Whakatāne

Whakatāne is a town located in the Bay of Plenty Region in the North Island of New Zealand, east of Tauranga and northeast of Rotorua. The town is situated at the mouth of the Whakatāne River. The Whakatāne District is the territorial authority that encompasses the town, covering an area to the south and west of the town, excluding the enclave of Kawerau District.
Whakatāne has an urban population of, making it New Zealand's 33rd-largest urban area and the Bay of Plenty's third-largest urban area, after Tauranga and Rotorua. Another people live in the rest of the Whakatāne District. Around 42% of the population identify as having Māori ancestry, and 66% as having European/Pākehā ancestry, compared with 17% and 72% nationally.
Whakatāne is part of the parliamentary electorate of East Coast, currently represented by Dana Kirkpatrick of the New Zealand National Party. The town is the main urban centre of the eastern Bay of Plenty sub-region, which includes Whakatāne, Kawerau, and Ōpōtiki, stretching from Otamarakau in the west to Cape Runaway in the northeast and Whirinaki in the south. Whakatāne is also the seat of the Bay of Plenty Regional Council, which was chosen as a compromise between the region's two larger cities, Tauranga and Rotorua.

History and culture

Māori occupation

The site of the town has long been populated. Māori pā sites in the area date back to the first Polynesian settlements, estimated to have been around 1200 CE. According to Māori tradition Toi-te-huatahi, later known as Toi-kai-rakau, landed at Whakatāne about 1150 CE in search of his grandson Whatonga. Failing to find Whatonga, he settled in the locality and built a pa on the highest point of the headland now called Whakatāne Heads, overlooking the present town. Some 200 years later the Mātaatua waka landed at Whakatāne.
The Maori name Whakatāne is reputed to commemorate an incident occurring after the arrival of the Mataatua. The men had gone ashore and the canoe began to drift. Wairaka, a chieftainess, said "Kia whakatāne au i ahau", and commenced to paddle – something that women were not allowed to do. With the help of the other women, the canoe was saved. Wairaka's efforts are commemorated by a bronze statue of her at the mouth of the Whakatāne River, which was installed in 1965.
File:Rua Kenana meets with NZ PM Joseph Ward.jpg|thumb|left|Māori prophet Rua Kenana Hepetipa meets with Prime Minister Joseph Ward in Whakatāne, 1908.
The region around Whakatāne was important during the New Zealand Wars of the mid-19th century, particularly the Völkner incident. Its role culminated in 1869 with raids by Te Kooti's forces and a number of its few buildings were razed, leading to an armed constabulary being stationed above the town for a short while. Whakatāne beach heralded a historic meeting on 23 March 1908 between Prime Minister Joseph Ward and the Māori prophet and activist Rua Kenana Hepetipa. Kenana claimed to be Te Kooti's successor.

European settlement

The town was a notable shipbuilding and trade centre from 1880 and with the draining of the Rangitāiki swamp into productive farmland from 1904, Whakatāne grew considerably. In the early 1920s, it was the fastest-growing town in the country for a period of about three years and this saw the introduction of electricity for the first time. The carton board mill at Whakatāne began as a small operation in 1939 and continues operating to this day.
The Whakatāne River once had a much longer and more circuitous route along the western edge of the Whakatāne urban area, having been significantly re-coursed in the 1960s with a couple of its loopier loops removed to help prevent flooding and provide for expansion of the town. Remnants of the original watercourse remain as Lake Sullivan and the Awatapu lagoon. The original wide-span ferro-concrete bridge constructed in 1911 at the Bridge Street was demolished in 1984 and replaced by the Landing Road bridge.
Whakatāne has in recent years benefited from its relative dominance over numerous smaller and less prosperous towns surrounding it, such as Te Teko and Waimana, and its popularity as a retirement and lifestyle destination.

Mataatua Declaration

The 'First International Conference on the Cultural and Intellectual Property Rights of Indigenous Peoples' was held in Whakatāne from 12 to 18 June 1993. This resulted in the Mataatua Declaration on Cultural and Intellectual Property Rights of Indigenous Peoples', commonly referred to as the Mataatua Declaration.

