TAUPO DISTRICT - OVERVIEW
The Taupo District, in the heart of New Zealand's North Island, offers unique opportunities to mix business with lifestyle: An opportunity that more and more innovators, entrepreneurs, and those seeking greater balance in their lives are pursuing, and are able to pursue thanks to advances in communication technology.
Lake Taupo is known as The Great Lake, with very good reason. It's the largest in New Zealand, one of the largest in the southern hemisphere, and renowned worldwide as a trout fishing Mecca. In the summertime, tourists flock to Taupo to enjoy recreational activities that include hiking, mountain biking, rafting, kayaking, skydiving, gliding, water skiing, sailing, jet boating, camping . . . and a whole lot more. In winter, the region comes to life with hunting, fishing and skiing, with many skiers taking advantage of thermal hot springs to relax after a vigorous day on the slopes.
The district embraces lakes and waterways, forests and farmlands, the city of Taupo on the northern shores of the lake, the town of Turangi at the southern end, and several smaller communities such as Mangakino that offer employment and entrepreneurial opportunities along with a relaxed quality of life and easy access to the adventure playground of New Zealand's North Island. The total population of the Taupo District as at June 2002 was 32,800.
Lake Taupo is one of New Zealand's largest visitor destinations, attracting more than 726,000 overnight visitors annually. Direct and downstream spending amounts to $220,000,000, supporting 3000 jobs in the district - 1 in 3 of the total jobs.
In addition to tourism, economic development in the Taupo district is focused on forestry and wood processing, agriculture and horticulture, maori economic development, energy, education. A key focus is on expanding business and investment opportunities in the Taupo District in each of these sectors.
Forestry covers 30% of the district's entire land area and provides employment for thousands of people in new plantings, silviculture, logging and clearing, trucking, milling, processing and an extensive range of support services
Agriculture is also important to the district. Like forestry, 30% of the total land area is devoted to agriculture, with a variety of uses including sheep & cattle, deer, horses, poultry, and a growing diversity of horticultural enterprises.
Energy is also an important sector, with the primary forms of generation in the district being hydroelectric and geothermal. Surplus heat from geothermal energy generation is being put to some innovative new uses, including hot houses, timber drying and prawn farming.
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For more information: Destination Lake Taupo
Lake Taupo Water Quality
Tongariro National Park
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