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Granity
Granity is a small town on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island, north-east of Westport on State Highway 67. Karamea is further north. Squeezed between the often-tempestuous Tasman Sea to the west and steep forested cloud-shrouded mountains to the immediate east, the town is the largest in this sparsely populated part of New Zealand. Long known as a coal-mining town, the population has declined as the industry has waned. The population was 168 in the 2018 census, a decrease of 33 from 2013. Several neighbouring towns, such as Denniston, have become virtually ghost towns. In 1911 Granity's population was 589, 641 in 1921 and 547 in 1956. Granity had a railway station on the Westport-Ngākawau Line from 28 Feb1892 until 16 May 1982, though closed to passengers from 14 October 1946. In 1902 it had a staff of 5. The name "Granity" was given to the town by gold prospectors, in reference to the large quantity of granite in the area. Demographics The population of Granity ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Granity Community Library
Granity Community Library is a small public library located in the settlement of Granity on the West Coast of New Zealand. It is listed as a Category II historic place by Heritage New Zealand. Granity was established as a depot for loading coal from the Millerton coal mine into railway trucks to go to Westport for shipping. In 1903 the Granity Library Committee approached the Minister of Railways for railway reserve land for a library building, and were granted a rectangular plot for five shillings a year. However, eight years after the library building had been erected it was discovered it was on the wrong site, and the lease had to be cancelled and a new one drawn up. When the Westport Coal Company's engineering works were located in Granity, the company provided the library with free electric light. At its peak the library had 80 members, and in 1924 its contents were insured for £300. A local recalls the library at the time:The layout of the library was very different in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cobble Skink
The cobble skink (''Oligosoma'' aff. ''infrapunctatum'' "cobble") in the family Scincidae is a skink species endemic to New Zealand, found only on a single small stretch of stony beach at Granity, on the West Coast. In 2016 it was on the brink of extinction, with declining numbers and a threatened habitat, and all known individuals were captured and taken to Auckland Zoo. Taxonomy The cobble skink is part of the speckled skink (''Oligosoma infrapunctatum'') complex, and it was first listed as a distinct species in a field guide, based on morphological differences, although at the time there was no genetic evidence to support this. Subsequently, its distinct status has been confirmed by a genetic analysis, although it has yet to be formally named and described. Description Cobble skinks are small (60–65 mm snout–vent length) lizards that resemble speckled skinks: medium brown above, with a darker central stripe bordered by lighter spots, dark brown stripes on a cr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bub Bridger
Noeline Edith "Bub" Bridger (15 July 1924 – 8 December 2009) was a New Zealand poet and short story writer and actor, who often performed her own work and drew inspiration from her Māori, Irish and English ancestry. Early life Bridger was born in Napier, New Zealand, of Ngāti Kahungunu and Irish descent. She grew up in Napier during the depression years. She attended several primary schools in the region followed by Napier Intermediate, and then one year at Napier Girls' High School. She left school after the third form and found work in Napier in local factories. In 1942, Bridger moved with her father to Wellington and worked in the Social Security Department. She married and had four children, but the marriage failed and she raised the children on her own. Writing Bridger was interested in writing from an early age. During her school years, she excelled in reading and writing. After her children had grown up, at the age of 50 she enrolled in a creative writing course ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ngakawau
Hector and Ngakawau are two lightly populated settlements located at the mouth of the Ngakawau River in the West Coast region of New Zealand. Both settlements are situated on State Highway 67 between Westport and Karamea. Despite a low population, many of the workers at New Zealand's largest open-cut coal mine at Stockton choose to live at these places and shuttles frequently operate between the two places. Hector Hector sits on the northern side of the Ngakawau River's mouth, and is the more populous of the two settlements. Hector has adopted the endangered Hector's dolphin as a town icon and is involved in Department of Conservation projects to protect the dolphin. The dolphins often play just offshore from Hector and attract visitors. Another local attraction is a country music museum. Ngakawau Ngakawau, the more economically important of the two settlements, stands on the southern side of the mouth of the Ngakawau River. Ngakawau serves as the terminus of the Ngakawau Br ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Millerton, New Zealand
Millerton is a small settlement in the northwestern South Island of New Zealand in the West Coast region. It is in the Papahaua Ranges, around 33 kilometres by road north of Westport, via SH67 from Westport to Karamea. The history of Millerton bears some resemblance to that of Denniston, being a town that lived from and for the coal that was mined in the Ranges. Millerton has a population of approx 30-40. It was classified like Denniston as a ghost town in the 1970s but has had a resident population for several decades. It is possibly New Zealand's only populated hilltop township. Mining and incline Despite its elevation of 300 metres being considerably lower than that of Denniston (600 metres), the steep grade between the coastline and Millerton still meant that the coal was difficult to get down from the hilltop to the coastal railway near sea level. The Westport Coal Company built the Millerton Incline in 1891 and the Millerton Mine began production in 1896. Mining ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
State Highway 67 (New Zealand)
