Nhulunbuy, Gove Peninsula, Northern Territory of Australia, alumina refinery, travel, hotels,
nhulunbuy
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.[2] At the 2011 census, Nhulunbuy had a population of 3,933 with a median age of 32.[1] The closure of the alumina refinery in May 2014 resulted in 1,100 workers being redeployed or made redundant, substantially reducing this population.[3]Nhulunbuy flood,
Nhulunbuy cyclone,
Nhulunbuy tropical cyclone,
Nhulunbuy foods,
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Nhulunbuy rainfall,
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Nhulunbuy tropical cyclone Nora,
his 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)[4]. 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[5].[6]
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. 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.
Permits are required to drive to Nhulunbuy — over 700 km of unsealed roads — so most supplies and visitors are brought by air to Gove Airport or by sea.
Nhulunbuy is only 20 km from the Indigenous community of Yirrkala, famous for its Aboriginal art.
For the purposes of granting tax rebates to residents of isolated areas as per Section 79A(3F) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936, the census population of Nhulunbuy is taken to be less than 2,500).[7]
Education[edit]
Nhulunbuy includes three schools; Nhulunbuy Primary School, Nhulunbuy High School and Nhulunbuy Christian College. In 1999, the first classes of the Nhulunbuy Christian College (formerly known as Nhulunbuy Christian School) were held at the local TAFE centre, and in 2001 the first building of the new school was completed. In 2007 the NCC Middle School was opened and in 2008 the combined year 8/9 Class was first established.
Facilities[edit]
Arnhem Club
Dhimurru Aboriginal Corporation
Endeavour Square, a community shopping centre that includes the northernmost Woolworths supermarket, BWS liquor store and Westpac bank in Australia
Gove Country Golf Club; northernmost golf course in Australia
Gove District Hospital
Refinery closure[edit]
On 29 November 2013, Rio Tinto announced the closure of the alumina refinery (but not the bauxite mine) by July 2014 with the loss of 1,100 jobs, or almost 25% of the town's population.[3][8] The refinery ceased production in May 2014.[9]
Nhulunbuy's population had already dropped by mid 2014, with some of the workforce retained to monitor the shutdown and survey holding ponds full of toxic compounds, but most will be gone by January 2015.[2][2] A range of measures were announced to support the town and its former workers through the closure and the following three years, but locals anticipate further cuts to services since the school, hospital, power plant and flights were backed by Rio Tinto.[10] The closure of the refinery also left flights on the Darwin-Nhulunbuy route to fall to around 50 to 60 per cent full, causing QantasLink to suspend flights on the route from 17 August 2014.[11]
Media[edit]
As a result of the refinery curtailment and subsequent loss of advertising revenue, Gove’s only source of local news, The Arafura Times, published its final issue in mid-October 2016.[citation needed]
In response to the closure of, Gove Online ( a not-for-profit community-led online initiative was established in December 2016, to offer an alternative source of local news, to promote the local region to a wider audience.
Aboriginal Initiation Ceremony in Borroloola, Australia (1)
After having been painted up with red ochre, young Yanyuwa daru or initiates are slowly walked to the Jamangki initiation ground by a group of men and boys, painted with clay and carrying bundles of leaves, who dance around them during their Marndiwala initiation ceremony in Borroloola. Upon arrival they are carried to their fathers by the men who accompanied them from the place where they were painted up for the ceremony.
For photos of Aboriginal Initiation Ceremonies from Borroloola please visit
What to do in The Cobourg Peninsula, Arnhem Land, NT
If you're looking for ideas of things to do in The Cobourg Peninsula in Arnhem Land in the NT (Northern Territory), then watch this video. Cobourg or Garig Ganag National Park is surely one of Australia's most remote spots but making the effort to get there is well worth the effort. Think remote beaches, stunning bush and rich blue waters and only a few hundred visitors each year. This place is so remote you need to book months in advance and bring everything you need to get by but you won't be disappointed.
We stayed at Venture North’s Cobourg Camp glamping in comfy beds and canvas tents with solar power and overlooking the Arafura Sea; magical. We visited the eerie remains of Victoria Settlement, The Rangers Sation and Museum at Black Point and the remote northern beaches of Smiths Point. But watch out for the crocs, they like to get snappy.
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Arnhem Land
Arnhem Land is a truly magical location! Explore a spectacular landscape with unspoiled shores and timeless culture. The scenery is beautiful and diverse, it includes rugged coastlines, remote islands, rivers teeming with fish, lush rain forest, towering escarpments and Savannah woodland. Arnhem Land is made up of 91,000 square kilometres of unspoiled wilderness in the middle of Australia’s northern coast.
Must do:
• View some of the most prized indigenous arts and crafts in the world, including the didgeridoo (Yidaki)
• Meet Aboriginal people in their natural environment in places like Gunbalanya, Maningrida and Yirrkala
• Witness spectacular wildlife, scenery and rare birdlife then complete the day with a sunset you will never forget
• Experience some of the best sports fishing - catch a Coral Trout, Red Emperor or Spanish Mackerel
• Visit the ruins of early European settlement on secluded Cobourg Peninsula