government decision excised part of the land for a bauxite mine to be operated by the North Australian Bauxite and Alumina Company (Nabalco). The Yolngu aborigines at Yirrkala were strongly opposed, and forwarded a bark petition to the Australian House of Representatives, which attracted national and international attention and which now hangs in Parliament House, Canberra.

The town of Nhulunbuy was then established, housing the workers and their families, who were employed by the Swiss Aluminium company. The mine is now owned by Rio Tinto who acquired Alcan in 2007. At one stage there were over 100 different nationalities present. During the 1970s the population rose to approximately 3,500 with 1,000 students at the combined primary and high school. A new high school was opened in 1981.

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