The West Kootenay isn’t getting any younger.
Demographic data released by Statistics Canada on Wednesday as part of the 2021 Census shows the region’s residents are creeping up in age.
The Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK), which includes Nelson, Castlegar and Creston, has an average age of 46.6 years old. That’s up slightly from the average of 45.8 years reported in the 2016 Census.
Residents of the Regional District of Kootenay Boundary (RDKB), which includes Trail and Grand Forks, remained 47 years.
The region skews older than both the national average of 41.9 years and the B.C. average of 43.1 years.
Grand Forks and Creston, however, each saw slight drops in average age. Creston is the oldest Kootenay municipality with a population over 4,000, but saw its age get slightly younger since 2016 by moving from 52.2 years old to 51.7. Grand Forks, meanwhile, fell from 50.4 years to 48.7.
Nelson remained the youngest population in the West Kootenay with an average age of 43, up slightly from 42.5 years in 2016.
There were also 20 centenarians living in the West Kootenay in 2021, with 15 residing in the RDCK.
While the West Kootenay may have an older population, it also follows a national trend with one in five Canadians now aged 65 or older. The population of seniors aged 85 and older grew in Canada by 12 per cent since 2016.
Here’s how the regional data breaks down:
Nelson (population: 11,106)
Average age: 43 (up from 42.5 in 2016)
Total residents ages 0-14: 1,545
Ages 15-64: 7,275
Ages 65-plus: 2,285 (20.6 per cent of the population, up 1.9 per cent 2016)
Ages 85-plus: 335
Castlegar (population: 8,338)
Average age: 45 (up from 44.9 in 2016)
Total residents ages 0-14: 1,225
Ages 15-64: 5,040
Ages 65-plus: 2,070 (24.8 per cent of the population, up 1.6 per cent from 2016)
Ages 85-plus: 250
Trail (population: 7,920)
Average age: 47.1 (no change from 2016)
Total residents ages 0-14: 1,025
Ages 15-64: 4,690
Ages 65-plus: 2,205 (27.8 per cent of the population, up one per cent from 2016)
Ages 85-plus: 315
Creston (population: 5,583)
Average age: 51.7 (down from 52.2 in 2016)
Total residents ages 0-14: 665
Ages 15-64: 2,770
Ages 65-plus: 2,150 (38.5 per cent of the population, up1.6 per cent from 2016)
Ages 85-plus: 345
Grand Forks (population: 4,112)
Average age: 48.7 (down 1.7 per cent from 2016)
Total residents ages0-14: 510
Ages 15-64: 2,350
Ages 65-plus: 1,240 (30 per cent of the population, down 3.3 per cent from 2016)
Ages 85-plus: 200
RDCK (population 62,509)
Average age: 46.6 (up 0.8 per cent from 2016)
Total residents ages 0-14: 8,520
Ages 15-64: 37,445
Ages 65-plus: 16,535 (26.5 per cent of the population, up three per cent from 2016)
Ages 85-plus: 1,585
RDKB (population 33,152)
Average age: 47.4 (up 0.4 per cent from 2016)
Total residents ages 0-14: 4,350
Ages 15-64: 19,605
Ages 65-plus: 9,195 (27.7 per cent of the population, up 2.3 per cent from 2016)
Ages 85-plus: 940
READ MORE:
• 2021 census shows number of seniors over 85 expected to triple in next 25 years
• 2021 Census: Nelson’s population now more than 11,000
• New census data offers snapshot of Canada’s transgender population for first time
• Who cares for the caregiver? A Castlegar senior’s struggle to care for her husband
@tyler_harper | tyler.harper@nelsonstar.com
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