Taranaki (Region)
Taranaki is a region in the North Island of New Zealand. It is the third smallest in area of the 17 administrative regions of New Zealand policy.
Geography
The Taranaki region is surrounded on three sides by the Tasman Sea. At the northwestern coastal area of the North Taranaki Bight, on the southern coast of the South Taranaki Bight begins; these are two broad bays that affect the entire south-west coast of New Zealand's North Island. Taranaki's center is Mt Taranaki (formerly Mount Egmont ) in the middle of the Egmont National Park.
The light coming from the sea weather is stopped by the mountain and makes for a very humid climate in Taranaki. A regional saying goes "If you can not see the mountain, then it 's raining and if you can see it, then it is going to rain ."
Demography and cities
Capital of the 7273 km ² large region is Stratford, as the administrative seat of the district of the same name. By far the largest city but New Plymouth in about half of the 102,858 inhabitants ( 2001) live. A third major town is Hawera, most important town in the South Taranaki District.
Other notable settlements are Waitara, Inglewood, Opunake, Eltham and Patea.
History
The first European settlers landed in 1840 in this region. Due to questionable transactions of many Whites with the land belonging to the Māori, tensions between immigrants and the Māori, which escalated into the New Zealand wars from the mid-19th century formed.
Economy
Because of the fertile soil and the rainy weather, Taranaki is particularly well suited for agriculture, particularly for the dairy industry. Near the town of Hawera is the second largest dairy in the southern hemisphere.
Also located in the Taranaki region on both the country and in the Tasman Sea gas fields, or methanol - fields that almost all the energy used in New Zealand is covered. Due to the unexpectedly high demand for natural gas, the fields in this region will be exhausted sooner than expected.
Due to the low flow conditions, certain stretches of coastline are good for surfing or windsurfing.
Administrative divisions
The Taranaki region is divided into three districts:
- New Plymouth District
- Stratford District (located partly in the Manawatu-Wanganui Region )
- South Taranaki District