Ban Ban Springs is a rural

locality Locality may refer to: * Locality, a historical named location or place in Canada * Locality (association), an association of community regeneration organizations in England * Locality (linguistics) * Locality (settlement) * Suburbs and localitie ...

in the

North Burnett Region The North Burnett Region is a local government area in Queensland, Australia in the northern catchment of the Burnett River. Established in 2008, it was preceded by several previous local government areas with histories extending back to the ear ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, Australia. In the , the locality of Ban Ban Springs had a population of 31 people.

Geography

The locality of Ban Ban Springs is an

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 ...

, surrounded by the larger locality of Ban Ban. Barambah Creek forms part of the southern boundary of the locality. The

Burnett Highway The Burnett Highway is an inland rural highway located in Queensland, Australia. The highway runs from its junction with the Bruce Highway at Gracemere, Queensland, Gracemere, just south of Rockhampton, Queensland, Rockhampton, to the D'Aguilar ...

enters the locality from the west and exits to the south. The

Isis Highway The Isis Highway is a state highway in southern Queensland, Australia. The highway is relatively short, and runs for in a north-east / south-west direction between Bundaberg North and the Burnett Highway at Ban Ban Springs. The Isis Highway ...

enters the locality from the east and terminates at its junction with the Burnett Highway in the south of the locality. On the southern side of the highway junction are the springs from which the community gets its name, being rare springs from which waters flow into the nearby Barambah Creek.Map of Ban Ban Springs Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Area
, retrieved 25 February 2009 The land use is predominantly

grazing In agriculture, grazing is a method of animal husbandry whereby domestic livestock are allowed outdoors to free range (roam around) and consume wild vegetations in order to feed conversion ratio, convert the otherwise indigestible (by human diges ...

on native vegetation with some crop growing.

History

The name Ban Ban Springs finds its source in the name originally used by H. Herbert when, in 1846, he first leased the pastoral run encompassing the springs. It is reported Herbert borrowed the words "''Ban Ban''" (meaning ''grass'') from the local Wakka Wakka and/or

Kabi Kabi The Kabi Kabi people, also spelt Gubbi Gubbi, Gabi Gabi, and other variants, are an Aboriginal Australian people native to South Eastern Queensland. During the Australian frontier wars of the 19th century, there were several mass killings of ...

languages. Ban Ban Springs State School opened in August 1916. It closed on 24 January 1965. It was on the south-western side of the Burnett Highway ().

Demographics

In the , the locality of Ban Ban Springs had a population of 7 people. In the , the locality of Ban Ban Springs had a population of 31 people.

Education

There are no schools in Ban Ban Springs. The nearest government primary school is Coalstoun Lakes State School in Coalstoun Lakes to the north-east. The nearest government secondary school is Burnett State College in

Gayndah Gayndah () is a town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the North Burnett Region, Queensland, Australia. It is the administrative centre for the North Burnett Region. In the , the locality of Gayndah had a population of 1,949 p ...

to the west.

Aboriginal cultural heritage

The natural springs were the first Queensland Aboriginal cultural heritage to be recognised on the register of the Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Act 2003. The

Wakka Wakka Wakka Wakka, or Waka Waka, people are an Aboriginal Australian people of the state of Queensland. Name "''Wakka''" was assigned the meaning "no" by Western linguists who documented the Wakawaka language. Ethnonyms based on the duplication of t ...

peoples believe that the springs are significant to the Dreaming. This was confirmed by a Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Mines study advised by the Wakka Wakka Jinda. The springs were entered on to the State's Aboriginal Cultural Heritage register for the following reasons:

"Ban Ban pringsis a
sacred site A sacred space, sacred ground, sacred place, sacred temple, holy ground, holy place or holy site is a location which is regarded to be sacred or hallowed. The sacredness of a natural feature may accrue through tradition or be granted through ...
and has a
Dreamtime The Dreaming, also referred to as Dreamtime, is a term devised by early anthropologists to refer to a religio-cultural worldview attributed to Australian Aboriginal religion and mythology, Australian Aboriginal mythology. It was originally u ...
association with the
Rainbow Serpent The Rainbow Serpent or Rainbow Snake is a common deity often seen as the Creator deity, creator God, known by numerous names in different Australian Aboriginal languages by the many List of Australian Aboriginal group names, different Aborigina ...
which is believed to have surfaced there. It spoke to the elders of the tribe telling them the secrets of the
sacred waters Sacred waters are sacred natural sites characterized by tangible topographical land formations such as rivers, lakes, spring (hydrosphere), springs, Water reservoir, reservoirs, and oceans, as opposed to holy water which is water elevated with th ...
and how to use it. The Rainbow Serpent also told of talks he had had with the seven sisters and of the wonders he had seen while making the pathways for the sacred water to flow in this area. (This legend is retold on a mural erected at the site by elders Mavis Hawkins, Dennis and Daniel Cobbo of the Wakka Wakka tribe and their people.)"

"It is the birth place of many elders of the Wakka Wakka people with elders of this group living in the town of
Gayndah Gayndah () is a town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the North Burnett Region, Queensland, Australia. It is the administrative centre for the North Burnett Region. In the , the locality of Gayndah had a population of 1,949 p ...
."

"Ban Ban Springs is unique in Indigenous Heritage. It is sacred in men's Business and women's Business for separate and combined reasons."

"Throughout time this area has been guarded by the Rainbow Serpent."

Unfortunately, in September 2006 the

Shire of Gayndah The Shire of Gayndah was a Local government in Australia, local government area located in the northern catchment of the Burnett River, Queensland, Australia. The shire covered an area of , and existed as a local government area from 1866 until ...

, concerned about noxious weeds (including

Chinese elm ''Ulmus parvifolia'', commonly known as the Chinese elm or lacebark elm, is a species native to eastern Asia, including China, India, Japan, Korea, Vietnam,Fu, L., Xin, Y. & Whittemore, A. (2002)Ulmaceae in Wu, Z. & Raven, P. (eds) ''Flora of Chi ...

) and improving visitors' experience of the area, sought to re-vegetate and beautify the place (e.g., planting out up to 30 or more bottlebrushes) by engaging contractors to promptly clear the existing vegetation from in and around the springs, with the following effect:

"Cultural Heritage Destroyed: They've exposed the plant life to the summer heat, moved the rocks around, driven through the springs's pond ... They've bulldozed what Gayndah's Wakka Wakka eopleknow as their cultural heritage..."

By 8 May 2007 the Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Water had issued summons under the '' Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Act 2003 (Qld)'', threatening prosecution and effectively initiating discussions between the local council and the

people to somehow rehabilitate the springs, better manage the Aboriginal cultural heritage area, and settle the whole matter by agreement. One year later, the council for the new

expressed formal regret for the harm done and agreed to discuss with the Wakka Wakka. The springs are usually dry, but local bore irrigation has also reduced the available water.

References

External links

Map of Ban Ban Springs Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Area
small>, retrieved 25 February 2009 {{authority control Towns in Queensland North Burnett Region 1999 establishments in Australia Populated places established in 1999 Localities in Queensland Sacred springs