Population

The catchment of the River Calder covers an area of extremely uneven population distribution. The river and its tributaries flow through some major urban areas, notably Halifax, Huddersfield, Dewsbury and Wakefield. Part of the drainage basin lies within the Bradford district. Surrounding these larger settlements are smaller industrial towns and villages. To the west the district extends onto open moorland where population density is low. Elsewhere the area consists of open agricultural land. The population of West Yorkshire has grown continuously since 1801 but in recent years the rate of growth has declined and it is expected that the population will actually decline by the year 2011.