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Queensland is a state of Australia that occupies
the north-eastern section of the mainland continent.
It is bordered by the Northern Territory to the
west, South Australia to the south-west and New
South Wales to the south. To the east, Queensland is
bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean. The
state is Australia's second largest by area,
following Western Australia, and the country's third
most populous after New South Wales and Victoria.
The area was first occupied by Indigenous
Australians and Torres Strait Islanders, who arrived
between 40,000 and 65,000 years ago, according to
various dating methods. Later, Queensland was made a
British Crown Colony that was separated from New
South Wales on 6 June 1859, a date now celebrated
state-wide as Queensland Day.
The area that currently forms the state capital,
Brisbane, was originally the Moreton Bay penal
colony, intended as a place for recidivist convicts
who had offended while serving out their sentences
in New South Wales. The state later encouraged free
settlement, and today Queensland's economy is
dominated by the agricultural, tourist and natural
resource sectors.
The state's population is concentrated in South East
Queensland, which includes Brisbane, Logan City,
Redland City, Ipswich, Toowoomba, and the Gold Coast
and Sunshine Coast. Other major regional centres
include Cairns, Townsville, Mackay, Rockhampton,
Bundaberg, Hervey Bay, Ingham and Mount Isa.
Queensland is often nicknamed the Sunshine State,
since it enjoys warm weather and a sizeable portion
of the state is in the tropics.
Queensland is bordered to the north by the Torres
Strait with Boigu Island off the coast of New Guinea
representing the absolute northern extreme of the
territory. The triangular Cape York Peninsula, which
points toward New Guinea is the northernmost part of
the state's mainland. West of the peninsula's tip,
northern Queensland is bordered by the Gulf of
Carpentaria, while the Coral Sea— an arm of the
Pacific Ocean— borders Queensland to the east. To
the west, Queensland is bordered by the Northern
Territory, at the 138°E longitude, and to the
south-west by the north-eastern corner of South
Australia.
In the south, there are three sections that comprise
its border: the watershed from Point Danger to the
Dumaresq River; the river section involving the
Dumaresq, the MacIntyre and the Barwon; and 29°S
latitude (including some minor historical
encroachments below the 29th parallel) over to the
South Australian border.
The state capital is Brisbane, located on the coast
100 kilometres (60 mi) by road north of the New
South Wales border. The fifth-largest city by area
in the world, Mount Isa, is located in Queensland.
The city area is in excess of 40,000 square
kilometres (15,400 sq mi). The state is divided into
several officially recognised regions. Other smaller
geographical regions of note include the Atherton
Tablelands, the Granite Belt, and the Channel
Country in the far south-west.
Queensland has many places of natural beauty,
including: the Sunshine Coast and the Gold Coast
having some of the state's most popular beaches; the
Bunya Mountains and the Great Dividing Range with
numerous lookouts, waterfalls and picnic areas;
Carnarvon Gorge; Whitsunday Islands and Hinchinbrook
Island.
The state contains six World Heritage listed
preservation areas: Australian Fossil Mammal Sites
at Riversleigh in the Gulf Country, Gondwana
Rainforests of Australia, Fraser Island, Great
Barrier Reef, Lamington National Park and the Wet
Tropics of Queensland.
Because of its size, there is significant variation
in climate across the state. Low rainfall and hot
summers are typical for the inland west, a monsoonal
'wet' season in the far north, and warm temperate
conditions along the coastal strip. Inland and in
southern ranges low minimum temperatures are
experienced. The climate of the coastal strip is
influenced by warm ocean waters, keeping the region
free from extremes of temperature and providing
moisture for rainfall.
There are five predominate climatic zones in
Queensland, based on temperature and humidity:
hot humid summer (far north and coastal)
warm humid summer (coastal elevated hinterlands and
coastal south-east)
hot dry summer, mild winter (central west)
hot dry summer, cold winter (southern west)
temperate - warm summer, cold winter (inland
south-east, e.g. Granite Belt)
However, most of the Queensland populace experience
two weather seasons: a "winter" period of rather
warm temperatures and minimal rainfall and a sultry
summer period of hot, sticky temperatures and higher
levels of rainfall.
Tourism is Queensland's leading tertiary industry
with millions of interstate and overseas visitors
flocking to the Sunshine State each year. The
industry generates $4.0 billion annually, accounting
for 4.5% of Queensland's GSP. Queensland is a state
of many landscapes that range from sunny tropical
coastal areas, lush rainforests to dry inland areas.
The main tourist destinations of Queensland include,
Brisbane, Far North Queensland including Cairns,
Port Douglas and the Daintree Rainforest, Gold
Coast, the Great Barrier Reef, Hervey Bay and nearby
Fraser Island, North Queensland including Townsville
and Magnetic Island, North Stradbroke Island and
South Stradbroke Island, the Sunshine Coast and the
Whitsundays known for Airlie Beach, Whitehaven
Beach, Hamilton Island and Daydream Island.
The Gold Coast of Queensland is also sometimes
referred to as "Australia's Theme Park Capital",
with five major amusement parks. These are
Dreamworld, Movie World, Sea World, Wet 'n' Wild and
WhiteWater World.
There are also wildlife parks in Queensland,
including:
Gold Coast
Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary at Currumbin
David Fleay Wildlife Park at Burleigh Heads
Sunshine Coast
UnderWater World at Mooloolaba
Australia Zoo near Beerwah/Glass House Mountains,
home of Steve Irwin until his death in 2006.
Brisbane
Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary at Fig Tree Pocket
Brisbane Forest Park at The Gap
North of Brisbane
Alma Park Zoo at Dakabin
Kumbartcho Wildlife Sanctuary (originally Bunya Park
Wildlife Sanctuary)
Accommodation in Queensland caters for nearly 22% of
the total expenditure, followed by restaurants/meals
(15%), airfares (11%), fuel (11%) and shopping/gifts
(11%).
Queensland is served by a number of National
Highways and, particularly in South East Queensland,
high quality motorways such as the M1.
Principal rail services are provided by Queensland
Rail and Pacific National, predominantly along the
coamajor ports including the Port of Brisbane and
subsidiary ports at Gladstone and Townsville.
Jet Vehicle services are Provided by Greenhouse
Energy, Queensland Transport, Department of Main
Roads, Defence Force Reserve of Queensland, Brisbane
Jet Taxi and Australian Jetlines, Predominatly along
the Airports, including the Brisbane Airport, Gold
Coast Airport and Cairns Airport.
Brisbane Airport is the main international and
domestic gateway serving the state. Gold Coast
Airport and Cairns International Airport are the two
next most prominent airports, both with scheduled
international flights. Other regional airports, with
scheduled domestic flights, include Great Barrier
Reef Airport, Hervey Bay Airport, Mackay Airport,
Mount Isa Airport, Proserpine / Whitsunday Coast
Airport, Rockhampton Airport, Sunshine Coast Airport
and Townsville Airport.
South East Queensland is governed by an integrated
public transport system, TransLink, which provides
bus, rail and ferry services. Regional bus
andlong-distance rail services are also provided
throughout the State. Local bus services are also
available in most regional centres.
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