CHAPTER 3 POPULATION AND SETTLEMENT Population and Settlement 3. POPULATION AND SETTLEMENT Main Sections in this Chapter include: 1. North Tipperary in Context 2. Housing Strategy 3. Current and Projected Population 4. County Settlement Pattern 5. County Settlement Strategy 6. Preferred Settlement Strategy 7. Existing Development Plans and Local Area Plans 8. Social Inclusion 3.1 North Tipperary in Context rivers such as the Nenagh, Ollatrim and Ballintotty Rivers. The size of County Tipperary led to it being split into two ‘Ridings’ in 1838. The county is largely underlain by While many of the inhabitants of limestone with the higher terrain of the Tipperary do not readily differentiate County composed of geological deposits between North and South Tipperary, as it dating from Silurian and Devonian is culturally identified as one county, they periods. Over the centuries the valleys are two separate counties for the purpose and hills formed into rich peatlands, which of local government. All references to occupy approximately 28,333 hectares ‘County’ in this Plan will, therefore, be to (70,000 acres) or 13% of the total area of North Tipperary. the County. North Tipperary is an inland county in the The Motorways and National Primary mid-west/midlands of Ireland and covers Roads: M8 (Dublin to Cork) and N7/M7 an area of 202,430 ha or 500,000 acres (in (Dublin to Limerick) traverse the County, extent). It is also situated in the Mid West as do the National Secondary Routes the Region of the County for the Regional N62 (Roscrea to Thurles), the N65 Planning Guidelines and Economic (Borrisokane to Portumna), the N75 Strategy and the Midlands Region for the (Thurles to Turnpike) and the N52 (Birr to Waste Management Plan. Nenagh). Two rail lines traverse the county; the Cork-Dublin line serving There are three Town Councils, each with Thurles and Templemore, and the single- their own statutory Development Plan. A line railway from Limerick and connecting statutory Local Area Plan was adopted for to the Cork-Dublin line serves Nenagh, the town of Roscrea in 2006, for the town Cloughjordan, Roscrea and Ballybrophy of Newport in 2004, Holycross in 2006, carrying passengers and freight. for the Ballycurrane area of Thurles in 2007 and for the Western Area of the 3.2 Housing Strategy County in 2006. The Council updated its Housing Strategy The River Suir begins to the north of in 2009. This was as a result of the Templemore and flows through the changes in economic circumstances and so County in a south to south-easterly as to provide up-to-date data for the direction. The western boundary of the review of the County Development Plan. county is dominated by Lough Derg. The The figures contained within the Housing western side of the County comprises of Strategy feed into and direct the policies, the Nenagh plain, which is fringed by the objections and predictions of the Plan. Silvermines Mountains to the south, the Arra mountains to the southwest and the Devil’s Bit to the east, and is formed by North Tipperary County Development Plan 2010-2016 21 Population and Settlement 3.3 Current and Projected The 2006 total for the population of the Population County is 66,023 persons. This is an increase of 5,013 or 8.2% increase from The Census 2006 shows that population the 2002 Census figure of 61,010. figures for Ireland increased by 8.2% from 2002 to 2006, resulting in a total Table 3.1 indicates the change in population of 4,239,848 in the Country population for the County from 1986 to compared to 3,917,203 persons in 2002, 2006. representing an increase of 322,645 persons or 8.2% in six years. This rate of Figure 3.3 provides a graphic presentation population growth was the highest on of the change in population of the County record and as resulted from both natural since 1986. increase and significant net inward migration. The average annual rate of Table 3.1: County Population at Census Periods population increase from 2002 to 2006 1986 – 2006 was 1.64% compared with 1.3% between 1996 to 2002 and 0.6% for the 1991-1996 Year Population % Change period. 1986 59,522 +0.1 The Mid West Region had a total 1991 57,854 -1.02 population of 361,028 in 2006 up from 1996 58,021 +0.3 339,591, an increase of 21,437 or 5.8%. 