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People once moved to rural areas in search of fertile farmland, mineral deposits, and
timber; today people move to rural areas in search of a pleasant environment for
residence and recreation. ERS research examines the importance of natural amenities in
determining population and employment growth experienced by communities in both
rural and urbanized settings.
related briefing rooms
- offer an indepth discussion synthesizing ERS research
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Migrants in the Rural South Choose Urban and Natural Amenities—The rural South added over 16 million people from migration since the early 1970's. But population growth and economic development persistently favor areas with specific attributes attractive to migrants. Both urban and natural amenities—such as high-tech jobs and favorable climates—have delineated areas of high rural growth from places left behind, and exacerbated rural economic development problems that fall along lines of race, income, and education
Natural Amenities Drive Rural Population Change—Population change in rural counties is highly dependent on climate, topography, and lakes or coastline area. According to the rural amenities scale developed in this report, counties low in natural amenities lost population over the past 25 years while high amenity counties more than doubled their population. Employment change follows a similar pattern.
web administration: webadmin@ers.usda.gov
updated: September 9, 2003
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