Te Kowai, Queensland
Te Kowai is a rural area in the Mackay Region of Queensland, Australia, about 11 kilometres southwest of Mackay’s city centre. It covers around 16.6 square kilometres and sits close to sea level, with flat land that’s mainly used for growing sugarcane. The Pioneer River lies to the north and Bakers Creek runs through the south-west, with the Peak Downs Highway passing through Te Kowai.
As of the 2021 Census, Te Kowai had 227 residents. There are no schools in Te Kowai; the nearest government primary schools are in Bakers Creek, Walkerston and West Mackay, and the closest secondary school is Mackay State High School in South Mackay.
The name Te Kowai comes from a former railway station, which was named after a nearby sugar plantation and a New Zealand kōwhai tree. The Te Kowai sugar mill was established in 1874 and operated until 1894, when it merged with another mill. A railway line once served the area but closed in 2009. Te Kowai Presbyterian Church opened in 1918.
Nearby facilities include the Mackay South Water Recycling Facility at Bakers Creek, which treats wastewater and provides recycled water for irrigation, with the solids sold as compost. Te Kowai also has a weather monitoring station operated by the Bureau of Meteorology. The climate is warm, with average highs around 28°C and substantial annual rainfall.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 05:22 (CET).