Burnie

Originally called Emu Bay, Burnie is a proudly industrialised port town on the north-west coast of Tasmania. The Burnie port is the fifth largest container port in Australia and along with farming, the forestry industry and heavy machinery manufacturing, it provides the main source of revenue and employment for the estimated 19,000 inhabitants of the city.

Wood-chipping is the largest of the forestry industries with its own dedicated terminal for export. The large scale history of felling and milling trees has decimated Burnies once dense surrounding rainforests which many Australian's feel is a great environmental loss.

As well as having a strong industrial heritage, Burnie also has a large artistic community. Many of the local artists showcase their work at one of Burnie's more popular tourist attractions, The Creative Papermill, where you can find weird and wonderful gifts including hand-made "roo-poo" paper and life size paper sculptures.