Local Government Areas of the Northern Territory
Encyclopedia
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
are the areas for which particular Local Government authorities, generally known as "Councils" have the responsibility to provide local government services. Local Governments in the Northern Territory dates back to the start of the twentieth century.
As of 1 July 2008, there are two classifications of local government in the Northern Territory
- Municipalities (predominantly inner-city suburban areas and smaller rural towns)
- Shires (predominantly rural or outer suburban areas)
Prior to 1 July Northern Territory local government areas were classified as either
- Municipalities
- Community Government Councils
- Incorporated Associations (Commonwealth)
- Special Purpose Towns
As of July 2008, the Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
has 17 local government areas, 5 of which are Municipalities and 11 as Shire Councils. Previously there were 61 Local Government Councils, 6 of which were classified as Municipalities, 51 as Community Government Councils, 3 as Incorporated Associations and 1 Special Purpose Town.
Municipalities
- City of DarwinCity of DarwinThe City of Darwin is a Local Government Area of the Northern Territory, Australia. It includes the central business district of the capital, Darwin, and represents two-thirds of its metropolitan population. The City covers an area of 112 km² and has a estimated population of 75,908...
- City of PalmerstonCity of PalmerstonThe City of Palmerston is a Local Government Area of the Northern Territory. It contains the suburbs of Darwin's satellite city, Palmerston, and is situated between the outer industrial areas of Darwin and the rural areas of Howard Springs. The City covers an area of 56.3 km² and has a...
- Litchfield Municipality
- Town of Alice Springs
- Town of Katherine
Shires
- Belyuen Shire
- Barkly ShireBarkly ShireThe Barkly Shire is a Local Government Area of the Northern Territory, Australia. The shire main town is Tennant Creek The shire covers an area of and has a estimated population of 8,077 people.-History:...
- Central Desert ShireCentral Desert ShireThe Central Desert Shire is a Local Government Area of the Northern Territory, Australia. The shire's main town is Ti Tree. The shire covers an area of and has a estimated population of 4,743 people.-History:...
- Coomalie Shire
- East Arnhem ShireEast Arnhem ShireThe East Arnhem Shire is a Local Government Area of the Northern Territory, Australia. The shire covers an area of and has a population of 9,120.-History:...
- Roper Gulf Shire
- MacDonnell ShireMacDonnell ShireThe MacDonnell Shire is a Local Government Area of the Northern Territory, Australia. The shire covers an area of 268,784.20 km² and has a estimated population of 7,142 people.-Geography:...
- Tiwi Islands Shire
- Victoria Daly Shire
- West Arnhem ShireWest Arnhem ShireThe West Arnhem Shire is a Local Government Area of the Northern Territory, Australia. The shire covers an area of 49,698.26 km² and has a estimated population of 6,806 people.-History:...
- Wagait Shire
Unincorporated Areas
There are five unincorporated areaUnincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
s that do not belong on any local government area:
- Nhulunbuy (7.12 km²)
- Alyangula (2.10 km²)
- Unincorporated Top End Region (Finnis-Mary) (19263.22 km²)
- Darwin Rates Act Area (East Arm) (52.15 km²)
- Yulara (103.3 km², pop. 986)
Community Government Councils
- Alpurrurulam CGCAlpurrurulam, Northern TerritoryAlpurrurulam , also known as Lake Nash, is a small town located in the Northern Territory, Australia, 600 km east of Tennant Creek and 20 km from the NT-Queensland border.The 2006 Census counts 343 residents, with nearly 94% of them Aboriginal...
- Angurugu CGCAngurugu, Northern TerritoryAngurugu is a community located on Groote Eylandt in the Northern Territory, Australia, just off the mainland. The main languages spoken there are Anindilyakwa, an Australian Aboriginal language, and English. A permit is required before travelling to Angurugu....
- Anmatjere CGC
- Arltarlpilta CGC
- Belyuen CGC (now Belyuen Shire)
- Binjari CGCBinjariThe Binjari Community Government Council was a Local Government Area in the Northern Territory. It is located 15 minutes from Katherine, Northern Territory-External links:*...
- Borroloola CGCBorroloola, Northern TerritoryBorroloola is a town in the Northern Territory of Australia. It is located on the McArthur River, about 50 km upstream from the Gulf of Carpentaria. At the 2006 census, Borroloola had a population of 773, of whom 579 declared themselves indigenous....
- Coomalie CGC (now Coomalie Shire)
- Cox Peninsula CGC (now Wagait Shire)
- Daguragu CGCDaguraguThe Daguragu Community is an Aboriginal community in the Katherine Region of the Northern Territory, Australia. It is located 460 km south west of Katherine, Northern Territory....
- Elliott District CGCElliott District Community Government CouncilThe Elliott District Community Government Council was a Local Government Area of the Northern Territory, Australia. It was centred around the town of Elliott, 254 km north of Tennant Creek and 419 km south of Katherineon the Stuart Highway. The Community Government Council covered an area...
- Jilkminggan CGC
- Kunbarllanjnja CGCOenpelli, Northern TerritoryOenpelli is an Aboriginal community in west Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory of Australia.-Access:The sealed Arnhem Highway links Darwin to Jabiru, the town within Kakadu National Park...
- Lajamanu CGCLajamanu, Northern TerritoryLajamanu is a small town of the Northern Territory in Australia. It has a population of 669 , of which a significant amount are of Aboriginal origin...
- Ltyentye Apurte CGC
- Marngarr CGC
- Mataranka CGCMataranka, Northern TerritoryMataranka is a community of about 400, in the Top End region of Australia's Northern Territory. The town is located about 420 km southeast of the territorial capital, Darwin, and 107 km south of Katherine. At the 2001 census, Mataranka had a population of 461.The town is located near...
