The Center for Rural Pennsylvania, in partnership with the Pennsylvania State Data Center, has released projected population changes by county through 2050. Population in the state’s rural counties is projected to decline 5.8% over the next 30 years. Urban population is expected to grow 1.6%.
Carbon, which had 64,744 people as of April 1, 2020, is expected to have 56,315 people in 2050. That’s a decline of 13%. Most of the state’s growth is expected to be in the Southeast; most of the decline will be in the northern tier and the west.
Of course, long range projections are always problematic. If climate changes continues as dramatically as I think it will, we may see a pile of people from southern states moving north. Plus, nuclear war can throw a major wrench into any predictions. A civil war could also mess up the trends. Well, it could.
Statistics are from “Rural Perspectives,” (Nov./Dec., 2023),. XXXII, No 6. (Published by the Center for Rural Pennsylvania.)
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