North Queensland has long been a base for various major industries, including mineral processing, sugar mills, beef processing and concrete batching plants.
Industries considered for the region include sea, air, rail and road-dependent industrial uses such as manufacturing (chemicals and metals production), minerals processing, food processing, intermodal freight and logistics and bulk storage.

The region is home to key defence bases including Lavarack Barracks (one of Australia’s largest), Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Base Townsville (co-located with Townsville Airport) and the Ross Island Barracks. The Port of Townsville also supports naval operations for both Australia and foreign vessels.

Townsville is the base for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Australian Institute of Marine Sciences, Australian Research Council’s Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef studies, TropWATER, CSIRO and ReefHQ aquarium.

North Queensland has long been a base for various major industries, including mineral processing, sugar mills, beef processing and concrete batching plants.
Industries considered for the region include sea, air, rail and road-dependent industrial uses such as manufacturing (chemicals and metals production), minerals processing, food processing, intermodal freight and logistics and bulk storage.

The region is home to key defence bases including Lavarack Barracks (one of Australia’s largest), Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Base Townsville (co-located with Townsville Airport) and the Ross Island Barracks. The Port of Townsville also supports naval operations for both Australia and foreign vessels.

Townsville is the base for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Australian Institute of Marine Sciences, Australian Research Council’s Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef studies, TropWATER, CSIRO and ReefHQ aquarium.

North Queensland has long been a base for various major industries, including mineral processing, sugar mills, beef processing and concrete batching plants.
Industries considered for the region include sea, air, rail and road-dependent industrial uses such as manufacturing (chemicals and metals production), minerals processing, food processing, intermodal freight and logistics and bulk storage.

The region is home to key defence bases including Lavarack Barracks (one of Australia’s largest), Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Base Townsville (co-located with Townsville Airport) and the Ross Island Barracks. The Port of Townsville also supports naval operations for both Australia and foreign vessels.

Townsville is the base for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Australian Institute of Marine Sciences, Australian Research Council’s Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef studies, TropWATER, CSIRO and ReefHQ aquarium.

Townsville is a coastal city in north Queensland, Australia. The Strand esplanade, with its pier and water park, is popular. The Reef HQ Aquarium has marine life and coral from the Great Barrier Reef, plus a sea turtle hospital. Southeast of the city, the Billabong Sanctuary wildlife park is home to koalas, wombats and crocodiles. Offshore, Magnetic Island has coral reefs and a national park full of wildlife.

Environmental Services protects Townsville's natural environments and spearheads Council's sustainability initiatives. Explore the hidden worlds of sustainability, Water, Energy, Biodiversity, Land Management and Recycling.

We live in a beautiful part of the world that is surrounded by amazing nature and environmental conservation areas including the Great Barrier Reef world heritage area, Pinnacles National Park, Magnetic Island, the Wet Tropics world heritage area including Paluma Range National Park, and Bowling Green Bay RAMSAR Wetland of international Importance.

The work that organisations, not-for-profits, businesses and governments put in to protecting, restoring, and enhancing these spaces is crucial for ensuring they flourish and that we continue to attract ecotourism to the region.

Our climate is changing primarily because increasing amounts of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are trapping heat, warming the air and oceans.

Around 80% of the region’s population of 236,000 live in Townsville, the largest city in northern Australia. The Port of Townsville services the region’s mining industry and fishing fleets. Charters Towers is the main regional centre.

On the coast, extreme inundation and erosion events could become more frequent, resulting in high clean-up and asset maintenance costs.

Flooding, due to more intense extreme storms, could affect water, sewerage, storm water, transport and communications infrastructure. Flash flooding and wind damage will exacerbate these impacts closer to the coast. The cost of insurance may increase as a result. Inland, the impact of hotter days and extreme heat events will also affect infrastructure.

Resource recovery from a number of different waste streams is already being undertaken in the region, diverting materials such as clean fill, green waste, paper and cardboard, timber, metals and glass.

The amount of material recovered through these activities has followed an increasing trend over the last three years and is likely to continue as further resource recovery initiatives and technologies are introduced.

Education and engagement with the community plays a critical role in meeting waste management targets and reducing contamination rates. It is a key element in the successful implementation of this strategy, supporting the actions and objectives of other priorities.

The Gladstone Manufacturing Hub will be an access point for local manufacturers to develop their skills and expertise for advanced manufacturing.

Gladstone is already one of Queensland’s industrial powerhouses with access to a significant State Development Area and the Port of Gladstone.

This will complement the work of the Rockhampton Hub focusing on Central Queensland’s key manufacturing strengths of rail, metal production and food innovation.

The Central Queensland resource sector, which includes not just coal, but other minerals like gold, copper, magnesium and salt, contributes significantly to the Rockhampton economy. Over 1500 Rockhampton locals are directly employed by the resource sector, with this sector responsible for 25% of Rockhampton’s Gross Regional Product at a value of over $1.4 Billion.

