The City of Kwinana is a local government area of Western Australia. It covers an area of approximately 118 square kilometres in metropolitan Perth, and lies about 38 km south of Perth central business district, via the Kwinana Freeway. Kwinana maintains 287 km of roads and had a population of almost 39,000 as at the 2016 Census.

City of Kwinana
Western Australia
The City of Kwinana within the Perth Metropolitan Area
Map
Population45,867 (LGA 2021)[1]
 • Density382.23/km2 (990.0/sq mi)
Established1954
Area120 km2 (46.3 sq mi)[2]
MayorPeter Feasey
Council seatKwinana Town Centre
RegionSouth Metropolitan Perth
State electorate(s)Kwinana
Federal division(s)Brand
WebsiteCity of Kwinana
LGAs around City of Kwinana:
Cockburn Armadale
Cockburn Sound City of Kwinana Serpentine-Jarrahdale
Rockingham Serpentine-Jarrahdale

History edit

 
The largely unpopulated Shire of Kwinana in 1967

Kwinana is a Kimberley Aboriginal word meaning either "young woman" or "pretty maiden". The ship SS Kwinana was wrecked on Cockburn Sound in 1922 and blown onto Kwinana Beach. The nearby area acquired the name and it was officially adopted for a township in 1937.[3] Some of its suburbs take their names from the sailing ships that first brought immigrants to Western Australia, for example, Medina, Calista and Parmelia.

The Kwinana Road District was formed out of part of Rockingham on 15 February 1954 as a result of the passage of the Kwinana Road District Act 1953. Section 4 of the Act stated that "there shall not be a duly elected Road Board for the Kwinana Road District but the Governor may, by Order in Council, appoint a fit and proper person having a comprehensive knowledge and experience of local government matters to be Commissioner of the district."[4]

On 11 November 1960, an Order in Council was issued dividing Kwinana into five wards in preparation for an election to be held on 11 February 1961. The Town ward would elect 3 councillors while the Rural, Industrial, Naval Base and Kwinana Beach wards would each elect one councillor.[5] In order that the election could go ahead, the Kwinana Road District Act was repealed on 14 February 1961 by proclamation, with the District now subject to the same laws as any other council.[6] The first elected councillors took office on 15 February 1961.

On 1 July 1961, the district became the Shire of Kwinana following the enactment of the Local Government Act 1960. It became the Town of Kwinana on 28 May 1977 and it assumed its current name when it was proclaimed a city on 17 September 2012.[7]

Industry edit

 
The Kwinana Nickel Refinery

In 1952 a major industrial area was developed by BP (then the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company) in conjunction with the state government. The state government guaranteed that it would provide electricity, water, essential infrastructure and 2000 state homes within three years to support the establishment of the Kwinana Oil Refinery. Today there are many other associated petro-chemical companies nearby.

The city is home to the Fremantle Outer Harbour consisting of, from north to south, the Alcoa Jetty, the Kwinana Bulk Terminal, the BP Oil Refinery Jetty, the Kwinana Bulk Jetty and the CBH Grain Jetty.[8]

Of these, the Kwinana Bulk Terminal and the Kwinana Bulk Jetty are operated by the Fremantle Ports and serve for the import and export of bulk cargoes and liquids, among them iron ore, coal, cement clink, gypsum, liquefied natural gas, petroleum and fertiliser. The other three facilities are privately operated.[9]

The Outer Harbour deepwater bulk facilities in at Kwinana were first developed in 1955, to service the Kwinana industrial area, and saw rapid expansion in the 1960s and 70s.[10]

From 1968 to 1982, the BHP subsidiary company, Australian Iron & Steel, operated a blast furnace making pig iron at Kwinana, using iron ore mined at Koolyanobing.[11][12]

The Kwinana Industrial Area is also home to the Kwinana Grain Terminal, also the facility is located in East Rockingham. A cooperative owned by 12,000 farmers, CBH Group is Western Australia's leading grain storage, handling and marketing business. Grain from the facility is also used to supply Primary Energy's proposed bio-fuel facility in Kwinana.[13]

In 2020, Spanish renewable energy leader Acciona and Hitachi Zosen Inova (HZI) received the green light to build a waste-to-energy plant in the Rockingham Industrial Zone. The 29 MW plant will have capacity to power 40,000 homes from an annual feedstock of 300,000 tonnes of municipal, industrial and commercial rubbish.[14]

Facilities edit

 
Kwinana Quit Motorplex.

There are three public beaches at Cockburn Sound looking out to Garden Island. The SS Kwinana herself is actually part of the former jetty at Kwinana Beach. The rusting hulk of the ship was cut down to low water level and the centre was filled with limestone to form a platform. There are also wetlands and bushlands in the Kwinana area. The Spectacles are the local wetlands and are so named because of their appearance from the air.

The local companies are keen to be seen preserving the environment and claim to demonstrate the best practice in production methods and environmental safeguards. The BP Kwinana Refinery[15] is apparently responsible for 'Australia's cleanest petrol' – BP Ultimate, which matches the stringent environmental specifications demanded in Europe and the United States.

Kwinana also is home to a centre of attraction for Drag Racing, Dirt Track Speedway, Burnout Competitions, Street Machine shows and Super Cross events. The Perth Motorplex[16] (formerly known as Quit Motorplex) opened in December 2000 at a cost of A$20 million with catering, licensed bars, state of the art stadium lighting and the "Snake Pit", a purpose built and dedicated burn out section. The venue holds many prestigious events including the Westernationals (drag racing), World Series Sprintcars (speedway) and Motorvation (car show).

