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(Continued from page 6)
• Since only a quarter South Dakota's population growth comes from in-migration, a low number of young people also affects population growth in those "strangled" counties--a problem not shared by counties in the southwestern portion of the state (especially reservation counties), where birth rates are highest. Birth rates make up three-quarters of the population growth in the state, so encouraging young people to relocate to an area to start a family can help boost an area's population in more ways than one, helping to the fight economic struggles caused by an aging population a great deal.
• Goss also said that if a person is living in a city at the age of 30, he or she is likely to stay there for a long time--perhaps the rest of his or her life. If rural communities haven't convinced young people to return before the age of 30, they may have missed their opportunity.
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