It is an exciting time for Rockhampton with the amount of large infrastructure projects currently in construction, the ever increasing presence of local, superior mining sector companies operating out of Rockhampton, with projects such as Carmichael Mine, Olive Downs Mine and the potential of Mt Morgan gold mine being reopened.

As the name suggests, Capricorn Region lies on the Tropic of Capricorn, spanning from the National Parks of the Central Highlands that border Outback Queensland to the coastline of the Southern Great Barrier Reef and the green continental islands of the Keppel Group. At the heart of the region is the city of Rockhampton, ‘Rocky’ to the locals and those who know it well – it’s Australia’s ‘Beef Capital’.

Rockhampton lies on the banks of the mighty Fitzroy River, the second largest river system in Australia. The city’s wealth of historic buildings, best illustrated in the riverside precinct of Quay Street, reflects the age of the gold rushes in the 19th century centred at nearby Mt Morgan and followed by the cattle grazing industry. Visitors can get a taste of the local steaks and a rodeo at one of Rocky’s heritage pubs. Be sure to also visit the limestone caverns of Capricorn Caves.

On the nearby Capricorn Coast holiday havens start with the welcoming seaside town of Yeppoon. On the northern edges of this coast is Byfield National Park, rich in birdlife while to the south lie small beachside communities, a marina and attractions including a crocodile farm. Floating on the horizon, Great Keppel Island is a tropical island destination with 17 glorious beaches and a choice of holiday options.

Inland you can discover real gems – sapphires and other precious stones – amidst the prospectors’ claims in the Gemfields. Head south to include Carnarvon National Park and the walking path through Carnarvon Gorge with its steep escarpments, pockets of rainforest, ancient Aboriginal rock art and native fauna.

Historically and as the economic hub for Central Queensland, our Region has many strengths in agriculture, mining services, energy, construction, education and health services. Our strategic location as a logistics hub well serviced by road, rail, air and sea positions us positively for future opportunities as Northern, Central and Southern Australia continue to grow.

Our region experiences extremes across multiple hazards. It floods, it burns, the land moves and changes, it can get uncomfortably hot and the wind can howl. Storms can be severe, and cyclones cross the coast here. In addition, our climate is changing and this is presenting a key driver and amplifier of natural hazard risks across out region.

Leveraging its proximity to the Shoalwater Bay Training Area, Rockhampton Airport, Port Alma, and the Bajool Magazine, Rockhampton Region is uniquely placed to support a permanent Australian Defence Force (ADF) presence. With experienced large equipment maintenance providers, Rockhampton provides future defence industry capability.

Apprenticeships and traineeships are excellent examples of pathways into work that have proven to be effective. But they are specific to certain occupations.

Apprentices and trainees made up about 10 per cent of the pathways people take into the workforce. He said policymakers needed to create better vocational education and training (VET) courses to give young people stronger options outside universities and apprenticeships.

3.9 million people were enrolled in vocational education and training last year, but up to 2.4 million of those were in short courses such as first aid and construction safety.

Fitzroy agriculture is predominantly based on livestock. It is the main hub for meat production throughout the entire GBR Region. Cattle meat production in 2014-15 was an estimated $1,285 million, which is 54% of the total value of cattle meat production within the GBR Catchment Area. Other agricultural commodities make up a smaller share of production value in Fitzroy, with the most significant of these being broadacre crops less sugar and cotton, with production of $236 million in 2014-15.

Historically and as the economic hub for Central Queensland, our Region has many strengths in agriculture, mining services, energy, construction, education and health services. Our strategic location as a logistics hub well serviced by road, rail, air and sea positions us positively for future opportunities as Northern, Central and Southern Australia continue to grow.

Historically and as the economic hub for Central Queensland, our Region has many strengths in agriculture, mining services, energy, construction, education and health services. Our strategic location as a logistics hub well serviced by road, rail, air and sea positions us positively for future opportunities as Northern, Central and Southern Australia continue to grow.

Historically and as the economic hub for Central Queensland, our Region has many strengths in agriculture, mining services, energy, construction, education and health services. Our strategic location as a logistics hub well serviced by road, rail, air and sea positions us positively for future opportunities as Northern, Central and Southern Australia continue to grow.

Apprenticeships and traineeships are excellent examples of pathways into work that have proven to be effective. But they are specific to certain occupations.

Apprentices and trainees made up about 10 per cent of the pathways people take into the workforce. He said policymakers needed to create better vocational education and training (VET) courses to give young people stronger options outside universities and apprenticeships.

3.9 million people were enrolled in vocational education and training last year, but up to 2.4 million of those were in short courses such as first aid and construction safety.

Economic Development agencies include Regional Development Australia Darling Downs and South West and State Government agencies including the Department of State Development, Manufacturing, Infrastructure & Planning and Trade & Investment Queensland (TIQ), plus Toowoomba Chamber of Commerce, University of Southern Queensland (USQ), TAFE Queensland South West, the Toowoomba region’s Registered Training Organisations (RTOs), Tourism Darling Downs, Southern Queensland Country Tourism and regional business chambers and associations.