Smithton

Smithton is a town of approximately 3,300 people situated on the Duck River in north-western Tasmania. Key industries in the area include forestry and timber production, agriculture, dairy and prime beef production, commercial fishing and aquaculture, manufacturing, tourism and vegetable processing. The town covers an area of 9.07 square kilometres and has a density of 361 residents per square kilometre (compared to Hobart which covers an area of 1,695.5 square kilometres and has a density of 130 people per square kilometre).

Pilot Study

Population

3,300

Smithton has a range of assets that support walking and active recreation in the area, scoring 74% for town recreational facilities on the town wide assessment tool.
The program and policy assessment tool showed that our Citizen Scientists were less aware of whether these elements existed in their town (e.g., access to school grounds) and the audit tools indicated a lack of programs, aside from organised sport, to support recreation in the town for older adults, people with disabilities or adolescents (scoring 26%).
The foreshore walking track is a key asset that supports recreational walking and links the southern areas of the town to the central and northern parts of the town.
The community sporting facilities are extensive, centrally located and very well maintained.