Hopeland, Queensland

Hopeland is a rural locality in the Western Downs Region, Queensland, Australia.[2] In the 2016 census, Hopeland had a population of 140 people.[1]

Hopeland
Queensland
Aerial view of a farm in Hopeland, 2002
Hopeland is located in Queensland
Hopeland
Hopeland
Coordinates26.8841°S 150.6655°E / -26.8841; 150.6655 (Hopeland (centre of locality))
Population140 (2016 census)[1]
 • Density0.510/km2 (1.32/sq mi)
Postcode(s)4413
Area274.6 km2 (106.0 sq mi)
Time zoneAEST (UTC+10:00)
Location
LGA(s)Western Downs Region
State electorate(s)Callide
Federal division(s)Maranoa
Suburbs around Hopeland:
Chinchilla Chinchilla Boonarga
Crossroads Hopeland Brigalow
Montrose Kogan Brigalow

Geography

Hopeland is located south-east of Chinchilla, on the Darling Downs famous for its rich black, fertile soils. The district is situated on the Southern Brigalow Belt bioregion of Queensland. The northern boundary of the locality is the Condamine River, while the south-western boundary is Wambo Creek (a tributary of the Condamine River).[3]

History

Hopeland State School opened on 8 February 1937 with its first teacher Lionel Stevens with an average attendance of 16 students in its first year.[4][5] It was mothballed on 4 November 2006 and closed on 23 October 2007.[6] It was at 821 Chinchilla-Kogan Road (corner of Hopeland School Road, 26.8502°S 150.6679°E / -26.8502; 150.6679 (Hopeland State School (former))).[7] The school's website was archived.[8]

Lock the Gate petition delivery in Sydney, July 2015

In July 2015, representatives of Hopeland and neighbouring areas took a petition signed by more than 9,000 people to Sydney to present to Prime Minister Tony Abbott asking him to prevent fracking on farms and near residential properties without landholder consent and health impact assessments to be mandated for coal seam gas projects.[9]

In the 2016 census, Hopeland had a population of 140 people.[1]

Economy

The heavy black soil on which the district sits is considered in the top 3% of Australia for broad acre agriculture mainly due to its high field capacity and yield potential. The area uses both dryland farming and irrigation to produce sorghum, cotton, corn, wheat, millet, chick pea, mung bean, barley, triticale and oats. Given the high nutrient value of the soil, the district continually wins both state and national cropping competitions, most recently with a dryland sorghum crop yielding over 10 tonnes per hectare or over 4 tonnes per acre.

All of the locality is within petroleum leases to extract coal seam gas.[3] The extraction of coal seam gas within farming districts is controversial in Australia due to concerns that groundwater under prime grazing and cropping land could be contaminated. In April 2018 one operator in Hopeland, Linc Energy, was fined $4.5 million in May 2019, in undefended proceedings, for causing environmental harm through its underground coal gasification plant.[10][11][12]

Education

There are no schools in Hopeland. The nearest government primary schools are Chinchilla State School in neighbouring Chinchilla to the north, Brigalow State School in neighbouring Brigalow to the east, and Kogan State School in neighbouring Kogan to the south. The nearest government secondary school is Chinchilla State High School in neighbouring Chinchilla to the north.[3]

References
  1. Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Hopeland (SSC)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
  2. "Hopeland – locality in Western Downs Region (entry 47711)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  3. "Queensland Globe". State of Queensland. Retrieved 15 April 2022.
  4. Queensland Family History Society (2010), Queensland schools past and present (Version 1.01 ed.), Queensland Family History Society, ISBN 978-1-921171-26-0
  5. "History". Hopeland State School. 19 August 2006. Archived from the original on 19 August 2006. Retrieved 15 April 2022.
  6. "Queensland state school - centre closures" (PDF). Queensland Government. 20 August 2013. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 March 2022. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
  7. "Parish of Ewer" (Map). Queensland Government. 1978. Archived from the original on 15 April 2022. Retrieved 15 April 2022.
  8. "Hopelands State School". 19 August 2006. Archived from the original on 19 August 2006. Retrieved 15 April 2022.
  9. 7 July 2015. "Queensland farmers and Senators visit Sydney to hold Tony Abbott to CSG promise". Lock the Gate Alliance. Archived from the original on 17 March 2022. Retrieved 15 April 2022.
  10. "New CSG no-go zone aimed to quarantine contaminated Queensland groundwater". ABC News. 25 May 2019. Archived from the original on 26 May 2019. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  11. "Linc Energy found guilty of serious environmental harm at controversial UCG plant". ABC News. 9 April 2018. Archived from the original on 20 January 2021. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
  12. "Linc Energy fined $4.5 million for serious environmental harm at underground coal gasification plant". ABC News. 11 May 2018. Archived from the original on 5 July 2021. Retrieved 6 April 2021.

Further reading
  • Hopeland State School (Qld.) (1987), Hopeland State School golden jubilee, 1937-1987, Hopeland State School, ISBN 978-0-7316-0099-1

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