A layer file for the Auckland Council Unitary Plan Base Zone dataset. Download this file in conjunction with the Unitary Plan Base Zone.

Purpose:This data is primarily used by council and its contractors in identifying the location of the asset.Lineage:This data was a product of consolidating legacy GIS datasets from the previous regional council and seven city and district councils. Since amalgamation in 2010, the data has been updated by Asset Management teams. Polygon data is digitised from urban aerial photographs and from asset as-built drawings; positional accuracy is around 50cm. Attribute information is field validated by inspections during park audits and asset turnover process.Creation Date:1/04/2012Update Cycle:Daily

This dataset is the definitive version of the annually released regional council boundaries for 2020 as defined by the regional councils and/or Local Government Commission, and maintained by Stats NZ (the custodian). This version contains 17 categories.

The regional council is the top tier of local government in New Zealand. There are 16 regional councils in New Zealand (defined by Part 1 of Schedule 2 of the Local Government Act 2002). Eleven are governed by an elected regional council, while five are governed by territorial authorities (the second tier of local government), who also perform the functions of a regional council and are known as unitary authorities.

Auckland Council unitary authority was formed in 2010, under the Local Government (Tamaki Makarau Reorganisation) Act 2009, replacing the Auckland Regional Council and seven territorial authorities.The seaward boundary of any coastal regional council is the twelve-mile New Zealand territorial limit. Regional councils are defined at meshblock and statistical area 2

Names are provided with and without tohutō/macrons. The name field without macrons is suffixed ‘ascii’.

This generalised version has been simplified for rapid drawing and is designed for thematic or web mapping purposes.

Digital boundary data became freely available on 1 July 2007.

Identifies the designations of requiring authorities as set out by s175(2) of the Resource Management Act 1991.

Identifies notable trees as set out in the policy framework of D13 Notable Trees Overlay and Schedule 10 of the Plan.

Refer to the 'Current Geographic Boundaries Table' layer for a list of all current geographies and recent updates.

This dataset is the definitive set of territorial authority boundaries as at 1 January 2025 as defined by the Local Government Commission and/or the territorial authorities themselves but maintained by Stats NZ, clipped to the coastline. This clipped version has been created for cartographic purposes and so does not fully represent the official full extent boundaries. This version contains 67 territorial authorities, excluding ‘area outside territorial authority’.

Territorial authorities are the second tier of local government in New Zealand, below regional councils. They are defined under schedule 2, part 1 of the Local Government Act 2002 as city councils or district councils. Territorial authorities were established in 1989 when 205 territorial local authorities were replaced by 75 territorial authorities. Territorial boundaries must coincide with meshblock boundaries under schedule 3, clause 17 of the Local Government Act 2002.

There are 67 territorial authorities: 12 city councils, 53 district councils, Auckland Council, and Chatham Islands Council. Five territorial authorities (Auckland Council, Nelson City Council, and the Gisborne, Tasman, and Marlborough district councils) also perform the functions of a regional council and are therefore unitary authorities. The Chatham Islands Council performs some regional council functions.

Some territorial authority boundaries are coterminous with regional council boundaries but there are several exceptions. An example is Taupo District, which is split between four regions, although most of its area falls within the Waikato Region. When defining the boundaries of territorial authorities, the Local Government Commission bases considerable weight on the ‘community of interest’.

Territorial authorities are defined at meshblock level. Statistical area 1, statistical area 2 and statistical area 3 geographies nest within territorial authority boundaries.

Maintenance

Local government boundaries may be changed through the Local Government Act 2002, an Act of Parliament, or a natural process such as the middle line of a river changing its natural course.

The Territorial Authority classification is released annually on 1 January to coincide with the update of meshblocks, but there are not always changes from the previous classification.

1989:

New Zealand’s local government structural arrangements were significantly reformed by the Local Government Commission in 1989. Prior to reformation there were 205 territorial local authorities: 28 cities, 78 boroughs, 67 counties, 31 districts, and 1 town district, as well as a multitude of ad-hoc authorities such as pest control boards, drainage boards, catchment boards, and domain and reserve boards.

These were replaced by 74 territorial local authorities, 15 of which were cities and 58 districts. The exception was Chatham Islands County which retained its county status.

1990:

Invercargill was proclaimed a city.

1992:

Nelson-Marlborough Regional Council was abolished by a Local Government Amendment Act. Kaikoura District was transferred to the Canterbury Region. Nelson City, and Tasman and Marlborough districts became unitary authorities.

