Wiartonin South Bruce Peninsula, Ontario

Measured against local pay, Wiarton costs more to live in than 84% of Canadian towns

16% of households spent 30% or more of their income on shelter, below both Ontario’s towns (22%) and Canadian towns (18%). Home ownership covers 83% of households.

Household incomes in Wiarton are lower than in 62% of Canadian towns

93% of commuters drove, above both Ontario’s towns (88%) and Canadian towns (89%). A trip to work takes 28 min on average.

Wiarton’s Violent Crime Severity Index, 52, runs below Ontario’s towns and Canadian towns

Thefts, break-ins and damage came to 16.3 per 1,000 residents a year, below both Ontario’s towns (30.5) and Canadian towns (31.2). Police recorded 11.1 violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, above Ontario’s towns (10.5) but below Canadian towns (12).

Summers stay cool in Wiarton: July afternoons reach 24.3°C, below Ontario’s towns and Canadian towns

January is the snowiest month, with 111 cm on average. Some 385 cm of snow falls in a typical year, above Ontario’s towns (146 cm) and Canadian towns (141 cm) alike. The coldest nights come in January, when Wiarton averages a low of −9.9°C. The frost-free season runs from 12 May to 10 October, 151 days.

Visible minorities make up less of Wiarton than of Ontario’s towns or Canadian towns: 2%

3.4% of residents have an Indigenous identity, above both Ontario’s towns (1.6%) and Canadian towns (2.8%). Immigrants make up 7.3% of residents, close to Ontario’s towns (7.6%) and above Canadian towns (6.4%).

Wiarton is on Canada’s flood inventory: 2 listed, led by Town of Saugeen Shores

Shaking is less of a worry than in most places, at $0.013 a year per $1,000 of building value ($0.030 typical). More homes than usual carry radon here, 11% over the guideline where the typical town has 6.6%.

Wiarton’s grade for schools: a C+

Within 3 km of Wiarton are 4 elementary schools and 1 secondary school, teaching 1,325 students. Results lean low: 3 of 5 in the lower two fifths in Ontario. Measured from the centre, the closest high school lies 11 km off, above Ontario’s towns (1.2 km) and Canadian towns (1.2 km) alike.

Wiarton’s health region counts 17% of adults who smoke, above the typical Canadian town’s 12%

Measured across the Grey Bruce Health Unit: health survey and life expectancy

Across the region, 48% of adults say their health is very good or excellent; Ontario as a whole reaches 51%. Expected years of life at birth: 81.3, lower than Ontario’s towns (82.8) and near Canadian towns (81.5). The town’s own part is the trip to care, and Wiarton’s is long: 8.2 km to a hospital on average, against 3.7 km typical.

Wiarton in November: highs near 7°C, lows near −1°C

At the extremes, July afternoons reach 24°C and February nights −10°C. Next comes December, with normal highs of 1°C and lows of −5°C. Expect around 48 cm of snow in November. Precipitation in November averages 110 mm.

Wiarton sends Alex Ruff (Conservative Party of Canada) to the Commons from Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound

From Ontario come 122 MPs, 71 of them with the Liberal Party of Canada.

Wiarton has two public libraries, Bruce County Public Library - Sauble Beach Branch and Bruce County Public Library - Wiarton Branch

Wiarton has no library board of its own in the provincial statistics, so no visit or loan figures appear here.

Bruce Peninsula National Park is 28 km from Wiarton

Out to 10 km from the town’s edge, 1.4% of the land is protected; 2.3% is typical for a Canadian town. Within 10 km are 64 protected areas. Swimmers have 55 beaches within 5 km, Mallory Beach the nearest. Walkers have 3 mapped routes close by, starting with the Bruce Trail - Peninsula section and Bruce Trail - Peninsula section side trails.