Mayors edit

Suburbs edit

 
Road side sign for central Kwinana

The suburbs of the City of Kwinana with population and size figures based on the most recent Australian census:[17][18]

Suburb Population Area Map
Anketell 280 (SAL 2021)[19] 6.8 km2 (2.6 sq mi)  
Bertram 6,196 (SAL 2021)[20] 3 km2 (1.2 sq mi)  
Calista 1,975 (SAL 2021)[21] 2.3 km2 (0.89 sq mi)  
Casuarina 1,987 (SAL 2021)[22] 10 km2 (3.9 sq mi)  
Hope Valley 39 (SAL 2021)[23] 13.2 km2 (5.1 sq mi)  
Kwinana Beach 42 (SAL 2021)[24] 14 km2 (5.4 sq mi)  
Kwinana Town Centre 567 (SAL 2021)[25] 0.8 km2 (0.31 sq mi)  
Leda 3,202 (SAL 2021)[26] 8.8 km2 (3.4 sq mi)  
Mandogalup 128 (SAL 2021)[27] 6.9 km2 (2.7 sq mi)  
Medina 2,260 (SAL 2021)[28] 3.7 km2 (1.4 sq mi)  
Naval Base 20 (SAL 2021)[29] 5 km2 (1.9 sq mi)  
Orelia 4,535 (SAL 2021)[30] 2.9 km2 (1.1 sq mi)  
Parmelia 6,184 (SAL 2021)[31] 4.1 km2 (1.6 sq mi)  
Postans 0 (SAL 2021)[32] 5.04 km2 (1.95 sq mi)  
The Spectacles 0 (SAL 2021)[33] 4.69 km2 (1.81 sq mi)  
Wandi 4,324 (SAL 2021)[34] 12.4 km2 (4.8 sq mi)  
Wellard 14,127 (SAL 2021)[35] 16.3 km2 (6.3 sq mi)  

Population edit

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1991 17,278—    
1996 19,186+2.12%
2001 20,812+1.64%
2006 23,198+2.19%
2011 29,227+4.73%
2016 38,918+5.89%
2021 45,867+3.34%

Heritage-listed places edit

As of 2024, 85 places are heritage-listed in the City of Kwinana,[36] of which three are on the State Register of Heritage Places, the Kwinana Signal Box, Peel Town Archaeological Sites and Mead Homestead.[37]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Kwinana (Local Government Area)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  2. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "2021 Community Profiles: Kwinana". 2021 Census of Population and Housing. Retrieved 10 July 2022.  
  3. ^ Wajnryb, Ruth (2006). Australian Place Name Stories. Lothian Books. p. 114. ISBN 0-7344-0623-1.
  4. ^ "Kwinana Road District Act 1953 (No. 26 of 1953)". 18 December 1953. Retrieved 14 December 2010.
  5. ^ "Kwinana Road District Act, 1953 – Kwlnana Road District – Division into Wards, Determination of Membership and Provisions for an Election. Order in Council. (per L.G. 762/60)". Western Australia Government Gazette. 11 November 1960. p. 1960:3450–3452.
  6. ^ "Kwinana Road District Act, 1953. Proclamation. (per L.G. 3103/52)". Western Australia Government Gazette. 10 February 1961. p. 1961:385.
  7. ^ Town of Kwinana (17 September 2012). "Governor declares Kwinana a City". Archived from the original on 29 April 2013. Retrieved 26 September 2012.
  8. ^ "Interactive Port Map". fremantleports.com.au. Fremantle Ports. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
  9. ^ "2015 Inner Harbour and Outer Harbour Fact Sheet" (PDF). fremantleports.com.au. Fremantle Ports. 2015. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
  10. ^ "History and Heritage". fremantleports.com.au. Fremantle Ports. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
  11. ^ "Kwinana iron works opened". Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995). 20 November 1968. p. 28. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
  12. ^ "Union official predicts 14,000 BHP jobs loss". Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995). 23 April 1982. p. 15. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
  13. ^ CBH Group secures ten year grain supply to Primary Energy’s Kwinana Bio-fuel Plant Archived 25 September 2009 at the Wayback Machine accessed: 12 November 2009
  14. ^ "Second waste-to-energy plant gets green light - ARENAWIRE". Australian Renewable Energy Agency. Retrieved 7 January 2021.
  15. ^ "What we do - Refining - Kwinana". Archived from the original on 10 October 2007.
  16. ^ "Perth Motorplex | Drag Racing, Speedway, Burnouts, Motorvation".
  17. ^ "SLIP Map". maps.slip.wa.gov.au. Landgate. Retrieved 1 January 2023.
  18. ^ "NationalMap". nationalmap.gov.au. Geoscience Australia. Retrieved 1 January 2023.
  19. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Anketell (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  20. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Bertram (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  21. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Calista (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  22. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Casuarina (WA) (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  23. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Hope Valley (WA) (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  24. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Kwinana Beach (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  25. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Kwinana Town Centre (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  26. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Leda (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  27. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Mandogalup (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  28. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Medina (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  29. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Naval Base (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  30. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Orelia (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  31. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Parmelia (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  32. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Postans (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  33. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "The Spectacles (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  34. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Wandi (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  35. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Wellard (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  36. ^ "City of Kwinana Heritage Places". inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au. Heritage Council of Western Australia. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
  37. ^ "City of Kwinana State Register of Heritage Places". inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au. Heritage Council of Western Australia. Retrieved 25 February 2024.

External links edit

32°15′S 115°46′E / 32.250°S 115.767°E / -32.250; 115.767