1995:

The Chatham Islands County was dissolved and reconstituted by a specific Act of Parliament as the "Chatham Islands Territory", with powers similar to those of territorial authorities and some functions similar to those of a regional council. This included the addition of territorial sea, a coastal buffer extending to twelve nautical miles from the coastline.

1995:

Tasman District boundary extended to align with the Tasman Region boundary at the 12-mile limit.

1998:

Not Applicable category changed to Area Outside Territorial Authority

2004:

Tauranga District changed to Tauranga City.

2006:

Banks Peninsula District merged into Christchurch City as a result of a Local Government Commission decision following a 2005 referendum.

2010:

Auckland Council established under the Local Government (Tamaki Makaurau Reorganisation) Act 2009. Rodney District, North Shore City, Waitakere City, Auckland City, Manukau City, Papakura District, and Franklin District territorial councils, and the Auckland Regional Council, were abolished to become a unitary authority known as the Auckland Council. The area now consists of one city council (with statutory provision for three Māori councillors), 13 wards, and 21 local boards.

2015:

Wanganui District Council name changed to Whanganui District Council effective 1 December 2015.

2020:

Ōtorohanga District Council name amended to Ōtorohanga District Council.

Opotiki District Council name amended to Ōpōtiki District Council.

Both changes were under schedule 2 of the Local Government Act 2002 and effective 17 January 2020.

2021:

A local government reorganisation transferred land between two territorial authorities, Western Bay of Plenty District and Tauranga City. The changes took effect on 19 February 2021 under schedule 3 of the Local Government Act 2002. Refer to the New Zealand Gazette notice for further details.

2023:

A local government reorganisation transferred land between two territorial authorities, Whakatane District and Kawerau District. The changes took effect on 1 September 2024 under schedule 3 of the Local Government Act 2002. Refer to the New Zealand Gazette notice for further details.

Numbering

The territorial authority classification is a flat classification. Territorial authorities are given a unique three-digit code. The classification contains 68 categories (including ‘999 – Area Outside Territorial Authority’).

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Clipped Version

This clipped version has been created for cartographic purposes and so does not fully represent the official full extent boundaries.

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High-definition version

This high definition (HD) version is the most detailed geometry, suitable for use in GIS for geometric analysis operations and for the computation of areas, centroids and other metrics. The HD version is aligned to the LINZ cadastre.

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Macrons

Names are provided with and without tohutō/macrons. The column name for those without macrons is suffixed ‘ascii’.

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Digital data

Digital boundary data became freely available on 1 July 2007.

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Further information

To download geographic classifications in table formats such as CSV please use Ariā

For more information please refer to the Statistical standard for geographic areas 2023.

Contact: geography@stats.govt.nz

Topicality: 01-01-2025Projection: New Zealand Transverse Mercator (NZTM)This layer contains the archive of the Territorial Authority and Local Board boundaries maintained by Stats NZ.This dataset is a derived version comprising local boards for Auckland and territorial authorities for the rest of New Zealand, as defined by the territorial authorities and/or Local Government Commission and maintained by Stats NZ(the custodian), clipped to the coastline. This clipped version has been created for map creation/cartographic purposes and so does not fully represent the official full extent boundaries.For statistical outputs that use territorial authorities to aggregate and report data Auckland Council is treated as a single geographic entity. This can hide meaningful patterns and trends for a significant portion of the population. A solution was to create a new classification of territorial authorities that includes the local boards for Auckland. The Auckland Council was established in 2010 under the Local Government (Tamaki Makaurau Reorganisation) Act 2009. Seven territorial authorities within the Auckland Region were abolished and replaced by the unitary authority Auckland Council. Local boards fall within the community board classificationThis layer get updated yearly with the latest boundary data. You can use this layer when you need any year of boundary data in your map. By setting a filter on the dataset year you can filter on specific year of the dataset.For information about the fields in this dataset go to the Data tab.The layer is further generalised by Eagle Technology for improved performance on the web, therefore it doesn't fully represent the official boundaries.If you only need the latest boundary data in your map you can use the current version of this dataset. All the current versions of Stats NZ Boundary layers can be found here.The official dataset can be found on https://datafinder.stats.govt.nz.This layer is offered by Eagle Technology (Official Esri Distributor). Eagle Technology offers services that can be used in the ArcGIS platform. The Content team at Eagle Technology updates the layers on a regular basis and regularly adds new content to the Living Atlas. By using this content and combining it with other data you can create new information products quickly and easily.If you have any questions or comments about the content, please let us now at livingatlas@eagle.co.nz

