Daily Athenaeum – West Virginia has a problem that has been coming for a long time. The issue has existed for decades, as coal and surrounding industries left the state. West Virginia’s population is declining.
Read the full op-ed.
In the last Census, the population in West Virginia dropped by 3.2% — or about 59,000 people — as reported from the Associated Press.
According to the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy, rural counties have been hit harder by this population loss. This decline is attributed to both natural factors (such as more deaths than births) and migration, as many people, especially the younger generation, leave for greater economic opportunities.
