According to B.C. Stats, Prince Rupert’s population in 2011 was estimated to be 12,935 — a drop of 0.4% from 2010, when the population was estimated to be 12,990. We were making our way up to 13,000 and then, well, we dropped down 55 people. Still, our estimated population for 2011 was higher than 2007 (12,907) and 2008 (12,832), but lower than 2006 (13,072).
We should probably emphasize that these are estimates, which calculate the population from July 1 to June 30 (e.g. the most recent estimate is from July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2011). How are these estimates made? We’ll let the good folks at B.C. Stats explain it themselves:
B.C. Stats produces sub-provincial population estimates using the Generalized Estimation System on an annual basis. This regression model uses symptomatic indicators like health registrations and residential hydro hook-ups to gauge population growth from one year to the next.
~B.C. Stats, Infoline Report, January 20, 2012, p.3
We’ll get a more accurate picture of our population once the national census results for 2011 are released on February 8. Until then, we’ve used the data from B.C. Stats to create a graph showing populations over the last six years at randomly-selected places in the North.
Source: B.C. Stats.