61,010 +5.3 The County therefore accounts for 18.28% 2002 of the mid-west regional population (an 2006 66,023 +8.2% increase from 17.98% in 2002) and 1.55% of the national population unchanged from Figure 3.3: Change in County Population over 2002 (See Figures 3.1 and 3.2). Census Periods 1986 – 2006 Figure 3.1: Mid-West Region v State Change in County Population (1986-2006) Population 67,000 Population of Mid-West Region 66,000 65,000 compared with the State 64,000 63,000 8.5% 62,000 61,000 Population 60,000 59,000 58,000 91.5% 57,000 Year 1981 1986 1991 1996 2001 2006 2011 Mid-West Region Ireland This growth of 8.2% since the last Census Figure 3.2: North Tipperary v Mid-West in 2002 is higher than the regional average Region of 5.8%, and the same as the national Population of North Tipperary figure of 8.2%, as shown in Figure 3.4. compared with Mid-West Region This overall growth pattern is significant – the 2004 County Development Plan 18.28% projected an increase in population to 64,765 persons or 6.05%. The unprecedented performance of the national 81.72% economy over the last Plan period resulted in an unforeseen upswing in financial, Tipperary Mid-West Region social and development trends. This resulted in an actual population growth of North Tipperary County Development Plan 2010-2016 22 Population and Settlement 8.2% to 2006, demonstrating how difficult population living in rural areas in 2006. it is to accurately predict population This compares to a National figure of change over a 6-year period. 39.3% in rural areas. Figure 3.4: % Growth in Population 3.3.1 Local Population Trends from 2002-2006 for the County, Region Information on population changes is and State important in order to be able to plan for the amount of land needed for housing, industry and infrastructure. It is also Tipperary Mid West Region Ireland important to see where growth has taken place and how some areas have changed in 9 relation to others. “Problem areas” or areas 8 of population decline can be identified, 7 and measures can be taken to reddress 6 decline and lack of growth. 5 A disturbing trend has emerged over the 4 period of the last two County Percentage 3 Development Plans, in that certain key 2 settlement areas in the County have 1 experienced declining populations, 0 including the Urban area of Thurles, and Region some of the larger rural settlements such as Toomevara, Cloughjordan, Littleton, Table 3.2 Population Distribution in North Tipperary Puckaun and Templetuohy. Some of the Settlement ‘96 % 02 % ‘06 % rural areas in the County have also Thurles TC 6603 11.3 6852 11.23 6831 10.34 suffered steady decline during this period, Environs of 336 0.58 573 0.94 851 1.28 including the DEDs of Ballycahill, Thurles Ballymurreen, Foilnamon, Glenkeen, Nenagh TC 5645 9.73 6121 10.03 7415 11.23 Redwood, Lackagh, Templederry, and Environs of 268 0.46 333 0.55 336 0.33 Nenagh Upperchurch. Figure 3.5 shows the DEDs Roscrea 4170 7.19 4578 7.50 4910 7.43 that experienced population decline Templemore 2115 3.65 2159 3.54 2255 3.41 between 1996-2002, while Figure 3.6 TC shows DEDs in decline in the period 2002- Environs of 129 0.22 111 0.18 129 0.19 2006. Templemore Total Towns 18533 31.9 19710 32.3 21411 32.4 The 2002 to 2006 period saw significant Total Town 733 1.26 1017 1.67 1316 1.99 Environs increases in the populations of a number of key settlements in North Tipperary, with Total Small 6063 10.4 8247 13.52 8,728 12.7 Nenagh Town and Environs increasing by Settlements 21.1%, Ballina increasing by 57% and Newport by 45%. The impact of the Settlement 24596 42.4 27957 45.8 30,139 45.6 Gateway of Limerick/Shannon can be Total Rural Total 33425 57.6 33396 54.2 35,884 54.4 clearly seen in the population growth in these settlements. The Council is anxious North 58021 61010 66023 to ensure that these settlements do not Tipperary become dormitory towns for the Total Limerick/Shannon Gateway, and that the south west of the County does not Table 3.2 shows the changes in population dominate in terms of investment and in urban and rural areas between 1996 and resources, due to the increasing 2006. It demonstrates that the urban / rural population, to the detriment of the division of population in North Tipperary remainder of the County. has remained almost the same between 2002 and 2006 with 54.4% of the North Tipperary County Development Plan 2010-2016 23 Population and Settlement Figure 3.5 - % Population Change ’96-‘02 North Tipperary County Development Plan 2010-2016 24 Population and Settlement Figure 3.6 - % Population Change 2002-2006 North Tipperary County Development Plan 2010-2016 25 Population and Settlement 3.3.2 Household Size The 2004 County Development Plan The performance of the national economy forecasted the following increases in over recent years has also had an impact population during the period of the plan.