Wide Bay Burnett

The Wide Bay Burnett region’s economy is focused in the agriculture, manufacturing and renewable energy sectors. As the gateway to the southern Great Barrier Reef and Fraser Island, tourism is also important.

The Wide Bay-Burnett region stretches 48,600 square kilometres from the fertile soils of the Burnett area to the beautiful Fraser Coast. The region encompasses the local government areas of Bundaberg, Fraser Coast, Cherbourg, Gympie, North Burnett, and South Burnett, and the major regional centres of Bundaberg, Gympie, Hervey Bay and Maryborough.

With a vibrant tourism industry and growing service sector, Wide Bay’s economy continues to diversify as it builds on its traditional strengths in agriculture and manufacturing.

Mineral exploration activities continue in the region, not only in the North Burnett (Biggenden, Gayndah, Mundubbera, Monto) but there has also been the exploration into coal resources in Monto, Maryborough, Tiaro, Kingaroy and north of Bundaberg.

Current identified resources include gold, coal (coking and thermal), silica sand, ilmenite, bauxite, copper, manganese, molybdenum, magnetite, kaolin, limestone, apatite, scandium, feldspar, siltstone, black granite and clay.

Maryborough has the Downer train manufacturer and is gaining a defence artillery-shell factory being built by a partnership between Germany’s Rheinmetall and Brisbane small-arms company NIOA.