The Shire of Baw Baw () is a
local government area
A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a federated state, state, province, division (politica ...
in
Victoria, Australia, in the eastern part of the state. It covers an area of and in 2021 had a population of 57,626.
[
It includes the towns of Drouin, Longwarry, Neerim South, Trafalgar, Warragul and Yarragon. It was formed in 1994 from the amalgamation of the Shire of Buln Buln, Shire of Narracan, Rural City of Warragul, and some parts of the Shire of Upper Yarra.]seat of local government
The seat of government is (as defined by ''Brewer's Politics'') "the building, complex of buildings or the city from which a government exercises its authority".
In most countries, the nation's capital is also seat of its government, thus that ...
and administrative centre is located at the council headquarters in Drouin, and it has a service centre located in Warragul. The shire is named after the major geographical feature in the region, the Baw Baw Plateau with Mount Baw Baw being the second highest peak in the region. An unincorporated area
An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...
, the Mount Baw Baw Alpine Resort, is enclave
An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is so ...
d within the shire.
Location and geography
The more densely populated southern half of the shire consists of low rolling hills given over primarily to dairy farming and other agriculture. The northern half lies in the Great Dividing Range and its foothills, where forestry remains an important industry. Tourism is also important in the region, aided by its proximity to and easy access from Melbourne. The shire is known for its rural scenery and natural environment, as well as gourmet foods and wines. The historic gold-mining town of Walhalla is located in the northeast of the shire is a major tourist drawcard. The major electricity-producing region of the Latrobe Valley lies immediately to the shire's east and south.
Many of the shire's larger towns are located along the Princes Highway
Princes Highway is a major road in Australia, extending from Sydney via Melbourne to Adelaide through the states of New South Wales, Victoria (Australia), Victoria and South Australia. It has a length of (along Highway 1) or via the former ...
and Gippsland railway line, which cross the southern part of the shire. From west to east these include: Longwarry, Drouin, Warragul, Darnum, Yarragon, and Trafalgar. North of Warragul are Buln Buln, Neerim South, and Noojee, while south of Trafalgar in the Strzelecki Ranges lies the town of Thorpdale. The towns of Rawson, Erica, and Parkers Corner are located near Walhalla amongst the foothills of the Baw Baw Plateau. Aberfeldy is located in the far north east of the shire above the Thomson Dam, which supplies 50% of Melbourne's water.
Council
Composition up to November 2016
The council was composed of four wards and nine councillors, with three councillors elected to represent the Warragul Ward and two councillors per remaining ward elected to represent each of the other wards.
Composition November 2016 to November 2020
The council was changed to a three-ward structure with three councillors per ward, with the new council sworn in on 2 November 2016. The new wards are West 60sq km(primarily Drouin with some rural areas north/south), Central 6sq km(Warragul town) and East ,302sq kmmaking up the balance of the shire.
Current composition
The council's three-ward structure continued with three councillors per ward, with the new council sworn in on 18 November 2020. The wards are West 60sq km(primarily Drouin with some rural areas north/south), Central 6sq km(based on Warragul) and East ,302sq kmmaking up the balance of the shire.
Administration and governance
The council meets monthly in the Fountain Room of the West Gippsland Arts Centre. The council's administrative activities are centred in Drouin in the former offices of the Buln Buln Shire. It also provides customer services at both Warragul and the council offices in Drouin. Service centres in Trafalgar and on Smith Street in Warragul were closed in 2015.
Townships and localities
In the 2021 census, the shire's population was 57,626, up from 48,479 in the 2016 census.
* - ''Not noted in 2016 Census''
# - ''Not noted in 2021 Census''
See also
* List of localities (Victoria)
A list is a set of discrete items of information collected and set forth in some format for utility, entertainment, or other purposes. A list may be memorialized in any number of ways, including existing only in the mind of the list-maker, but ...
* List of reduplicated Australian place names
* Local government in Australia
Local government is the third level of government in Australia, administered with limited autonomy under the states and territories of Australia, states and territories, and in turn beneath the Australian Government, federal government. Local g ...
References
External links
Baw Baw Shire Council official websiteVisit Baw Baw official websiteMetlink local public transport mapLink to Land Victoria interactive maps
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Baw Baw, Shire of
Local government areas of Victoria (state)
Gippsland (region)