With an expanding ecotourism industry and desire to own
woodland property, one would expect to find an expanding, thriving population
in the Adirondacks. However, the opposite is proving true. According to the
2010 United States Census results, the Adirondack population has decreased by
1.3% since 2000. A 1.3% or 1,000 person loss may seem insignificant but to a
population of approximately 130,000, that is a serious decline in population.
Not only has the population declined between 2000 and 2010,
but also we expect to see a continued decline in the near future. Researchers
at Cornell estimate a population loss of over 5,000 people in the Adirondack
Park by the year 2020 and a continued population decline in the year 2030 and
beyond.
Throughout history, the Adirondack region has been ignored
and avoided as a region to settle down in for its infertile soil, subzero
winter temperatures, and unmapped topography. That mindset changed when logging
and waterpower became primary resources for the American industrial revolutions
in the 19th century. Since then, a steadily growing population has grown
in the region, making a living from trapping, maintaining the park, logging,
farming, and other similar jobs. A strong and continually growing ecotourism
industry also employs many locals.
Why, then, has the table turned and the population started
to decline? Are people abandoning the way of life in the Adirondacks in favor
of other jobs? Is the land too expensive to maintain in current economic
conditions? I wonder who will live in the Adirondack Park in 50 years and what
their life will look like compared to today.
2000-2012 Census Data and Article Analysis
Cornell Research Article on Predicted Population in the Year
2020
You made some great points Laura. It does seem concerning that the population is declining so steadily and that many people predict this trend to continue. I think the increase in people buying second homes in the park may be one of the factors contributing to the declining population. If there are people who are willing and able to pay large sums of money to purchase land from locals and build houses they only use a few months out of the year, it makes it more difficult for locals to afford living in the park. Since the people who have second homes in the park don't live their a majority of the year, they don't count as residents, and therefore do not count in the population numbers. I think it would be interesting to look at the difference in residents between the winter and summer because that would shine some light on how many people are only part-time residents of the park.
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