Why 80% of New Zealand is Empty

New Zealand's Population Distribution

This video explores the population distribution of New Zealand, a country with a similar climate and size to the United Kingdom but with significantly fewer people. The video examines why this is the case and how the population is distributed across the two main islands.

New Zealand's Land Area

• Nearly 80% of New Zealand's land area is uninhabited by humans.

• The South Island and North Island are respectively the 12th and 14th largest islands in the world.

• New Zealand shares an almost identical climate with similar temperatures all throughout the year and similar levels of rainfall as Western Europe, Vancouver, Mexico City, Lima, Cusco, Johannesburg, and Southeastern Australia.

Population Density Comparison

• Despite having an overall climate that is nearly identical to the United Kingdom and being larger in size, New Zealand has a much lower population density than many other countries.

• The UK has a population density that is 15 times higher than that of New Zealand.

North vs South Island Population Distribution

• More than three-quarters of New Zealand's population live on the North Island while less than a quarter live on the South Island.

• Almost half of all North Islanders live around Auckland which is strategically located along an isthmus with good natural harbors to the north and south.

• Four out of five of New Zealand's largest cities are located on the North Island.

New Zealand's Isolation and History

This section discusses how New Zealand's extreme isolation from the rest of the world has affected its history.

Discovery and Settlement

• New Zealand was discovered by Polynesian explorers in the 13th century.

• The initial settlers developed a unique culture, known as the Maori, and remained isolated until the mid-17th century when a Dutch sailor visited.

• Captain Cook visited in 1769, marking sustained European contact with the islands.

Population Growth

• New Zealand's human population was zero until recently compared to other islands around the world that have been settled for tens of thousands of years.

• The Maori population numbered around 200,000 individuals after five centuries of living there by the time British arrived.

• Due to various factors like European-introduced diseases, warfare between colonizers and indigenous Maori, and forced introduction of a new legal system, their population began to crash significantly.

Colonization

• By 1890, around 500,000 white European colonists had arrived on the islands and mostly replaced them.

• Most new European settlers initially set up shop on South Island because North Island was more inhabited by indigenous Maori.

• It wouldn't be until the 20th century that North Island would recover its larger share of population.

The Southern Alps

This section discusses the formation of the Southern Alps, its size and height, and how it affects development in New Zealand.

Formation of the Southern Alps

• The Pacific Plate is subducting beneath the Northwest moving Australian plate.

• This collision has thrust up 20 kilometers worth of rocks to form the Southern Alps running along nearly the entire length of the whole South Island.

Size and Height of the Southern Alps

• There are 18 peaks in this range that exceed 3,000 meters in elevation.

• The tallest peak stands at more than 3,700 meters which is nearly as high as Mount Fuji in Japan.

• These mountains tower over anything that can be found over in Australia.

Impact on Development

• Building anything around or through these mountains is more expensive and labor-intensive than it is on flatter lands.

• The mountains cast a deep rain shadow across the flat plains of the island's eastern half that turns them generally into arid plains.

• Land on the Eastern side of the island is generally flatter and easier to develop but receives too little rainfall to make growing crops a sustainable venture.

North Island vs South Island

This section compares and contrasts North Island with South Island based on their geography, climate, volcanoes, and population.

Geography

South Island

• It extends for about 500 kilometers across the whole island and carves out only a narrow strip of land to their West that is actually exposed to prevailing westerly winds blowing across The Tasman Sea.

• The Western side of the island is extremely rugged with far less available flat space and probably too much rain.

North Island

• It is a lot less mountainous than the South Island.

• There's more available flat land up there that's easier to develop.

Climate

South Island

• Moist air blowing with the prevailing winds will almost immediately hit the Southern Alps which will form clouds that dump a torrential amount of rainfall all across the narrow Western Coastal strip.

• As a result, not only do the mountains on the south island take up a lot of available space away from development but they cast a deep rain shadow across the flat Plains of the Island's eastern half that turns them generally into arid Plains.

