North Carolina’s population will increase by 50%
in the next 25 years!
Where will they live?
What is the expected result of this continued growth?
- More development
- More traffic
- More pollution
- More health problems
The land consumed by development in NC increased 82 percent -- twice as fast as the 42 percent population growth. So 4 million new residents = 8 million more acres developed.
More productive farmland and forestland has been lost to development than almost any other state.
In the last 20 years, North Carolina has lost 2.8 million acres of cropland and forest land – a rate of 383 acres every day.
More motor vehicles on the road for longer commutes increases air pollution in North Carolina. The average commuter drives 58.6 miles a day in the Raleigh-Durham area, which is 15 miles more than in Los Angeles.
Childhood asthma rates increased by 55 percent from 1982-1996. One-third to half of asthma attacks are due to air pollution exposure.
next...How can we reduce the impact of this growth?
