Delta (municipality, British Columbia)

Delta (municipality, British Columbia), district municipality in southwestern British Columbia, Canada. Delta is located on a peninsula 20 km (12 mi) south of Vancouver. It is bounded by the Fraser River to the north and Boundary Bay to the south. Delta is divided into three main urban centers: North Delta, Ladner, and Tsawwassen. North Delta is the largest of the three communities. The town of Ladner is the oldest and serves as the center of Delta’s municipal government. Tsawwassen, with its beaches, provides excellent opportunities for fishing and recreation. The Delta area is served by Boundary Bay Airport and Vancouver International Airport. Ferries depart from the Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal to connect the Greater Vancouver area, of which Delta is a part, to Vancouver Island.

Delta’s primary industries have traditionally been agriculture and fishing. Most of Delta remains rural land or parkland. Much of its farmland lies within the Agricultural Land Reserve, lands reserved for agricultural use under British Columbia’s Agricultural Land Commission Act. Important agricultural industries include berry growing, greenhouse operations, dairy farming, and field crop operations. Manufactures include electronics, aerospace, construction, and food products. Retail and social services are also important to the economy. Delta’s points of interest include the George C. Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary and Deas Island and Boundary Bay regional parks—all key bird-watching areas. The Delta Nature Reserve, a protected portion of Burns Bog, the area’s major wetlands, also provides an opportunity to observe plants and wildlife.

Prior to the arrival of the first European settlers in the late 1850s, the Coast Salish inhabited the Delta area. They lived in settlements above high tide level in North Delta and along the western beaches. The lowlands of the Ladner area were marshy, often flooded, and were difficult to settle. Delta did not begin to develop as a community until 1868, when the brothers Thomas and William Ladner, attracted by the area’s agricultural potential, set up farms. Initial settlement consisted of scattered farms. Fish and produce were shipped by river from the steamship dock at Ladner’s Landing, which became a hub for Delta’s farming and fishing community. Delta incorporated as a municipality in 1879. After flooding in 1891 and 1895, residents began a diking and drainage project that successfully alleviated flooding and made the Delta lowlands suitable for agriculture. As better transportation links to Vancouver were built, including the George Massey Tunnel in 1959 and the Alex Fraser Bridge in 1986, Delta also developed as an industrial and suburban area.

Delta covers a land area of 168.5 sq km (65.1 sq mi). Population 88,978 (1991); 96,950 (2001).