North Island

• Rainfall across the north island is more evenly distributed and predictable than in South Island since there aren't as many big mountains to disrupt weather patterns.

• Temperatures on average are warmer on North Island than further down in South closer to pole due to its location closer to Equator.

Volcanoes

South Island

• No active volcanoes currently exist on this island.

North Island

• Active volcanoes still exist on this island, and there have been a few small eruptions out of them from time to time over several decades which have produced limited amounts of fertile volcanic soils on the island.

Population

• After gold ran out in South Island and violence ended in North, it was only really a matter of time before North ended up with more than three-fourths of total population.

• Nonetheless, it's not like North possesses huge ability to host many people either.

New Zealand's Agricultural Industry

This section discusses how New Zealand's geography and climate have shaped its agricultural industry, which is primarily focused on animal agriculture.

Limited Crop Cultivation

• Due to the country's mountainous terrain, dormant volcanoes, arid planes, and weird rainfall patterns, less than 2% of New Zealand's land mass is suitable for crop cultivation.

• As a result, the vast majority of New Zealand's agricultural industry is focused on animal agriculture.

Animal Agriculture Dominates

• With plentiful grasses and a temperate climate, New Zealand is well-suited for grazing and ranching.

• The country has built its entire agricultural industry off of animals instead of crops.

• Sheep are particularly prevalent in New Zealand; there are nearly 27 million sheep on the islands today in comparison to just 5.1 million humans.

• Dairy products from cows make up their largest single export. In fact, New Zealand produces so much food through animal agriculture that they produce enough to feed around 40 million people a year or around eight times their own population.

Geographic Limitations

• Because of its limited ability to grow crops and remoteness from major consumer markets like Europe, East Asia, and North America, animal agriculture is really the only competitive export that geography actually grants New Zealand.

• Animal agriculture takes up over half of New Zealand's total available land and limits the ability for people to spread out and settle across the islands even further.

Birth Rates and Immigration

• New Zealand's birth rates have dropped beneath the natural replacement level, but they haven't been there for as long as they have been in other countries.

• Unlike Japan and South Korea, New Zealand has a very long history of immigration to the islands from abroad.

Immigration and Population Growth in New Zealand

This section discusses the history of immigration in New Zealand, how it has contributed to population growth, and the recent increase in immigration from non-European countries.

History of Immigration in New Zealand

• Most of New Zealand's population growth has historically come from immigrants.

• Racist policies were put into place after British mass migration to New Zealand, which restricted the numbers of non-white immigrants allowed to come to the islands.

• It took centuries for New Zealand to hit one million people due to these policies.

• The racist policies were only relaxed after World War II, leading to an increase in immigration.

Recent Increase in Immigration

• Beginning in 2008, the New Zealand government set a target of 45,000 new immigrants per year.

• Between 2013 and 2018 alone, 270,000 new immigrants came to New Zealand from abroad.

• Most immigrants today come from Asia instead of Europe, primarily from China, India, and the Philippines.

Population Growth and Housing Issues

• Immigrants are settling around Auckland due to its large size and flight connections.

• More than half of all population growth between 1996 and 2016 took place exclusively around Auckland region.

• The average house price in Auckland is over $1.1 million USD while the average annual salary remains just $44k USD making it one of the least affordable cities for homeownership.

Conclusion: Natural Limitations on Population Growth in New Zealand

This section concludes the video by discussing how New Zealand's quotas on immigration are rooted in logical and scientific thinking, given the natural limitations of the islands.

• New Zealand's quotas on immigration are based on an understanding of the natural limitations that their islands provide.

• Science and math serve as primary tools to help us understand this complicated reality.

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Conclusion

In this section, the speaker concludes the video by thanking viewers for watching and offering a discount code for an annual premium subscription to Brilliant.org.

Final thoughts

• Viewers are thanked for watching the video.

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