Ottawa: New census data shows the population of the metropolitan area of Vancouver outpaced the national growth rate over the last five years.
Statistics Canada released the first batch of numbers from the 2016 census on Wednesday and the population of what the government agency refers to as the census metropolitan area of Vancouver increased by 6.5 per cent since the last census in 2011.
The area’s growth rate was above the national growth rate of 5.0 per cent, while the population of British Columbia increased by 5.6 per cent.
Census metropolitan areas do not conform to established municipal boundaries. Statistics Canada defines them as a metropolitan area with a population of at least 100,000, where the urban core of that area has at least 50,000 people. Commuting patterns and other factors are used in determining these census metropolitan areas. Looking at metropolitan areas this way takes in to account the growing impact of suburban areas on Canada’s largest cities.
When the 2016 census was taken last May 10, the population of the census metropolitan area of Vancouver was 2,463,431, compared with 2,313,328 from the 2011 census. The population of the actual city of Vancouver was 631,486, up from from 603,502 in 2011.
The census indicated that Vancouver ranked No. 3 among the country’s 35 census metropolitan areas.
Canada’s population on census day was 35,151,728, Statistics Canada reported.
The national census is conducted every five years. The information published Wednesday is the first of several releases of data to come from Statistics Canada over the next year that will eventually paint a detailed picture of the country, right down to the local level – including age breakdowns of the population, family makeup, languages spoken, immigration and ethnic origin, the level of education attained and income earned.
Future census releases will give more insight to explain the reasons behind the population changes – whether it’s related mostly to changes in birth and death rates, immigration or interprovincial migration.
At the provincial level, population levels in Alberta saw the highest increase at 11.6 per cent, followed by Saskatchewan (6.3 per cent) and Manitoba (5.8 per cent).
Growth in New Brunswick shrank by 0.5 per cent – the first time since 2006 a province has reported a negative growth rate.
British Columbia’s population levels increased by 5.6 per cent, compared with Ontario (4.6 per cent), Quebec (3.3 per cent), Prince Edward Island (1.9 per cent), Newfoundland and Labrador (1.0 per cent) and Nova Scotia (0.2 per cent). Among the northern territories, the population grew by 12.7 per cent in the Northwest Territories, 5.8 per cent in the Nunavut and 0.8 per cent in Yukon.
Ontario is still the country’s most populous province, with a population of 13,448,494. The population of other provinces and territories: Quebec, 8,164,361; British Columbia, 4,648,055; Alberta, 4,067,175; Manitoba, 1,278,365; Saskatchewan, 1,098,352; New Brunswick, 923,598; New Brunswick, 747,101; Newfoundland and Labrador, 519,716; Prince Edward Island, 142,907; Northwest Territories, 41,786; Nunavut, 35,944 and Yukon, 35,874.
Here is a local breakdown of census population information for communities in the Vancouver region:
Community 2016 2011 % change
Metropolitan Vancouver 2,463,431 2,313,328 6.5
City of Vancouver 631,486 603,502 4.6
North Vancouver 85,935 84,412 1.8
North Vancouver 52,898 48,196 9.8
Mission 1 576 574 0.3
Seymour Creek 2 123 107 15.0
West Vancouver 42,473 42,694 -0.5
Burnaby 232,755 223,218 4.3
New Westminster 70,996 65,976 7.6
Coquitlam 139,284 126,804 9.8
Port Coquitlam 58,612 55,958 4.7
Port Moody 33,551 33,011 1.6
Richmond 198,309 190,473 4.1
Langley 117,285 104,177 12.6
Langley 25,888 25,081 3.2
Surrey 517,887 468,251 10.6
Semiahmoo 120 108 11.1
White Rock 19,952 19,339 3.2
Delta 102,238 99,863 2.4
Tsawwassen 816 720 13.3
Pitt Meadows 18,573 17,736 4.7
Maple Ridge 82,256 76,052 8.2
Chilliwack 83,788 77,936 7.5
Tzeachten 13 2,358 1,467 60.7
Skwah 4 192 216 -11.1
Abbotsford 141,397 133,497 5.9
Whistler 11,854 9,824 20.7
Gibsons 4,605 4,437 3.8
Powell River 13,157 13,165 -0.1
Matsqui Main 2 110 81 35.8
Mission 38,833 36,426 6.6
Upper Sumas 6 178 187 -4.8