Prestonville is a suburb and industrial area in the New Zealand city of

Invercargill Invercargill ( , ) is the southernmost and westernmost list of cities in New Zealand, city in New Zealand, and one of the Southernmost settlements, southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland Region, Southlan ...

. The area is low-lying and at risk from flooding and

sea level rise The sea level has been rising from the end of the last ice age, which was around 20,000 years ago. Between 1901 and 2018, the average sea level rose by , with an increase of per year since the 1970s. This was faster than the sea level had e ...

. In 1984, Waihopai River burst its banks, inundating Prestonville "like a tidal wave". It caused major flooding in Prestonville and other suburbs, leading to property damage, homelessness and job losses. Flood banks were installed to prevent further floods. In the 1980s, a 24-hour aluminium processing plant was established in Prestonville to support the

Tiwai Point Aluminium Smelter The Tiwai Point Aluminium Smelter is an Aluminium smelting, aluminium smelter owned by Rio Tinto (corporation), Rio Tinto Group, via a joint venture called New Zealand Aluminium Smelters (NZAS) Limited. The facility, New Zealand's only aluminiu ...

. Locals successfully campaigned to limit the site's operating hours to 6am to 10pm due to the loud noise it created. The factory closed in 1994. In 2018, Fire and Emergency New Zealand investigated a series of suspicious fires in Prestonville and other parts of the city.

Demographics

Prestonville covers and is part of the wider Prestonville-Grasmere statistical area. Prestonville had a population of 27 at the

2018 New Zealand census The 2018 New Zealand census, which took place on Tuesday 6 March 2018, was the thirty-fourth national census in New Zealand. The population of New Zealand was counted as 4,699,755 – an increase of 457,707 (10.79%) over the 2013 census. Resu ...

, a decrease of 12 people (−30.8%) since the 2013 census, and unchanged since the 2006 census. There were 15 households, comprising 12 males and 18 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.67 males per female. The median age was 45.4 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 3 people (11.1%) aged under 15 years, 6 (22.2%) aged 15 to 29, 12 (44.4%) aged 30 to 64, and 9 (33.3%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 88.9% European/

Pākehā ''Pākehā'' (or ''Pakeha''; ; ) is a Māori language, Māori-language word used in English, particularly in New Zealand. It generally means a non-Polynesians, Polynesian New Zealanders, New Zealander or more specifically a European New Zeala ...

, 22.2%

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

, 11.1% Pasifika, and 11.1% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 44.4% had no religion, and 44.4% were

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

. Of those at least 15 years old, none had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 9 (37.5%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $26,800, compared with $31,800 nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 9 (37.5%) people were employed full-time, 3 (12.5%) were part-time, and 3 (12.5%) were unemployed.

References

{{Invercargill Suburbs of Invercargill