Socioeconimics
| Attachment | Socioeconimics |
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Regardless of the alternative selected, the flows in the Middle Loup River would not be changed or altered from current conditions. Operation and management of Milburn and Arcadia Diversion Dams, the canals, Sherman Reservoir, and the surrounding recreation and wildlife lands would remain unchanged from current conditions. Consequently, no significant socioeconomic impacts are expected.
In 1990, the percent of farm population in the basin, as compared to the total basin population, was 29.1. For Nebraska as a whole, this segment was only 7.5 percent. This percentage, for both the basin and the State, has been decreasing and corresponds to national trends. For example, between 1970 and 1990, the farm population as a percentage of total population in the basin declined from 46.5 to 29.1 percent. This percentage for Nebraska as a whole decreased by an even greater amount--from 16.0 percent to 7.5 percent, a 53-percent drop. Between 1980 and 1990, the basin farm population decreased by 19.2 percent.
Another pattern of change has been a slow but steady net decline in the actual size of the overall population. Between 1930 and 1990, the population of the basin decreased from 81,850 to 40,268. Between 1970 and 1980, three counties in the basin experienced population growth. None of the counties showed an increase in population between 1980 and 1990. All the basin counties showed declines in their population from 1930 to 1990. These population changes are typical of many rural/agricultural areas in the Nation. As agriculture becomes more capital intensive and less labor intensive, fewer agricultural jobs exist, and rural residents leave or migrate to urban areas in search of employment or higher education. For the State of Nebraska as a whole, this population trend differs from the trends for the basin. Since 1950, there has been a slow but steady increase in the population of the State, increasing from approximately 1.3 million in 1950 to approximately 1.6 million in 1990. Table F-1 shows population trends and rates of change for every 10 years between 1930 and 1990.
Table F-2 displays employment data for the Middle Loup River Basin and the State of Nebraska for 1970, 1980, and 1990, respectively. The total number of employed increased by 7.41 percent from 1970 to 1990 (from 17,294 to 18,576), while agricultural occupations decreased 21.6 per-cent from 6,787 to 5,318 over the same period. Three of the 10 employment sectors had net decreases between 1970 and 1990. Sectors with increases were construction, manufacturing, transportation-communication-public utilities, retail trade, insurance-real estate, and services.
Those with decreases were agriculture, mining, wholesale trade, and public administration. Agricultural employment in 1990 remains a significant percentage of the total, 28.6 percent, down from 31.3 percent in 1980.
For the State, the total number of employed increased by 34 percent from 1970 to 1990. In this same period, agricultural occupations decreased by 18.6 percent. For Nebraska, only two of the sectors showed decreases in employment: agriculture and mining. The percentage employment in agriculture compared to total employment decreased from 13.7 percent to 8.3 percent Statewide.
Total personal income is shown in table F-3 for the basin and State for the periods 1970, 1980, and 1990. Total personal income in the basin was $642.4 million in 1990, an increase of 66.6 percent from 1980 and 658.6 percent from 1970 (numbers are not adjusted for inflation).
Personal income for Nebraska for this period was $27.6 billion in 1990, an increase of 69 per-cent from 1980 and 763 percent for 1970. Table F-2 shows how employment is divided by industry group.
The basin per capita income (table F-4) was $9,500 in 1990, an increase of 75 percent from 1980 and 324 percent from 1970. Per capita income for Nebraska was $12,452, an increase of 80 percent from 1980 and 345 percent from 1970. Table F-3 shows the total personal income for the same years.
This section discusses the number of farms, farm size, and value of crop production within the Middle Loup River Basin counties and in Nebraska.
Introduction.--From the mid-1800s, the agricultural industry dominated both the economic base and land use in the Middle Loup River Basin, and this trend continues today. This section shows the number of farms, farm size, and value of crop production for several time periods within the basin counties and Nebraska.
Number and Size of Farms.--The number of farms in the State of Nebraska as a whole has been gradually declining over time (from 107,183 in 1949 to 52,923 in 1992). Farm numbers have decreased in the Middle Loup River Basin from over 8,640 in 1949 to less than 4,580 in 1992. The total number of farms located on Reclamation projects lands decreased from 429 to 417 between 1982 and 1991. There were no part-time farmers reported in the same time period.
Table F-5 compares size of farms in various counties in the years 1949, 1954, 1964, 1974, 1982, 1987, and 1992.
Value of Crop Production.-- The annual value of crop production in the Middle Loup River Basin counties ranged from $348.2 million to $602.7 million between 1978 and 1992. This accounted for 6.76 percent for 1978 and 7.34 percent for 1992 of the total annual value of crop production in the State of Nebraska. The annual value of crop production in Middle Loup River Basin irrigation districts ranged between $14.2 million and $17.3 million between 1978 and 1992.
The annual value of crop production for Nebraska was $5.1 billion and $8.2 billion for these years. The Middle Loup River Basin irrigation districts represent about 0.173 percent in 1978 and 0.210 percent in 1992 of the total crop production in Nebraska.
The market value of crops and pasture products from the two irrigation districts served by Reclamation over the same years is shown in table F-6. The per irrigated acre value is also shown. For the Farwell District, the range in value per irrigated acre for these years was $214 in 1987 to $293 in 1992, with an average of $258 per irrigated acre. For the Sargent District, the values ranged from $182 in 1987 to $265 in 1992, with an average of $226 per irrigated acre.
Regardless of the alternative selected, the assumption has been made that operations and management of Milburn and Arcadia Diversion Dams, the canal systems, Sherman Reservoir, and surrounding recreation and wildlife lands would remain unchanged from current conditions. As a result, no significant socioeconomic impacts are expected under any of the alternatives.
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