Uriarra Village, Australian Capital Territory facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Uriarra VillageAustralian Capital Territory |
|||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Uriarra Village
Location in Australian Capital Territory
|
|||||||||||||||
| Established | 2012 | ||||||||||||||
| Postcode(s) | 2611 | ||||||||||||||
| Location | 30 km (19 mi) W of Canberra | ||||||||||||||
| District | Coree | ||||||||||||||
| Territory electorate(s) | Murrumbidgee | ||||||||||||||
| Federal Division(s) | Bean | ||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||
Uriarra Village is a small town in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), Australia. It's located on the western side of the ACT, about 30 minutes from Canberra. The village was started in 1928 near the Australian Alps. There's also a place called Uriarra nearby in New South Wales.
The village and its nearby forest were badly hit by the 2003 Canberra bushfires. Sixteen of the original 23 homes were destroyed. In 2004, the ACT Government decided to rebuild Uriarra Village. They wanted to make it a sustainable place to live. After the fires, 15 families moved away, but nine chose to stay.
In 2007, the ACT Government began rebuilding the village. They paid for new roads and other important services. By mid-2012, Uriarra was officially recognized as a village within the ACT.
Uriarra Village is special because it's the only "community title" village in Australia. This means the people living there own and look after many village services themselves. They manage the roads, community areas, the village hall, and stormwater. Because of this, the ACT Government provides only a few services, like garbage collection. The idea for this community ownership came after the 2003 bushfire. It was meant to help people connect and build a strong community spirit.
Contents
Exploring Uriarra Village's Location
Uriarra Village is about 16 kilometers (10 miles) west of Canberra. It's also about 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) north of the Cotter Reserve. The village is surrounded by rolling hills and overlooks a wide creek valley.
How to Get to Uriarra Village
The village is in a rural part of the ACT. You can reach it off Brindabella Road. This road connects Canberra to places like Brindabella and Tumut. It goes through the Brindabella Ranges.
Views from the Village
Uriarra Village sits at the base of the Australian Alps. Looking south, you can see Mount Ginini, Mount Franklin, and Bimberi Peak. Bimberi Peak is the highest mountain in the ACT. To the north, the village faces grasslands that lead towards the Molonglo River. The village is located where two types of land meet. One is a natural woodland with Yellow Box and Red Gum trees. The other is a pine forest planted by people.
To the east of the village is Mount McDonald. From here, you can see amazing 360-degree views. You can see across Canberra, the Australian Alps, and many farms.
About 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) to the west is the historic Uriarra Homestead. This is where Mountain Creek Road, which goes to Yass and Wee Jasper, meets Brindabella Road. The Uriarra Forest to the south was destroyed in the 2003 bushfire.
Understanding Bushfire Safety
Because Uriarra has had bushfires before and is in a rural area, the Government of the Australian Capital Territory has strict rules for new buildings. Every house must have its own rainwater storage. They also need special systems for treating sewage and fighting fires. The village has a special water system for firefighting. This water is not for drinking. It comes from the Bendora Gravity Main, which links Bendora Dam to the Mount Stromlo Water Treatment Plant.
Emergency Response Times
Since the village is far away, help for bushfires might take longer to arrive. The rules for living in the village state that "emergency response times will be longer than normal." The village keeps a 300-meter (984-foot) clear zone around its west, east, and south sides. This area helps stop fires and is also used for horses to graze. There is no clear zone to the north of the village.
Past Bushfire Events
In 2001, fires that started in Uriarra threatened several Canberra suburbs. These included Duffy, Holder, Weston, Yarralumla, and Curtin. The fires burned all the way to Lake Burley Griffin. They also destroyed 510 hectares (1,260 acres) of pine trees. In 2003, the Canberra bushfires caused huge damage to the village. Sixteen of the 23 original homes were lost. The village was again threatened by grass fires in 2013. A four-hectare (10-acre) grass fire came close to the south side of the village.
The Solar Farm Plan That Didn't Happen
On August 19, 2013, the Government of the Australian Capital Territory announced a plan. A company called Elementus Energy was chosen to build a solar farm. This solar farm would have been less than 150 meters (492 feet) from homes in Uriarra Village.
Details of the Proposal
The plan included placing 26,100 solar panels in grasslands across from the village. Many residents were against this idea. They sent many letters to local newspapers to show their opposition.
Community Opposition and Outcome
On September 18, 2013, people protested against the solar farm at the ACT Legislative Assembly. After this, a motion to remove the Minister's power to overrule planning decisions was defeated. The opposition party at the time also did not support the solar farm's location. After the disagreement, the ACT Chief Minister, Katy Gallagher, said that for future solar farms, the government would create better rules for choosing sites.
The plan for the Uriarra solar farm was stopped in March 2015. A new location for the solar farm was found near the Monaro Highway at Williamsdale. Another company took over the project and developed it in 2016.
Uriarra's Rich History
The first Uriarra Forestry Camp was set up between 1913 and 1915. It was on Brindabella Road, about three kilometers (1.8 miles) from where Uriarra Village is now. This camp was for forestry workers. They cleared eucalyptus trees and planted pine trees. This was the start of the ACT's tree plantation industry.
The Uriarra Forestry Settlement
In 1928, the Uriarra Forestry Settlement was built in its current spot. This was done to give forestry workers a permanent place to live. They were important for both forestry work and watching out for fires. The census that year showed 30 people living at the Uriarra Settlement.
Historic School in the Village
The village has several important historical sites. This includes the old school, which is very significant. It started in 1897 in the local Church of England church. For ten years, it was a "Half Time" school, sharing a teacher with Ledgerton, ten miles north. This school was located by the road from Queanbeyan to Uriarra. This road crossed the Murrumbidgee River at Uriarra Crossing. After two periods as a "Subsidised School," a new Uriarra school opened at the Uriarra Forestry Settlement in 1936. It stayed open until 2001.
Uriarra Crossing
Uriarra Crossing is a low bridge over the Murrumbidgee River. It's on Uriarra Road to the north. This bridge offers another way to get to the Molonglo Valley and the rest of Canberra.
History of the Crossing
Around 1860, a ferry (called a punt) was used to cross the river here. A bridge was built and officially opened on October 5, 1901. However, that bridge was washed away in floods in 1922. For a while, it wasn't rebuilt because the Cotter Bridge was nearby. Eventually, a new bridge was constructed. It opened for traffic on March 28, 1936.
Uriarra's Geology
The rocks in the Uriarra area formed during the Silurian period. Uriarra Volcanics rocks are found northwest of the Winslade fault. These rocks are made of dacite lava flows and pyroclastic deposits called tuff. A thin layer of fine ashstone, known as the Tarpaulin Creek Ashstone Member, sticks out in a twisted north-south line. This layer acts as a marker.
Rock Formations
The tuff and lava flows above and below the ashstone layer have clear pink feldspar crystals. The tuff shows layers, and the lava flows have a banded structure. The Cotter Porphyry to the north of the Cotter Dam is actually a dacite flow. There is also a limestone lens north of Uriarra Crossing. This rock formation stretches from Mountain Creek Road in the west to the Murrumbidgee River in the east. It goes a few kilometers north of the ACT border and south to the Winslade Fault near the Cotter River. A wedge of limestone also extends to the south-southwest, including Pierces Creek.
