QUEENSLANDERS HAVE CHANCE TO MAKE THEIR MARK ON THE MAP

Minister for Natural Resources and Water Craig Wallace today encouraged Queensland residents to help make history by suggesting new local place names.

Mr Wallace said people could name a geographic feature or area of land by lodging an application with the Department of Natural Resources and Water.

Queensland has over 40,000 official place names – including over 622 suburbs and 2742 localities - and these are constantly being added to.

“I invite people throughout Queensland to make their mark on the map,” Mr Wallace said.

“We do not accept place names honouring living people, or duplicate or commercial names, but otherwise people are free to make history by suggesting new names,” he said.

Around 110 new and amended place names were added to the official names database over the past year.

The newest Queensland names include the new suburb of Springfield Central (near Ipswich) and the new locality of Mungallala (in Booringa Shire, near Charleville).

Some of Queensland’s more unusual names include Baking Board (Chinchilla Shire), Yorkeys Knob (Cairns), Macaroni Creek (Carpentaria Shire), Hell Hole Gorge National Park (Quilpie Shire), Silver Spur (Inglewood Shire), Beer Creek (Esk Shire) and Ginger Beer Creek (Calliope Shire).

The town of Banana in Central Queensland was not named after the fruit but after a working bullock with a yellowish hide.

Mark Smokes Creek, near Caboolture, was named after a shepherd’s wife who smoked a pipe.

The Minister for Natural Resources and Water administers the Place Names Act 1994, which controls the official naming of localities, suburbs and geographical features within local government areas.

The Minister has the power to name natural features such as creeks or mountains but not artificial features such as bridges or dam walls. Local councils name roads and parks.

When deciding to approve a name or not, community views, the cultural and historical significance of suggested names is taken into account, as well as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander customs.

The Minister for Natural Resources and Water decides whether to approve a suggested name or not.

Name change applications can be made through any of the contact places mentioned on the Department of Natural Resources and Water’s website at http://www.nrw.qld.gov.au/about/contactus/index.html

Further information and a search of the origin of place names in Queensland can be found on the NRW website at www.nrw.qld.gov.au/property/place_names.html

Media inquiries: Clare Gillic 3896 3688