Countryside feels city heat

A new report, New Zealand: An Urban/Rural Profile, released yesterday shows rural areas close to New Zealand cities are the fastest-growing localities in the country and boast populations with the highest incomes.

The report is based on 2001 census information, Statistics New Zealand data and information from other government agencies.

It is the first analysis of rural and urban areas in more than 20 years.

Report author Alex Bayley said the population increase in rural areas close to cities was due mainly to urban sprawl - ever-increasing numbers of city people opting for a quieter life in the country.

"A lot of it is the lifestyle-block people moving out of these centres."

However, that could cause a clash between "the traditionalists and the new [city] people moving there", Mr Bayley warned.

He believed the lifestylers would continue to focus their attentions on the city, and spend most of their money there.

People whose minds are more involved with the city would be less likely to become involved with local groups such as volunteer fire brigades, he said.

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