by
Kelsey Day Writer, Bethany Reisner Programmer, & Jackie Reyes Writer
The population of a state is a seemingly simple number but one that has many complex and interesting implications. It can affect the economic, social and environmental success either short term or long term. In July 2006, Wyoming’s total resident population reached a record level of 515,004. This number may seem small when looking at the population of an entire state in comparison to other states, but for Wyoming, it really is the record number in the history of this state. The population growth shown between 2005 and 2006 was 6,206 persons. This is a 1.6 percent increase in one year! (State of Wyoming- Department of Administration and Information) There are many reasons that contribute to a change in population including the birth rates, death rates and migration.
In order to understand the current population, we must first look at the history of Wyoming’s population. The population of Wyoming increased by more than 50 percent between 1970 and 1983, but then decreased by more than 10 percent from 1983 to 1990. According to the 2000 census, Wyoming’s population went up by 8.9 percent between 1990 and 2000. Those numbers would be 453,588 to 493,782. It is interesting to compare that in ten years from 1990 to 2000 the population increased by 8.9 percent, which is roughly .89 percent increase per year, and an increase of 1.6 percent from 2005 to 2006. If the population keeps expanding at a rate of 1.6, in ten years that will be a total population increase of 16 percent! The 8.9 percent increase from 1990 to 2000 had a major impact on the state’s economic and social structure. Imagine was a 16 percent increase would do to the state of Wyoming! (Population Change in Wyoming)
Now that we have seen the population pattern written out in numbers we can begin to analyze the reasons for the changes. The first important reason would be the relationship between birth rates and death rates. This involves births into a population, and deaths from a population. These two factors come together to show the natural increase is the combined effects of births and deaths. The number of births in Wyoming has gone down throughout the 1990’s, from 6,974 (in 1990) to 6,254 (in 2000.) On the other hand, the death numbers have climbed during that same ten year period. In 1991 the lowest number of deaths was recorded at 3,152 and the highest level was up around 4,038 in 1999. Because of these numbers, the net gain of population from this natural change declined to around 2,000 in 2001 from the level of 3,780 in 1990. Wyoming may see a few more years of higher birth numbers if the baby boom population stays in the state. (Ten Year Outlook)
Although birth and death rates impact a population by increasing or decreasing its size, the effects are not as immediate as migration. An interview was done by the State of Wyoming with Wenlin Liu, a Ph.D. senior economist with the Economic Analysis Division on December 22, 2006 regarding Wyoming’s population. She stated, “The 1.2 percent population expansion in the state was the strongest increase since 1994. This was not a surprise because Wyoming’s population growth has been lagging behind the job increase for quite a few years. It is good news for the state, and good news for employers. Certainly the increase was somewhat an alleviation to the serious labor force shortage the state has been recently facing.” Here, Liu contributes the population growth to the availability of jobs around the state. Liu talks about how the mining industry has been booming, especially the oil and gas extraction industry and that many of the out-of-state workers chose to settle down in Wyoming and then bring their families. Liu thinks most of the population growth fro 2006 will be concentrated around the areas closely associated with energy sector=s such as natural gas and coal bed methane. Liu commented that “As long as the energy industries continue to grow, Wyoming should expect stronger migration increase in the near future.” (State of Wyoming- Department of Administration and Information) The job market and the availabilities of jobs around the state have a huge impact on the future growth of the population of Wyoming.
Another factor to be considered is the immigrant population. The Federation for American Immigration Reform reported that the state population increase from 1990 to 2000 was 40,194 people and the Foreign-Born population is 11,000. That is 2.2 percent of our total population. The Federation for American Immigration Reform also reported that there are more than 2,500 Illegal residents in the state of Wyoming. About 29,000 people in Wyoming are immigrants or the children of immigrants which makes up six percent of the state’s population. These are obviously very volatile numbers and can easily be altered in a short period of time. If there was a sudden loss of job openings in Wyoming all the immigrants would find somewhere else to go. Our economy is largely based on the availability of these workers from out of state. Many people complain about the immigration issue, but many people do not understand the importance of their presence in Wyoming. Our economy is growing thanks to the natives, but also thanks to the migrant workers who have settled in this area.
Some of the negative effects of an increase in population include traffic, disappearing open space, crowded housing, loss of affordable housing, air pollution and poverty. Each year, Wyoming loses 6,900 acres of open space and farmland due to development. The development is needed to build offices, houses, streets and parking lots. In order to sustain the increasing economy we must also expand our locations for these businesses.
It is generally thought that as population increases, pollution usually rises also. The National Parks Conservation Association lists Yellowstone National Park on the list of “America’s Ten Most Endangered National Parks” because of air pollution. Big cities such as New York or Chicago have major problems in their air quality due to pollution from their mass amounts of people. One aspect of Wyoming that is appealing to many people is the clean air and brisk atmosphere. With more crowding comes less clean air.
Fifteen percent of immigrants in Wyoming have incomes below the poverty level. This is another aspect of population growth that can negatively affect the well-being of a state. There is increased job competition and less available help. These are just a few of the negative consequences.
Some of the benefits to an increasing population might include a rise in the efficiency of our economy, more diversity, and more opportunities. There is more incentive for outside firms to look to Wyoming for support or as a new location because we have more people to support their efforts. We will have increasing recognition throughout the country which would allow for more opportunity to participate in events on a national level.
Many of the sources used for this paper suggest a steady increase in the population over the next few years. While it might be good for our economy, I think a major population increase would negatively affect the overall atmosphere and inherent quality of the state of Wyoming.
