Maruia
Encyclopedia
Maruia is a locality in the West Coast
West Coast, New Zealand
The West Coast is one of the administrative regions of New Zealand, located on the west coast of the South Island, and is one of the more remote and most sparsely populated areas of the country. It is made up of three districts: Buller, Grey and Westland...

 region of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

. The Shenandoah Highway
Shenandoah Highway
State Highway 65 is a New Zealand State Highway in the South Island. It is 71 km long and runs south to north down the Maruia river valley from SH 7 at Springs Junction, 15 km west of the main divide at the Lewis Pass, to SH 6 in the Buller Gorge, 11 km west of Murchison...

 (State Highway 65) passes through it. Murchison
Murchison, New Zealand
Murchison is a town in the Tasman Region of the South Island of New Zealand. It is near the western end of the "Four Rivers Plain", at the confluence of the Buller River and the Matakitaki River...

 is 65 km north, the Lewis Pass
Lewis Pass
Lewis Pass is a mountain pass in the South Island of New Zealand.The northernmost of the three main passes across the Southern Alps, it is higher than the Haast Pass, but slightly lower than Arthur's Pass...

 is 39 km to the south-east, and Reefton is 63 km west by road. The Maruia River
Maruia River
The Maruia River is located in the northwestern South Island of New Zealand. It is a major tributary of the Buller River, flowing for 80 kilometres before joining the larger river eight kilometres to the west of Murchison....

 flows past to the west.

The population of Maruia and its surrounds was 174 in the 2006 Census
New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings
The New Zealand government department Statistics New Zealand conducts a census of population and dwellings every five years. The census scheduled for 2011 was cancelled due to circumstances surrounding the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake, however, and legislation introduced to hold the next...

, an increase of 12 from 2001.

The principal activity is dairy farming. The community celebrated 100 years of settlement in the Maruia Valley in 2005. The Maruia Valley inspired the environmental lobby group, the Maruia Society (later changing its name to the Ecologic Foundation) and the Maruia Mail Order Catalogue, organised by the New Zealand Nature Company.

Education

Maruia School is a coeducational full primary (years 1-8) school with a decile rating
Socio-Economic Decile
Decile, Socio-Economic Decile or Socio-Economic Decile Band is a widely used measure in education in New Zealand used to target funding and support to more needy schools....

of 9 and a roll of 14. The school was founded in 1926.
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