State Highway 67 (SH 67) is a New Zealand state highway located in the northern parts of the South Island of New Zealand. It is 51.2 km long usually on the coast and connects SH 6 with the settlement of Mokihinui. It used to be 96 kilometres long and ran the entire length of the road from Westport to Karamea The highway and its spur serves the large West Coast town of Westport and lies entirely within the Buller District. Route SH 67 starts at SH 6 and proceeds in a northerly direction until the intersection with SH 67A. There the road turns right and crosses the Buller River to enter the township of Westport. Once in the CBD, the highway turns right and proceeds in an easterly direction until it crosses the Orowaiti River. The road passes through alternating areas of farmland and temperate rainforest vegetation as it passes the settlements of Waimangaroa (turn right here for Denniston), Granity (turn right here for Millerton, Stockton and Stockton Mine), N ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stillwater–Ngākawau Line
The Stillwater Ngākawau Line (SNL), formerly the Stillwater–Westport Line (SWL) and the Seddonville Branch, Ngakawau Branch, is a secondary main line, part of New Zealand's Rail transport in New Zealand, national rail network. It runs between Stillwater, West Coast, Stillwater and Hector and Ngakawau, New Zealand, Ngakawau via Westport, New Zealand, Westport on the West Coast, New Zealand, West Coast of the South Island. It was one of the longest construction projects in New Zealand's history, with its first section opened in and the full line completed . Construction A railway link from Greymouth, New Zealand, Greymouth east to Brunner, New Zealand, Brunner was opened in 1876, but work on a link from this point to Westport became delayed for ten years by disputes over the best route to link the West Coast with Nelson, New Zealand, Nelson and Canterbury, New Zealand, Canterbury. Ultimately, the New Zealand Midland Railway Company (NZMRC) was formed to construct the rout ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
West Coast, New Zealand
The West Coast ( mi, Te Tai Poutini, lit=The Coast of Poutini, the Taniwha) is a regions of New Zealand, region of New Zealand on the west coast of the South Island that is administered by the West Coast Regional Council, and is known co-officially as Te Tai Poutini. It comprises the Territorial authorities of New Zealand, territorial authorities of Buller District, Grey District and Westland District. The principal towns are Westport, New Zealand, Westport, Greymouth and Hokitika. The region, one of the more remote areas of the country, is also the most sparsely populated. With a population of just 32,000 people, Te Tai Poutini is the least populous region in New Zealand, and it is the only region where the population is declining. The region has a rich and important history. The land itself is ancient, stretching back to the Carboniferous period; this is evident by the amount of carboniferous materials naturally found there, especially coal. First settled by Ngāi Tahu, Kāi T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Westport, New Zealand
Westport ( mi, Kawatiri) is a town in the West Coast region of the South Island of New Zealand. Established in 1861, it is the oldest European settlement on the West Coast. Originally named Buller, it is on the right bank and at the mouth of the Buller River, close by the prominent headland of Cape Foulwind. It is connected via State Highway 6 with Greymouth Greymouth () (Māori: ''Māwhera'') is the largest town in the West Coast region in the South Island of New Zealand, and the seat of the Grey District Council. The population of the whole Grey District is , which accounts for % of the West Coas ..., to the south, and with Nelson, New Zealand, Nelson in the northeast, via the Buller Gorge. The population of the Westport urban area was as of . The Buller District had a population of . Name The Māori language name for the river and the region is ''Kawatiri,'' meaning deep and swift. The town is thought to have been named after Westport, County Mayo in Ireland, alth ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tasman Sea
The Tasman Sea (Māori: ''Te Tai-o-Rēhua'', ) is a marginal sea of the South Pacific Ocean, situated between Australia and New Zealand. It measures about across and about from north to south. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman, who in 1642 was the first known person to cross it. British explorer Lieutenant James Cook later extensively navigated the Tasman Sea in the 1770s during his three voyages of exploration. The Tasman Sea is informally referred to in both Australian and New Zealand English as the Ditch; for example, "crossing the Ditch" means travelling to Australia from New Zealand, or vice versa. The diminutive term "the Ditch" used for the Tasman Sea is comparable to referring to the North Atlantic Ocean as "the Pond". Climate The south of the sea is passed over by depressions going from west to east. The northern limit of these westerly winds is near to 40°S. During the southern winter, from April to October, the northern branch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dead plant matter decays into peat and is converted into coal by the heat and pressure of deep burial over millions of years. Vast deposits of coal originate in former wetlands called coal forests that covered much of the Earth's tropical land areas during the late Carboniferous ( Pennsylvanian) and Permian times. Many significant coal deposits are younger than this and originate from the Mesozoic and Cenozoic eras. Coal is used primarily as a fuel. While coal has been known and used for thousands of years, its usage was limited until the Industrial Revolution. With the invention of the steam engine, coal consumption increased. In 2020, coal supplied about a quarter of the world's primary energy and over a third of its electricity. Some iron ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic viability of investing in the equipment, labor, and energy required to extract, refine and transport the materials found at the mine to manufacturers who can use the material. Ores recovered by mining include metals, coal, oil shale, gemstones, limestone, chalk, dimension stone, rock salt, potash, gravel, and clay. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agricultural processes, or feasibly created artificially in a laboratory or factory. Mining in a wider sense includes extraction of any non-renewable resource such as petroleum, natural gas, or even water. Modern mining processes involve prospecting for ore bodies, analysis of the profit potential of a proposed mine, extraction of the desired materials, an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