Purpose:This data is primarily used by council and its contractors in identifying the location of the asset.Lineage:This data was a product of consolidating legacy GIS datasets from the previous regional council and seven city and district councils. Since amalgamation in 2010, the data has been updated by Asset Management teams. Polygon data is digitised from urban aerial photographs and from asset as-built drawings. Attribute information is field validated by inspections during park audits and asset turnover process.Creation Date:1/04/2012Update Cycle:Weekly

This dataset is the definitive set of regional council boundaries for 2022 as defined by the Local Government Commission and/or regional councils themselves but maintained by Stats NZ (the custodian). The regional council is the top tier of local government in New Zealand. There are 16 regional councils in New Zealand (defined by Part 1 of Schedule 2 of the Local Government Act 2002). Eleven are governed by an elected regional council, while five are governed by territorial authorities (the second tier of local government), who also perform the functions of a regional council and are known as unitary authorities. These unitary authorities are Auckland Council, Nelson City Council, and Gisborne, Tasman, and Marlborough District Councils. The Chatham Islands Council also performs some of the functions of a regional council, but is not strictly a unitary authority. Unitary authorities act as regional councils for legislative purposes. Regional councils are responsible for administrating many environmental and transport matters, such as land transport planning and harbour navigation and safety.Regional councils were established in 1989 after the abolition of the 22 local government regions. The Local Government Act 2002 requires the boundaries of regions to conform, as far as possible, to one or more water catchments. When determining regional boundaries, the Local Government Commission considered regional communities of interest when selecting which water catchments to include in a region. It also considered factors such as natural resource management, land use planning, and environmental matters. Some regional council boundaries are coterminous with territorial authority boundaries, but there are several exceptions. An example is Taupo District, which is geographically split between four regions, although most of its area falls within the Waikato Region. Where territorial authorities straddle regional council boundaries, the affected area is statistically defined by complete regional councils. In general, however, regional councils contain complete territorial authorities. Auckland Council unitary authority was formed in 2010, under the Local Government (Tamaki Makarau Reorganisation) Act 2009, replacing the Auckland Regional Council and seven territorial authorities.The seaward boundary of any coastal regional council is the twelve-mile New Zealand territorial limit.Regional councils are defined at meshblock level. Statistical area 1 and statistical area 2 geographies nest within regional council boundaries.Names are provided with and without tohutō/macrons. The column name for those without macrons is suffixed ‘ascii’.Digital boundary data became freely available on 1 July 2007._Item Page Created: 2023-05-31 04:57 Item Page Last Modified: 2025-04-05 20:44Owner: steinmetzt_NIWARegional Council Boundaries (gen)No data edit dates availableFields: REGC2022_V1_00,REGC2022_V1_00_NAME,REGC2022_V1_00_NAME_ASCII,LAND_AREA_SQ_KM,AREA_SQ_KM

For CSV and Excel extracts, the Ecosystem Extent Domains document will assist in resolving domains. This layer has been created to assist the Council in identifying and managing threatened and at risk ecosystems in the Auckland region. The ecosystem classification system used in creating this layer was developed by the Department of Conservation (Singers & Rogers 2014) and refined by Nick Singers to match the specific nature of ecosystems found within the Auckland Region. For further information about the classification system, see Singers et al. (2015) Indigenous terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems of Auckland. The process of mapping the current extent of Auckland’s terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems has involved collating data and information from a variety of sources. For example, all terrestrial ecosystem data from past ecological surveys, held by legacy councils, was aggregated; numerous publications that documented the state of indigenous vegetation in Auckland were collated, including the Department of Conservation’s Protected Natural Area Programme survey reports and research papers for sites throughout the region. Ecological surveys carried out to potential SEAs assisted in filling knowledge gaps and to updating some of the existing data. The resulting data was used to inform the mapping of ecosystems. For further information on the ecosystems in the Auckland Region refer to:Singers, N.; Osborne, B.; Lovegrove, T.; Jamieson, A.; Boow, J.; Sawyer, J.; Hill, K.; Andrews, J.; Hill, S.; Webb, C. 2016. Indigenous terrestrial and wetland ecosystems of Auckland. Auckland Council.

Seven legacy systems were migrated to Auckland Council’s GIS environment where the creation of new assets and maintenance of existing assets are now being undertaken. Using asbuilts sent to the stormwater team from development engineers and/or internal projects, the geometry and attributes of stormwater assets are captured using standard ArcGIS editing functionality. Whilst due care has been taken to capture the assets as accurately as possible, the data is indicative and cannot be considered to align to any particular boundaries or features including cadastral.

