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Elk Valley population increases by 1,730 in five years

Fernie is the fastest growing community in the Elk Valley
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Almost a thousand more people moved to Fernie between 2016 and 2021 according to Stats Canada data. Pictured: Fernie in November 2021. (Scott Tibballs / The Free Press)

Number-crunchers rejoice: Statistics Canada has released the latest population numbers for Canada from the 2021 census.

According to the data released on Feb. 9 2022, 6,320 souls now call Fernie home – an increase of 17.1 percent over the 5,396 recorded in the 2016 census.

Some 924 new residents now reside in the fast-growing community, which grew faster than neighbours in the Elk Valley and further afield in East Kootenay.

Up the valley, Sparwood recorded a 9.6 percent increase in population, with 364 new residents bringing its population to 4,184 for 2021, up from 3,784 in 2016.

Elkford similarly recorded a hefty jump, with the upper Elk Valley community now home to 2,749 people – up by 10 percent from 2,499 in 2016.

Population growth wasn’t just reserved for the communities though – the rural Elk Valley also saw an increase of 11.4 percent, with 1,875 people counted as calling the Regional District of East Kootenay’s Area A home.

Between them, the three communities and rural area of the Elk Valley added 1,730 people in five years. Now, 15,092 people call the Elk Valley home.

To the immediate west, the Elk Valley is well ahead of Cranbrook, which recorded only a 2.3 percent population increase to 20,499 – an increase of only 450 people, less than half of the number that Fernie added in the same time, despite Cranbrook being four times the size of the Elk Valley city.

Further afield, Kimberley now counts 8,115 residents as calling it home (up by 9.3 percent), while Creston has 5,583 residents (up 4.1 percent) and Nelson has 11,106 (up 5.1 percent).

Within spitting distance of the Elk Valley, only Invermere had a similarly impressive growth rate percentage wise compared to Fernie, recording a 15.5 percent jump to 3,917.

Provincially, British Columbia now has over 5 million residents, with 5,000,879 people recorded in 2021.

Nationally, Canada is up to 36,991,981, with the national growth rate at 5.2 percent. According to Statistics Canada, the growth rate is thanks to immigration, rather than fertility.

READ MORE: Report backs coal’s economic contribution to Elk Valley



scott.tibballs@thefreepress.ca
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