Auckland Region

The Auckland Region is one of the sixteen regions of New Zealand, named for Auckland City, the large city at its heart. It is the most populated region of New Zealand, as well as being the most prosperous in economic terms.

Geography

On the mainland, the region extends from the mouth of the Kaipara Harbour in the north across the southern stretches of the North Auckland Peninsula, past the Waitakere Ranges and the isthmus of Auckland to the Hunua Ranges and low-lying land south of the Manukau Harbour. The region ends within a few kilometres of the mouth of the Waikato River. It is bordered in the north by the Northland Region, and in the south by the Waikato Region. It also includes the islands of the Hauraki Gulf.

In land area it is smaller than all the other regions and unitary authorities except Nelson. Its highest point is the summit of Little Barrier Island, at 722 metres.

Territorial waters

The Pacific Ocean and Tasman Sea form the coastline around the Auckland region. The east coast is lapped by the waters of the Hauraki Gulf, an arm of the Pacific sheltered by a considerable number of small and large islands, notably Great Barrier Island in the northeast. An arm of the Hauraki, the Waitemata Harbour, forms the main harbour and of Auckland city, and also accommodates New Zealand's largest port. The mainland coastline is 1,613 km long. Much of the coastal marine area comprises sensitive tidal inlets and estuaries and semi-enclosed Waitemata, Manukau and Kaipara Harbours.

To the west lie two large natural harbours, the Kaipara and the Manukau. Both of these have treacherous entrances and are little used by shipping. The Kaipara Harbour (of which the southern half is in the Auckland region) is one of the world's largest natural harbours, covering an area of 530 km². The Manukau Harbour, located in the southwest part of the region, has a small port at Onehunga, but also suffers from difficult navigation - especially when the predominant southwesterly wind is blowing. Auckland Airport is located on the edge of the Manukau Harbour.The region is blessed with many fine beaches, especially on the Tasman coast south of the Kaipara. These include Muriwai and Piha beaches.

Volcanic field

Much of Auckland's urban area lies on top of the dormant Auckland Volcanic Field. The region is dotted by 49 volcanoes of varying age with the oldest being in the region of 150,000 years old. The most recent eruption occurred approximately 600 years ago, ending a few hundred years of activity during which Rangitoto Island was formed.

Each volcanic eruption has tended to be bigger than the previous, with Rangitoto making up almost 60% of the entire volume of erupted material. All of the volcanoes are relatively small, most being less than 150 meters in height.

A large number of the Auckland volcanoes have been levelled or strongly altered - in small part due to historical Māori use of the cones as fortified 'Pā's or for terraced fields, but for most part having been quarried relatively recently for roading and construction materials (mainly scoria). However measures are now in place to preserve many of the remaining volcanoes as landmarks and parks.

People

Despite its small size, the region is by far the most populous in New Zealand, with a population of 1,358,200 (2006 estimate), about 33% of the country’s population. The Region is growing faster than any other part of the country, with its population increasing by over 240,000 in the past 10 years - an increase of over 22% (according to Census data from 1996, 2001 and 2006). According to the 2001 Census, the Auckland Region contains 26.3 percent of New Zealand's European population, 24.3 percent of the total Māori population, 66.7 percent of the total Pacific Peoples population, 63.7 percent of the total Asian population and 54.7 percent of the total population in the 'Other' ethnic groups category. These statistics highlight the ethnic diversity of the Auckland Region, especially in comparison to the rest of New Zealand.

The region encompasses the cities of the Auckland metropolitan area, smaller towns, rural areas, and the islands of the Hauraki Gulf.

Local Government Structure

Region

The Auckland Region is under the jurisdiction of the Auckland Regional Council, (successor of the Auckland Regional Authority), and of the Territorial Local Authorities (TLAs), of which there are seven in the Auckland Region, four cities and three districts. However, the Auckland Regional Council (known commonly as the ARC) has fairly limited controls over the city, focusing on environmental protection, public transport funding, and management of Regional Parks and coastal areas. Governance of other matters such as subdivision, infrastructure, services and land use is devolved to the Territorial Local Authorities.

Districts

To the north of the Auckland urban area lies Rodney District, which includes the towns of Orewa, Warkworth, Helensville and Wellsford.To the south lies the district of Papakura, containing a suburb of the same name. Further south, the Auckland region covers the northern half of the Franklin District (the southern half is part of the Waikato region). Franklin contains the towns of Waiuku and Pukekohe.

Cities

Between the generally rural districts of Rodney and Franklin lies the sprawling urban development of the region's four main cities. The Auckland metropolitan area encircles the Waitemata Harbour and extends south from the Auckland Isthmus along the shores of the Manukau Harbour. It also extends north along the Hauraki Gulf coast to Waiwera.

Auckland City covers the bulk of the isthmus itself. Across the Waitemata from Auckland City lies North Shore City. To the west of Auckland City, nestling beneath the eastern foothills of the Waitakere Ranges, is Waitakere City. Finally, the city of Manukau extends to the south of Auckland, close to the eastern shore of the harbour which shares its name. Auckland International Airport is located in Manukau City.

The metropolitan area also extends somewhat beyond these four cities into the neighbouring parts of Papakura, Franklin and Rodney Districts.

Health Boards

Three District Health Boards (DHBs) cover the greater Auckland region. They are Waitemata Health, Auckland District Health Board, and Counties Manukau Health.

Further integration

Recently, connected with discussions about rates increases and plans to improve the public services of the region, which some consider substandard for a region of Auckland's size, there have been calls for further integration of local authorities in the Auckland area, mainly between the cities of the Auckland conurbation, or even forming a unitary authority (that is, abolishing the city-based authorities and having only a regional council, as in Nelson).

* Defenders of such a move, such as John Law, former Mayor of Rodney District Council, have pointed out that there are currently eight elected Councils (seven local councils and one regional council), and claims that this creates bureaucratic efficiency problems.

* Opponents tend to point to 'failed' mergers of other urban areas, and generally doubt claims of improved efficiency. They also perceive the proposed merger as being less democratic.

See also

* Auckland Province

References

* [http://www.stats.govt.nz/NR/rdonlyres/5B50D4BB-EC38-4616-BFF3-60815717DC24/0/subnationalpopulationestimatesjun06hotp.pdf Subnational Population Estimates: At 30 June 2006] , Statistics New Zealand.

External links

* [http://www.arc.govt.nz/ Auckland Regional Council]
* [http://www.rodney.govt.nz/ Rodney District Council]
* [http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/ Auckland City Council]
* [http://www.waitakere.govt.nz/ Waitakere City Council]
* [http://www.northshorecity.govt.nz/ North Shore City Council]
* [http://www.manukau.govt.nz/ Manukau City Council]
* [http://www.gns.cri.nz/what/earthact/volcanoes/nzvolcanoes/aucklandprint.htm Auckland's Volcanoes]