Greymouth

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Location in New Zealand.

Greymouth is the largest town in the West Coast region on the South Island of New Zealand, and the seat of the Grey District Council. The population of the whole Grey District was 13,224 in the 2006 census, which accounts for 42% of the West Coast's inhabitants. The town of Greymouth itself, including Cobden, Blaketown and Karoro, had a 2006 population of 7,155.^[1] The town is expected to grow by 1.5% per year for the coming decade.^[2]

1 Location
2 History
3 Economy
4 See also
5 References
6 External links

[edit] Location

The town is located at the mouth of the Grey River, on a narrow coastal plain close to the foot of the Southern Alps. In clear weather, Aoraki/Mount Cook can be clearly seen to the south from near the town. The mouth of the river divides the town into three areas: Blaketown, close to the river's mouth on the south bank; Karoro, to the southeast, separated from Blaketown by a series of small lakes; and Cobden, formerly a separate town, on the river's north bank.

It is on State Highway 6, which connects it with Hokitika in the south and Westport in the north. It also stands at the terminus of State Highway 7, which runs through Dobson and Reefton, eventually reaching north Canterbury and Christchurch via Lewis Pass. The town is also the western terminus of the Midland line from Christchurch. Large coal trains often operate from Greymouth on this line to Christchurch. The famous TranzAlpine train also terminates and begins in Greymouth.

[edit] History

Fisherman statue on the floodwall.

Māori had lived in Greymouth for considerable time before European settlement, and called the area Mawhera (for 'wide spread river mouth',^[3] still an alternative name for the Grey River). The first European to visit the site of what is now Greymouth was Thomas Brunner in 1846. Brunner discovered coal in the Grey valley, and several places in the region (notably the town of Brunner and Lake Brunner) bear his name. Brunner himself named the Grey River after prominent 19th century New Zealand politician Sir George Grey.^[4] Together with gold, coal mining was a major impetus in the town's early European history.^[3]

From 1853 until the abolition of provinces in 1876, Greymouth was a part of the Nelson Province.

Greymouth has a history of coal and gold mining. When the mining industry started to decline, forestry became a new staple industry. Fishing has long been important to the town, despite the fact that the entrance to the Grey River has two notoriously dangerous sandbars - an inner and outer bar.

Greymouth also has an historic World War II gun emplacement at Cobden. The Grey District Council destroyed part of this site, without consultation, in 2007 to make way for a sewer line ^[5]

On the 10th of March 2005, a major tornado, which started as a waterspout, made landfall in Blaketown, a suburb of Greymouth. It quickly moved through the city passing just south of the main town centre. The tornado was one of the largest reported in recent history in the West Coast region and caused millions of dollars in damage and injured several people.^[6]

[edit] Economy

The town's major industries include fishing, mining, forestry, and ecotourism, the latter two of these industries holding an uneasy relationship with each other. The Pancake Rocks at Punakaiki, 45 km to the north are a popular local tourist attraction, while many also pass through on the route to or from the glaciers to the south.

Greymouth is also known for its Pounamu ("Greenstone", a form of Jade) carving industry which goes back to Māori origins.^[3] The town also has a local brewery, Monteiths, which produces beer since 1868,^[4] now sold countrywide.

The planned opening of the Pike River mine in early 2008 will spur new investment into upgrading port facilities at the town.^[7] Without the development, a closure of the port had been mooted, and hopes are now that the coal barges travelling to and from reshipment facilities in Taranaki can also carry containerised cargo to the town. The opening of the new mine, as well as the planned Spring Creek mine, has been called the biggest investment happening in the area for a hundred years.^[8]