Population Growth and in-migration
challenges | solutions| links
last update: April 18, 2002

Challenges
Economic growth coupled with the quality of life have resulted in booming population growth in many areas of the Cascadia coastal region.

In the United States growth has been the greatest in the south and west areas of the States including the Cascadia region. Since 1990 Washington State has grown 18.3%, Oregon 16.7% and California 11.2 %. The majority of this growth has been in urban areas which tend to be on the coast.

In British Columbia population has been increasing by more than 100,000 people each year. Demographers believe that in only ten years, the population could exceed 4.7 million, up from 3.9 million today.

Growth brings stress to the coastal environment - more housing, more roads, more schools, shopping centers, and factories for more people. With growth comes runoff from streets and parking lots, sediment from construction, and effluent from factories. Growth threatens the very attributes that attract people to the coastal region, it threatens fish and wildlife habitat, scenery and open space

There are potential opportunities associated with population growth and inmigration. Growth can benefit coastal communities by bringing more and better jobs and increased cultural opportunities.

Finding Solutions
Land use and development practices that enhance the quality of life in communities and preserve ecological integrity are called "smart growth". Smart growth practices aim to limit the sprawl of urban centers by using tools such as urban containment boundaries.

Useful Links
There are a number of websites on smart growth. Some of these explain the principles of smart growth and some belong to organizations that are promoting smart growth:

• http://www.smartgrowth.bc.ca/
• http://www.smartgrowth.org/
• http://www.smartgrowthamerica.com/
• http://www.1000friends.org/Smart%20
  growth%20overview%202001.htm;
• http://www.agoregon.org/growth/
  population.asp
• http://smartgrowth.wa.gov/

Others offer criticism of smart growth:

• http://www.publicpurpose.com/pp-wtimes.htm
• http://i2i.org/SuptDocs/Enviro/SmartGrowth.htm
• http://www.demographia.com/dm-nahb9804.htm

British Columbia growth strategies: 

• Provincial government’s growth strategies office http://www.marh.gov.bc.ca/GROWTH/
• University of Victoria website http://www.law.uvic.ca/~elp/smrtgrw.htm

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