Portal:Queensland

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The Queensland Portal

Queensland (locally /ˈkwiːnzlænd/ KWEENZ-land, commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a state in northeastern Australia, the second-largest and third-most populous of the Australian states. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, southwest and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and the Pacific Ocean; to its north is the Torres Strait, separating the Australian mainland from Papua New Guinea, and the Gulf of Carpentaria to the north-west. With an area of 1,723,030 square kilometres (665,270 sq mi), Queensland is the world's sixth-largest subnational entity; it is larger than all but 16 countries. Due to its size, Queensland's geographical features and climates are diverse, including tropical rainforests, rivers, coral reefs, mountain ranges and sandy beaches in its tropical and sub-tropical coastal regions, as well as deserts and savanna in the semi-arid and desert climatic regions of its interior.

Queensland has a population of over 5.3 million, concentrated along the east coast, particularly in South East Queensland. The capital and largest city in the state is Brisbane, Australia's third-largest city. Ten of Australia's thirty largest cities are located in Queensland, the largest outside Brisbane being the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, Townsville, Cairns, Ipswich, and Toowoomba. 28.9% of the state's population were immigrants. (Full article...)

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Selected Article

Satellite image of part of the Great Barrier Reef.

The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system, composed of roughly 3,000 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for 2,600 kilometres (1,616 mi) over an area of approximately 344,400 square kilometres (133,000 sq mi). The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland in northeast Australia.

The Great Barrier Reef can be seen from outer space and is the world's biggest single structure made by living organisms. This reef structure is composed of and built by billions of tiny organisms, known as coral polyps. The Great Barrier Reef supports a wide diversity of life, and was selected as a World Heritage Site in 1981. CNN has labelled it one of the seven natural wonders of the world, and the Queensland National Trust has named it a state icon of Queensland. A large part of the reef is protected by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, which helps to limit the impact of human use, such as overfishing and tourism

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Selected images

Image 1Cricket game at The Gabba, a 42,000-seat round stadium in Brisbane (from Queensland)
Image 2Commonly designated regions of Queensland, with Central Queensland divided into Mackay and Fitzroy subregions (from Queensland)
Image 3Parade of troops in Brisbane, prior to departure for the Boer War in South Africa (from Queensland)
Image 4Passenger train at Oxley railway station on the Ipswich/Rosewood line within the Queensland Rail City network (from Queensland)
Image 5The Gold Coast, Queensland's second-largest city and a major tourist destination (from Queensland)
Image 6Köppen climate types in Queensland (from Queensland)
Image 7Returned World War II soldiers march in Queen Street, Brisbane, 1944 (from Queensland)
Image 8The Great Court at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Queensland's oldest university (from Queensland)
Image 9Blackbirded South Sea Islanders on a Sugarcane plantation in Queensland. (from Queensland)
Image 10Lake McKensie, K'gari (Fraser Island) (from Queensland)
Image 11The Mossman River, flowing through the Daintree Rainforest in Far North Queensland (from Queensland)
Image 12Queen Elizabeth II Courts of Law, headquarters of the Supreme Court of Queensland and District Court of Queensland (from Queensland)
Image 13Cargo ships at the Port of Gladstone, Queensland's largest commodity seaport (from Queensland)
Image 14Skyline of the Brisbane central business district. Brisbane is a global city and the state's largest economic hub. (from Queensland)
Image 15Kanaka workers in a sugar cane plantation, late 19th century (from Queensland)
Image 16The McPherson Range at Lamington National Park in South East Queensland (from Queensland)
Image 17Captain James Cook claims the east coast of Australia for the Kingdom of Great Britain at Possession Island in 1770 (from Queensland)
Image 18Brisbane, capital and most populous city of Queensland (from Queensland)
Image 19Noosa Heads on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland's third largest city and a major tourist destination (from Queensland)
Image 20Aftermath of the 1861 Cullin-La-Ringo massacre in which 19 settlers were killed by Aboriginal people, the deadliest attack on settlers in the frontier wars (from Queensland)
Image 21Parliament House, seat of the Queensland Parliament (from Queensland)
Image 22Hill Inlet at the Whitsunday Islands. (from Queensland)
Image 23Government House, seat of the Governor (from Queensland)
Image 24Gold mine at Ravenswood in North Queensland. Mining is one of the state's major industries (from Queensland)
Image 25Fighting between Burke and Wills's supply party and Aboriginal Australians at Bulla in 1861 (from Queensland)
Image 26The Great Barrier Reef, which extends along most of Queensland's Coral Sea coastline (from Queensland)
Image 27The Ekka (the Royal Queensland Exhibition) is held each August at the Brisbane Showgrounds. (from Queensland)

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Pictured left: Process workers at work at the Golden Circle cannery, 1947

Golden Circle is a subsidiary of US-based Heinz Corporation, based in Brisbane, Queensland. Its main operations are food processing. Golden Circle began operations in 1947 after construction of the main canning factory at Northgate was completed. As of 2009, Golden Circle ceased to be an Australian owned company. The company employs a large number of people, which varies seasonally between 700 and 1,700.

Golden Circle manufactures more than 800 products. Initially, the company processed and canned pineapples and produced fruit jams. Over the years, production has expanded to include other canned fruit and vegetables, fruit cordials, juices, carbonated beverages and baby food. Golden Circle operates the world's largest steam peeler and new beetroot processing lines. The main production facility is at Northgate, a northern suburb of Brisbane. (Full article...)

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Did you know (auto-generated)

... that Lachlan Murdoch was forced to resign as a director of Prime Media Group because the company owned a radio station on Queensland's Sunshine Coast?
... that despite being described in 1840, the chestnut-backed buttonquail was only confirmed in Queensland in 2020?

More did You Know?

... that the sands on Whitehaven Beach (pictured) were brought to the beach via prevailing sea currents over millions of years?
...that two-headed fish larvae were found in the Noosa River?
...that Quentin Bryce former Governor of Queensland and previous Governor-General of Australia was the seventh women to be admitted to the Queensland bar?
...that the Blackall Range became the third place in Queensland after Noosa and Port Douglas, to be declared a state icon?