Population

Population: 46,800
Tasman District's estimated resident population is 46,800 (June 2009 estimate). This represents 1.1% of New Zealand's population. Most of Tasman's urban population lives in the Richmond Ward (10,851). It has the district's fastest growth rate, particularly in North Richmond where the population has grown by 23% since 1996. The second largest area of growth is in the Waimea/Moutere Ward. Mapua has posted the highest growth - 27.4% between 1996 and 2001. Although Tasman has recorded strong growth, statistics show that the region has a low population density. As at March 2001, there were an estimated 4.3 people per square kilometre. This is mainly due to the fact there are few  large urban areas and because 58% of the area is in national park. Tasman has the country's highest percentage of people of European ethnicity - 96.8%.The number of Māori,  Pacific Island and Asians has increased markedly since 1991, with Māori increasing by 60.5%. The main iwi represented in the wider Tasman region are Ngati Rarua, Ngati Tama (Golden Bay and Tasman Bay), Te Atiawa, Ngati Koata, Ngati Kuia (eastern Tasman Bay) and the Poutini Ngai Tahu (southern areas).Famous former residents include nuclear physicist Ernest Rutherford, former Prime Ministers Bill Rowling and Keith Holyoake, and Sir Michael Myers, Chief Justice of New Zealand 1929- 1946.

Land area: 9,771km²
Main Centres: Richmond, Motueka, Collingwood, Takaka, Brightwater, Murchison, Mapua

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