This dataset is the definitive set of annually released territorial authority boundaries for 2022 as defined the territorial authorities and/or Local Government Commission and maintained by Stats NZ (the custodian). This version contains 68 features.

A territorial authority is defined under the Local Government Act 2002 as a city or a district council. There are 67 territorial authorities in New Zealand. Territorial authorities are the second tier of local government in New Zealand, below regional councils. The 67 territorial authorities comprise 13 city councils including the Auckland council, 53 district councils, and the Chatham Islands Territory.

Territorial authorities are defined at meshblock level. Statistical area 1 and statistical area 2 geographies nest within territorial authority boundaries

Names are provided with and without tohutō/macrons. The name field without macrons is suffixed ‘ASCII’. This generalised version has been simplified for rapid drawing and is designed for thematic or web mapping purposes. Digital boundary data became freely available on 1 July 2007.

Land Cover 2017 is the companion dataset to Impervious Surfaces 2017, and classifies land cover into five surface types:• Grass (open space without trees and shrubs) (Class Name = 1)• Scrub/shrub (rough grass, rushes, low profile vegetation often around wetlands) (Class Name = 4)• Sand/Gravel/Bare Earth (Class Name = 5)• High vegetation (trees and shrubs) (Class Name = 6)• Water (Class Name = 7)Image processing was conducted by Lynker Analytics using machine learning techniques on Auckland Council’s most recent orthophotography—7.5 cm pixel resolution (2017) covering all the region’s urban settlements and beyond; and 50 cm pixel resolution (2010-2012) covering the region’s remaining, predominantly rural areas—to produce two separate (urban and rural) land cover datasets.A copy of the full background report can be obtained from the Regional Planning team in Auckland Council’s Healthy Waters department.

Topicality: 01-01-2025Projection: New Zealand Transverse Mercator (NZTM)This layer contains the latest set of regional council boundaries as defined by regional councils and/or Local Government Commission, and maintained by Stats NZ (the custodian).The regional council is the top tier of local government in New Zealand. Regional councils are defined under schedule 2, part 1 of the Local Government Act 2002. They were established in November 1989 after the abolition of the 22 local government regions. Regional council boundaries must coincide with meshblock boundaries under schedule 3, clause 17 of the Local Government Act 2002.Regional council boundaries are based largely on water catchments, such as rivers, lakes, and harbours. The seaward boundary of the regions is the 12 mile (19.3km) New Zealand territorial limit. In determining regions, consideration was also given to regional communities of interest, natural resource management, land use planning, and environmental matters.This layer gets updated yearly with the latest boundary data.A layer with the full archive of the data for all the available years is available here.For information about the fields in this dataset go to the Data tab.The layer is further generalised by Eagle Technology for improved performance on the web, therefore it doesn't fully represent the official boundaries.The official dataset can be found on https://datafinder.stats.govt.nz.This layer is offered by Eagle Technology (Official Esri Distributor). Eagle Technology offers services that can be used in the ArcGIS platform. The Content team at Eagle Technology updates the layers on a regular basis and regularly adds new content to the Living Atlas. By using this content and combining it with other data you can create new information products quickly and easily.If you have any questions or comments about the content, please let us now at livingatlas@eagle.co.nz

Identifies the zone as set out in the policy framework of each subject zone in H Zones.

Geospatial data about Regional Council 2020 table. Export to CAD, GIS, PDF, CSV and access via API.

The Taupo District Council possesses ownership and oversight of a broad spectrum of land holdings, comprising commercial, urban, rural, residential, and reserve zones. These properties play an integral role in the district's infrastructure and advancement, serving multifaceted purposes that contribute to the well-being of both the local populace and external stakeholders.Commercial land encompasses designated areas tailored for business enterprises, retail hubs, and other commercial endeavours, serving as pivotal drivers for economic progress and investment attraction. Urban land encompasses indispensable spaces essential for the operation and expansion of urban locales, including public facilities and structures.Residential land provides a spectrum of housing opportunities, catering to diverse demographic needs, from accommodations for senior citizens to upscale residences, thereby fostering community stability and expansion. The district also boasts an array of reserves, encompassing parks and natural preserves, crucial for environmental conservation efforts and recreational pursuits.The Council undertakes the stewardship of these diverse land holdings, with a commitment to preserving their innate beauty and ecological significance, ensuring accessibility and enjoyment for all. Furthermore, the Council administers land on behalf of various external entities, fostering collaborative relationships that yield mutual benefits for the broader community.Through its conscientious management of these varied land typologies, the Council endeavours to uphold the district's vibrancy, sustainability, and inclusivity, thereby cultivating an environment conducive to living, working, and visiting.

