Wellington region

The Wellington region (including Greater Wellington) is located at the southern tip of the North Island of New Zealand. Its capital is also the state capital.

The Wellington region is bordered to the north by the Manawatu-Wanganui region. In the other directions it is surrounded by water. To the west lies the Tasman Sea and the eastern Pacific Ocean, specifically the South Pacific.

In the south, finally these two water masses meet. This waterway between the North and the South Island is called the Cook Strait. This is wide at its narrowest point, between Cape Terawhiti on the North Island and Arapawa Iceland in the Marlborough Sounds on the South Island, at only about 25km. Because of their relatively unprotected location from west to east in the region, it is often very windy.

The region can be divided into four geographical areas, all more or less parallel in northeast-southwest direction. The first and most westerly of these four areas is the coastal strip, which is largely located in the Kapiti Coast District.

This area is an important tourist center, which houses a number of houses, mainly due to the proximity to the four cities and the vast sandy beaches. To the east is a rough hill country, in the same geological fault line created by the Southern Alps.

Overall, one can say that the mountainous country to the Tararua and Rimutaka, ranges sometimes up over 1,500 meters in height, and is not very densely populated, although in the southwest part of this area, the cities of Wellington and Hutt Valley and the cities Upper and Lower Hutt are.

Again, east of it is followed by a slightly hilly area around the Ruamahanga River, which is almost flat in the south and includes areas where the marsh of Lake Wairarapa is.

There operated on fertile agricultural land regularly. The easterly current strip in turn is very mountainous, though not as extreme as in the Tararua Ranges and the Rumutaka. This area is economically not very developed. In both mountainous regions there no extensive forest areas (yet).

Inhabitants

About 75% of the 445,400 inhabitants (2002) live in one of four cities in the southwestern region. More densely populated areas are Kapiti Coast and the fertile plains of the Ruamahanga River. On the Kapiti Coast, there are some towns with populations of 2,000 to 10,000 including Otaki, Waikanae, Paraparaumu, Raumati Beach, Raumati South, Paekakariki and Pukerua Bay.

In addition to the above settlements, all located in the western region, Masterton is the only major city in the level of the Ruamahanga River. Other small towns there are Featherston, Martinborough, Carterton and Greytown.

Subdivisions

The region is divided into four City Council and four District Councils:
Wellington City Council
Porirua City Council
Upper Hutt City Council
Hutt City Council
Kapiti Coast District Council
Masterton District Council
Carterton District
South Wairarapa District.