On the Rise

The hubster recently informed me of an exciting article he read. Apparantly, the population of Newfoundland rose this year for the first time in 16 years! Good news, yes?

And to think we, as a family, were able to contribute to this increase is very exciting! Now if only I could get the rest of my friends and family to come home too.

Here's an article I found on cbc.ca:

Population uptick 'really significant': researcher
Last Updated: Thursday,
October 2, 2008 3:26 PM NT
CBC News
Rob Greenwood says
newly released demographic figures hold promise for Newfoundland and Labrador.
(CBC)
A small rise in Newfoundland and Labrador's population is significant
enough to suggest an improvement in the province's demographic outlook, a
researcher says.
Statistics Canada reported this week that Newfoundland and
Labrador's population as of July 1 was 507,895, or 1,436 more people than at the
same point in 2007.
The provincial government trumpeted the report for
showing the first year-over-year increase in 16 years.
Rob Greenwood,
executive director of Memorial University's Leslie Harris Centre of Regional
Policy and Development, said the change represents only a third of a percentage
point in population, but suggests that a trend is emerging.
"It's still quite
small … but really significant," Greenwood told CBC News on Wednesday.
"For
now, it's pretty clear it's based on net 'in-migration,' so there [are] more
people coming back to the province now than leaving the province, which is new
for the past 16 years."
"Out-migration" is a household word in Newfoundland
and Labrador, describing an astonishing decline in population that was sparked
with the 1992 closure of the northern cod fishery.
Thousands lost jobs
The
fisheries moratorium, which put about 20,000 fishermen and plant workers out of
work, has been called the largest single industrial layoff in Canadian
history.
The 1991 census put the province's population at 568,474, an
all-time high.
Soon after, a demographic free fall kicked into gear, driven
by two main factors: a birth rate that went from one of the highest in the
country to one of the lowest; and thousands of families — including young
adults, some of whom became parents in other provinces — seeking work
elsewhere.
In 2006, Newfoundland and Labrador set a dubious record in
Canadian demographics, becoming the first province to record more deaths than
births.
"The natural increase, births minus deaths, is still not in our
favour," said Greenwood, who believes that workers returning to the province may
at least compensate for that demographic loss.
"It'd be really interesting to
know who these people are, their education level, skill levels, age levels [and]
where they're coming from. My guess is that the bulk of these folks are
Newfoundlanders coming back from Alberta, from Ontario," said Greenwood, who
also credited the provincial government's immigration strategy.
Greenwood
said additional data should be available in November that will better explain
the population increase.
To help address the population decline, the
Newfoundland and Labrador government earlier this year introduced a "baby bonus"
of $1,000 per child, as well as $100 a month for the first 12 months of a
child's life.