Marae

Whakatāne has five marae, which are meeting places for Ngāti Awa hapū:

Te Hokowhitu a Tū ki te Rāhui Marae and Te Hokowhitu a Tūmatauenga meeting house is affiliated with Ngāti Wharepaia and Ngāti Hokopū – Te Hokowhitu a Tu Ki Te Rāhui.
Te Rangihouhiri II Marae and Te Rangihouhiri II meeting house is affiliated with Ngāi Te Rangihouhiri II.
Tokitareke or Warahoe Marae and Te Puna o Te Orohi meeting house is affiliated with Warahoe.
Toroa or Pupuaruhe Marae and Toroa meeting house is affiliated with Te Patuwai.
Te Whare o Toroa Marae and Wairaka meeting house is affiliated with Ngāti Wharepaia and Ngāti Hokopū – Te Whare o Toroa.

In October 2020, the Government committed from the Provincial Growth Fund to upgrading Te Hokowhitu a Tū ki te Rāhui Marae and 11 other Ngāti Awa marae, creating 23 jobs. It also committed $282,275 to upgrade Te Whare o Toroa Marae, creating an estimated 21 jobs.

Demographics

Whakatāne urban area covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km².
Whakatāne had a population of 16,419 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 624 people since the 2018 census, and an increase of 2,031 people since the 2013 census. There were 7,848 males, 8,532 females, and 39 people of other genders in 6,114 dwellings. 2.0% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 40.5 years. There were 3,399 people aged under 15 years, 2,712 aged 15 to 29, 6,786 aged 30 to 64, and 3,522 aged 65 or older.
People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 65.7% European ; 43.3% Māori; 4.2% Pasifika; 6.6% Asian; 0.6% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders ; and 2.2% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 96.3%, Māori by 12.7%, Samoan by 0.2%, and other languages by 7.1%. No language could be spoken by 2.2%. New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.4%. The percentage of people born overseas was 16.2, compared with 28.8% nationally.
Religious affiliations were 31.8% Christian, 0.7% Hindu, 0.3% Islam, 6.4% Māori religious beliefs, 0.5% Buddhist, 0.4% New Age, and 1.4% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 51.6%, and 7.3% of people did not answer the census question.
Of those at least 15 years old, 2,301 people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 7,326 had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 3,384 people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $34,900, compared with $41,500 nationally. 1,005 people earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was 5,736 full-time, 1,866 part-time, and 501 unemployed.

Name	Area	Population	Density	Dwellings	Median age	Median income
Coastlands	15.28	2,223	145	711	38.7 years	$42,200
Whakatāne West	1.83	3,444	1,882	1,104	32.7 years	$34,900
Whakatāne Central	2.59	3,363	1,298	1,374	45.7 years	$33,800
Trident	1.81	3,417	1,888	1,278	40.1 years	$30,300
Allandale	1.53	2,613	1,708	1,101	42.5 years	$34,200
Mokorua Bush	1.36	1,359	999	546	51.6 years	$44,600
New Zealand					38.1 years	$41,500

Geography

is a small island off the Bay of Plenty coast about north of Whakatāne. The island has numerous sites of pā. It also provided shelter for James Cook's Endeavour in 1769. A whaling station existed on the island during the 19th century.
Whakaari/White Island is an active marine volcano located 48 kilometres offshore of Whakatāne and was a popular visitor attraction. Sulphur mining on the island was attempted but abandoned in 1914 after a lahar killed all 10 workers.
The mouth of the Whakatāne River and Ohiwa Harbour have both provided berths for yachts, fishing trawlers and small ships since European settlement of the area. Nearby Ōhope Beach is a sandy beach stretching from the Ohiwa Harbour entrance.

Climate

Whakatāne has frequently recorded the highest annual sunshine hours in New Zealand. Since official recording began in 2008, the town has frequently attained upwards of 2600 hours a year. The town recorded an average of over 7.5hrs of sunshine a day in 2013. Whakatāne also records the national daily high on approximately 55 days of the year.

Natural disasters

Whakatāne was affected by the 1987 Edgecumbe earthquake. Heavy rain struck the Bay of Plenty region between 16 and 18 July 2004, resulting in severe flooding and a state of civil emergency being declared. Many homes and properties were flooded, forcing thousands of Whakatāne residents to evacuate. The Rangitaiki River burst its banks, flooding large areas of farmland, and numerous roads were closed by floods and slips. A total of 245.8 mm of rain fell in Whakatāne in the 48-hour period and many small earthquakes were also felt during this time, loosening the sodden earth and resulting in landslips that claimed two lives.
Whakatane is also the closest town to Whakaari / White Island, which experienced a fatal eruption in 2019. The town was heavily affected by the disaster in which 22 lost their lives.