Dataset contains life-cycle age group census usually resident population counts from the 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses, as well as the percentage change in the age group population counts between the 2013 and 2018 Censuses, and between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses. Data is available by regional council.

The life-cycle age groups are:

• under 15 years
• 15 to 29 years
• 30 to 64 years
• 65 years and over.

Map shows the percentage change in the census usually resident population count for life-cycle age groups between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses.

Download lookup file from Stats NZ ArcGIS Online or embedded attachment in Stats NZ geographic data service. Download data table (excluding the geometry column for CSV files) using the instructions in the Koordinates help guide.

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Footnotes

Geographical boundaries

Statistical standard for geographic areas 2023 (updated December 2023) has information about geographic boundaries as of 1 January 2023. Address data from 2013 and 2018 Censuses was updated to be consistent with the 2023 areas. Due to the changes in area boundaries and coding methodologies, 2013 and 2018 counts published in 2023 may be slightly different to those published in 2013 or 2018.

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Subnational census usually resident population

The census usually resident population count of an area (subnational count) is a count of all people who usually live in that area and were present in New Zealand on census night. It excludes visitors from overseas, visitors from elsewhere in New Zealand, and residents temporarily overseas on census night. For example, a person who usually lives in Christchurch city and is visiting Wellington city on census night will be included in the census usually resident population count of Christchurch city.

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Caution using time series

Time series data should be interpreted with care due to changes in census methodology and differences in response rates between censuses. The 2023 and 2018 Censuses used a combined census methodology (using census responses and administrative data), while the 2013 Census used a full-field enumeration methodology (with no use of administrative data).

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About the 2023 Census dataset

For information on the 2023 dataset see Using a combined census model for the 2023 Census. We combined data from the census forms with administrative data to create the 2023 Census dataset, which meets Stats NZ's quality criteria for population structure information. We added real data about real people to the dataset where we were confident the people who hadn’t completed a census form (which is known as admin enumeration) will be counted. We also used data from the 2018 and 2013 Censuses, administrative data sources, and statistical imputation methods to fill in some missing characteristics of people and dwellings.

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Data quality

The quality of data in the 2023 Census is assessed using the quality rating scale and the quality assurance framework to determine whether data is fit for purpose and suitable for release. Data quality assurance in the 2023 Census has more information.

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Quality rating of a variable

The quality rating of a variable provides an overall evaluation of data quality for that variable, usually at the highest levels of classification. The quality ratings shown are for the 2023 Census unless stated. There is variability in the quality of data at smaller geographies. Data quality may also vary between censuses, for subpopulations, or when cross tabulated with other variables or at lower levels of the classification. Data quality ratings for 2023 Census variables has more information on quality ratings by variable.

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Age concept quality rating

Age is rated as very high quality.

Age – 2023 Census: Information by concept has more information, for example, definitions and data quality.

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Using data for good

Stats NZ expects that, when working with census data, it is done so with a positive purpose, as outlined in the Māori Data Governance Model (Data Iwi Leaders Group, 2023). This model states that "data should support transformative outcomes and should uplift and strengthen our relationships with each other and with our environments. The avoidance of harm is the minimum expectation for data use. Māori data should also contribute to iwi and hapū tino rangatiratanga”.

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Confidentiality

The 2023 Census confidentiality rules have been applied to 2013, 2018, and 2023 data. These rules protect the confidentiality of individuals, families, households, dwellings, and undertakings in 2023 Census data. Counts are calculated using fixed random rounding to base 3 (FRR3) and suppression of ‘sensitive’ counts less than six, where tables report multiple geographic variables and/or small populations. Individual figures may not always sum to stated totals. Applying confidentiality rules to 2023 Census data and summary of changes since 2018 and 2013 Censuses has more information about 2023 Census confidentiality rules.

The Auckland Urban Stream Survey – conducted by the Waterways Centre between April 8 and 9, 2024 – delivered high-resolution, high-fidelity terrain models to support Auckland Council’s Making Space for Water initiative. Waterways Centre used a bidirectional gridded acquisition flight plan using the VUX-240 sensor to capture LiDAR data of the Pakuranga Creek and Cockle Bay catchments as well as the eastern portion of the Whau catchment (Blockhouse Bay). A dense colourised 3D point cloud data was generated along with a push-button orthophotography at 0.1 m resolution.

Designed to be used in the Finding the best site exemplar exercise for the NCEA Geography Standard 91247