Richard E. Lonsdale

Emptying Areas of the United States, 1990-1995

Abstract Certain regions and places in the United States seem more prone to experience population loss. This study examines the geography of this “emptying” process based on 1990-1995 census data and presents maps which show county-level patterns of population change and several related components. The major emptying areas are the Great Plains, Western Corn Belt, Lower Mississippi Valley, Central Appalachia, and metropolitan centers in the Northeast. Population change is correlated with social and economic variables, characteristics shared by the 635 losing counties are examined, and profiles of the major losing areas are presented. Net outmigration emerges as the dominant problem, together with the inability to find a substitute for declining employment in agriculture and mining, or in the case of older metropolitan areas, to develop a new employment base.

Geographical aspects of US farmland values and changes during the 1978–1992 period

Abstract Data from the US Census of Agriculture suggest important changes since 1978 in regional patterns of farmland values. This study examines these patterns with the aid of county-level maps showing average values per hectare for the Census years 1978, 1982, 1987 and 1992 and changes between these years. Farmland price increases are geographically associated with general proximity to major population centers and the presence of aesthetically attractive natural landscapes, while these two attributes in combination are generally absent in areas not experiencing price increases. The widespread phenomenon of non-commercial farming as a factor in farmland price increases is examined. It is hypothesized that such site factors as climate and soils which traditionally have helped explain higher farmland prices in some regions are of diminishing importance, while situational factors such as proximity to major population centers are in the ascendancy. The changing importance of site versus situational factors is assessed using analysis of variance tests comparing the influence on farmland values of the predominately situational differences between metropolitan, nonmetropolitan-adjacent and nonmetropolitan-nonadjacent settings, versus the predominately site differences between major agricultural regions.

Recent trends in U.S. and Canadian nonmetropolitan manufacturing

Abstract During the 1960s and 1970s, growth in manufacturing contributed greatly to the economic well-being of nonmetropolitan areas in the U.S. and Canada. The recession of the early 1980s, however, led to absolute and relative declines in nonmetro areas on both sides of the border, and nearly every state and province experienced employment declines in nonmetro manufacturing. Impacts were greatest in the Northwest and Midwest in the U.S. and in the Atlantic provinces, Quebec and British Columbia in Canada. Job losses were especially significant in several states and provinces where nonmetro areas accounted for a large proportion of total manufacturing employment. This paper examines recent changes in nonmetro manufacturing in the two nations and discusses factors contributing to the changes.

REGIONAL INEQUITY AND SOVIET CONCERN FOR RURAL AND SMALL-TOWN INDUSTRALIZATION

Regional inequity has been an important national issue in most industrial societies. Measures to reduce inequity usually include the location of more industries in rural and small-town areas. The USSR has always possessed a strong ideologically based concern for regional inequity, but it was not until the 1960s that the matter was given serious attention. The last three five-year plans have called for more industry in small towns and rural villages. Life in these areas is to be made more attractive, labor resources more fully utilized, local economies improved, and the out- migration of people reduced. However, there are obvious barriers to industrialization in rural and small-town areas, and as in most industrial nations, the reduction of regional inequity is a slow and difficult process.

The Political Burden of Sparseland Development: Some International Consistencies

A glance at a world map of population density reveals the presence of large expanses of very lightly populated territory (e.g., where densities are commonly below one person km-2). Such areas are here referred to as ‘sparselands’, peripheral regions of substantial expanse characterized by: (1) restrictive physical environments, (2) an emphasis on primary economic activities, (3) small populations and discontinuous settlement patterns, (4) remoteness, (5) the presence of indigenous peoples as an important element in the local population, and (6) a frequent dependence on government to subsidize many essential public services. Nations with large tracts of sparseland territory include the Soviet Union, Mongolia, China, several Arab states, Australia, the United States, Canada, Brazil, and others.

Changing the Way Albanian Geographers Look at Their Land

Abstract Four geographers from the University of Nebraska held a workshop for Albanian geographers in Tirana in October of 1993.1 Its purpose was to introduce concepts and technological developments that have been a part of American geographical training for 40 years. The meeting represents an initial step in helping the Albanians not only to develop a common background for collaboration with geographers of other countries, but also to assist them in contributing to the rebuilding of their own society. It is hoped that further training can take place to include the education of Albanian graduate students in the United States.