Data from StatsCan’s 2021 Canadian Census shows population levels in the East Kootenay’s rural communities are on the rise.
Regional District of East Kootenay board chair Rob Gay says Census data gives local government a good snapshot of how the region has grown over the past five years.
He adds Census data also helps the RDEK with taxation and applying for grants, as many of their financial figures are decided based on population numbers in all six rural areas in the regional government’s jurisdiction.
“It’s important for us – our schools, our hospitals, many of our social services and in our case grant applications are all based on the [population] numbers,” says Gay. “Important that the numbers are current, and in all cases we’ve seen quite an increase in the numbers.”
Gay says the population increase in the RDEK isn’t too surprising, given the number of new single and multi-family housing builds in the region through the past five years.
“We’ve seen our building permit values go up from $200-million about four years ago to this year,” says Gay. “Much of that building was residential.”
Gay looks forward to digesting more data to understand the ages and demographics of residents who have moved to the area over the past five years.
Find more RDEK data from Census 2021 below:
RDEK Area A (Includes Hosmer)
2016 Population = 1,683
2021 Population = 1,875
Growth = 11.4%
RDEK Area B (Includes Jaffray)
2016 Population = 1,976
2021 Population = 2,011
Growth = 1.8%
RDEK Area C (Includes Moyie)
2016 Population = 6,021
2021 Population = 6,536
Growth = 8.6 %
RDEK Area E (includes Wasa)
2016 Population = 1,753
2021 Population = 1,686
Growth = -3.8%
RDEK Area F (Includes Radium Hot Springs)
2016 Population = 2,726
2021 Population = 3,521
Growth = 29.2%
RDEK Area G (Includes Brisco)
2016 Population = 1,467
2021 Population = 1,654
Growth = 12.7%
– Rob Gay – Chair, Regional District of East Kootenay Board (Article includes data from StastCan 2021 Canadian Census)
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