- Nauiyu Nambiyu CGC
- Numbulwar Numburindi CGCNumbulwar, Northern TerritoryNumbulwar is a small, primarily Aboriginal community on the Gulf of Carpentaria in the Northern Territory of Australia.Permanent settlement began in 1952 with the founding of the Rose River Mission by local Aboriginal communities and the Church Missionary Society.The Mission operated until the...
- Nyirranggulung Mardrulk Ngadberre Regional Council
- Pine Creek CGCPine Creek, Northern TerritoryPine Creek is a small town in the Katherine region of the Northern Territory, Australia. According to the 2001 Australian census 665 people live in Pine Creek, which is the fourth largest town between Darwin and Alice Springs....
- Tapatjatjaka CGC
- Thamarrurr Regional CouncilWadeye, Northern TerritoryWadeye is a town in Australia's Northern Territory.Wadeye was formerly known as Port Keats. The town is remote, situated on the western edge of the Daly River Reserve more than 200 km south west of Darwin, with road access being cut off by flooding during the wet season. Year round access is via...
- Timber Creek CGC
- Tiwi Islands CGC (now Tiwi Islands Shire)
- Walangeri Ngumpinku CGCWalangeri NgumpinkuWalangeri Ngumpinku is the name of a community government council in the Victoria River Downs District of the Northern Territory, a semi-autonomous state government of the federal Commonwealth of Australia....
- Wallace Rockhole CGC
- Watiyawanu CGC
- Yuendumu CGC
- Yugul Mangi CGC
Incorporated Communities
- Aherrenge Community
- Ali Curung Community
- Amoonguna Community
- Aputula Community
- Areyonga Community
- Galiwin'ku Community
- Gapuwiyak CommunityGapuwiyak, Northern TerritoryGapuwiyak is an Australian Aboriginal community located in north-eastern Arnhem Land, Northern Territory, 25 km south of the head of Buckingham Bay and about the same distance south-west of Arnhem Bay. It is adjacent to Lake Evella...
- Ikuntji Community
- Imanpa Community
- Kaltukatjara Community
- Maningrida CommunityManingrida, Northern TerritoryManingrida is a self-governing indigenous community in the heart of the Arnhem Land region of Australia's Northern Territory. Maningrida is located 500 km east of Darwin and 300 km north east of Jabiru. It is on the North Central Arnhem Land coast of the Arafura Sea, on the estuary of the Liverpool...
- Milingimbi Community
- Milyakburra Community
- Minjilang CommunityMinjilang, Northern TerritoryMinjilang, formerly Mission Bay, is the Aboriginal community located on Croker Island, some 235 km east northeast of Northern Territory's capital of Darwin. It is the only settlement of any size on Croker Island . The island is just a few kilometres from Cobourg Peninsula on the mainland...
- Mutitjulu CommunityMutitjulu, Northern TerritoryMutitjulu in Australia's Northern Territory, pop. approx. 150, is an Indigenous Australian community at the eastern end of Uluru . It is named after a knee-shaped water-filled rock hole at the base of Uluru, and is located in the world-famous Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park...
- Nganmarriyanga Community
- Ntaria Community (HermannsburgHermannsburg, Northern TerritoryHermannsburg is an Aboriginal community in the Northern Territory of Australia, 131 km southwest of Alice Springs. It is known in the local Western Arrernte language as Ntaria....
) - Nyirrpi Community
- Papunya CommunityPapunya, Northern TerritoryPapunya is a small Indigenous Australian community of about 299 people roughly 240 km northwest of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory, Australia...
- Peppimenarti CommunityPeppimenarti, Northern TerritoryPeppimenarti is an Aboriginal community in the Daly River region of the Northern Territory, Australia.- Etymology :The locality name is drawn from the Aboriginal words Peppi and menarti , referring to the rock formation that overlooks the community...
- Ramingining CommunityRamingining, Northern TerritoryRamingining is an Indigenous community in the Northern Territory, Australia, 560 km east of Darwin. It is on the edge of the Arafura Swamp in Arnhem Land...
- Umbakumba Community
- Urapuntja Aboriginal CorporationUtopia, Northern TerritoryUtopia is an Aboriginal homeland formed in November 1978 by the amalgamation of the former Utopia pastoral lease with a tract of unalienated land to its north. It covers an area of 3500 square kilometres, transected by the Sandover River, and lies on a traditional boundary of the Alyawarra and...
- Walungurru CommunityKintore, Northern TerritoryKintore is a remote settlement in the Northern Territory of Australia, located approximately 530 km west of Alice Springs and close to the border with Western Australia. At the 2001 census, Kintore had a population of 691, of which 95% identified themselves as Aboriginal...
- Warruwi Community
- Yuelamu Community
Unincorporated Area
- Unincorporated AreaUnincorporated areaIn law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
: A contiguous 92 percent of the area did not belong to any local government area. The LGAs were enclaves within unincorporated territory.
Area types
The Northern TerritoryNorthern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
was unusual as a comparatively large share of the territory's population lived in unincorporated areas. In 2006, prior to the reorganization of local government areas in the territory, 92 percent of the land area (1,237,999 out of 1,349,130 km²) with 16 percent of the population (30,523 out of 192,898), was unincorporated.
Most of the unincorporated areas disappeared as a result of local government reform in 2008. The area remaining unincorporated is 19,428 km², 1.45 percent of the total, and contains 4.0 percent of the population.
By comparison, in the only other states or territories in Australia with unincorporated areas, only 0.02% of the population of New South Wales, 0.002% of Victoria's population and 0.6% of the population of South Australia, live in unincorporated areas.