Home Delivery |
Contact Us |
Jobs |
Alerts |
News Archives |
Site map |
Log In |
Webmail |
Internet Services |
Mobile
Text size: 
Oil boom fuels North Dakota's growth
|
North Dakota was the nation's fastest-growing state in the past year. U.S. Census Bureau data show that North Dakota's population grew 2.2 percent to 699,628 in the year ending July 1, as the oil boom drew workers to the Bakken fields in the western part of the state. "We had rural population declining in western North Dakota for decades," said Dean Bangsund, an economist at North Dakota State University in Fargo who has studied the effects of the oil boom. "Now we are looking at growth curves that are just short of astonishing." North Dakota this year became the No. 2 oil producing state behind Texas as drillers tapped into shale oil deposits and began pumping record amounts of crude. In October, the oil output was 747,239 barrels, nearly six times the output of five years ago. Rod Backman, chairman of the North Dakota Census Committee, a group of mostly state officials who advise the government, said the census estimates don't include at least 24,000 workers who live in temporary camps set up mainly for migrant oil field workers. He and others see no sign of the population trends changing in the years ahead. "At some point the drilling is not going to be as fast-paced as it is now," said Backman, CEO of Covenant Consulting Group, an accounting and consulting firm in Bismarck, N.D. "But when you start factoring in the permanent jobs, the expectation is that we are going to continue to see job growth and population growth.' Bangsund said the state's other sectors, especially agriculture and manufacturing, have remained strong. North Dakota's farmers weren't hit hard by the drought that struck other parts of the Midwest, he said. The state's economic base — a measure of goods sold out of state — grew 11 percent in 2011, the most recent year for which data are available, Bangsund said. The population boom is mostly driven by an influx of people seeking work, he said. The oil fields alone probably account for 40,000 to 50,000 jobs today, compared with about 3,000 to 5,000 jobs early in the last decade, he added. North Dakota's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in November was 3.1 percent, compared to the nation's 7.7 percent rate. Earlier this year, North Dakota reported 20,000 unfilled job openings. Backman said birth rates also are up because many of the immigrant oil workers are of child-bearing age. Some migrants are bringing families to the state, he said. "We also have a lot more high-school and college students staying in the state because of the job opportunities," Backman said. 
|
 |
|
||
Sherrard, IL Details |
|||
| (More Print Ads) |
Today is Monday, May 20, the 140th day of 2013. There are 225 days left in the year.
1863 -- 150 years ago: A petition is being circulated asking the city council to order awell bored in Market Square. It would be a great accommodation to the public.
1888 -- 125 years ago: At 1 p.m. on May 18 the Mississippi River flooded its banks atRock Island and destroyed the warehouse of the Rock Island Lumber Co. and damagedRock Island Arsenal power plant. Total loss is estimated at $100,000.
1913 -- 100 years ago: Residents of Sough Rock Island Township are circulating apetition favoring the annexation of that area to the City of Rock Island.
1938 -- 75 years ago: A group of state members of the National Grandmothers Clubmeeting in Rock Island are making plans to petition for the observance of a NationalGrandmothers Day.
1963 -- 50 years ago: Deere and Co. reported today that its U.S. and Canadian sales forthe first half of the 1963 fiscal year set an all time record of $323,716.628.
1988 -- 25 years ago: William G. Lawrence, first administrative director, has retired fromPECO Enterprises, Inc. Prior to his service at PECO, Mr. Lawrence was the civilianpersonnel officer at the Rock Island Arsenal.
(More History)