Bulwer Island

Bulwer Island is a 120ha reclaimed tidal mangrove island at the mouth of the Brisbane River in the suburb of Pinkenba, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is named for Sir Edward Bulwer-Lytton, the British Colonial Secretary who separated Queensland from New South Wales in 1859 and made Sir George Bowen its first Governor.Bulwer Island RefineryIn May 1961 a TAA DC-4 airliner crashed onto Bulwer Island during landing at Brisbane Airport. The pilot had suffered cardiac arrest and slumped over the control column preventing the co-pilot from regaining control before the plane dived into the mud of the island.Much of it is now occupied with BP Australia’s Bulwer Island Refinery, the largest in Queensland. Reclamation and refinery construction took place during 1963-65, with the reclamation greatly expanding the original island and joining it to the north bank of the river.On 2 April 2014, BP announced that this refinery would be closed mid-2015, its jetty and terminal will remain operational. The decision was made due to increasing Asian competition and a strong Australian dollar.