Australia's population growing faster than anywhere in Asia

The Australian ^ | March 26, 2010 | Stephen Lunn

[myknowledge]

AUSTRALIA'S population is growing faster than anywhere in Asia and at double the world average, as resource-rich Queensland and Western Australia continue to lead the way.

Underpinned by an economy that weathered the global financial crisis, Australia grew by 451,900 people in the year to last September, taking it beyond the 22 million mark, Australian Bureau of Statistics figures released yesterday reveal.

But the growth, dominated by net migration -- the difference between overseas arrivals and departures -- of nearly 300,000, is high enough to worry even "Big Australia" advocates.

Demographer Peter McDonald told The Australian yesterday: "It's temporarily high, and it's not desirable, certainly, because it is running ahead of the nation's capacity to deal with it . . . (but) we are outstripping other countries in terms of economic growth as well, and the two are very much related."

[myknowledge]

How many people can Australia hold? You're talking about the largest island continent in the world that is 90+% desert and many coastal cities, populated by 22 million.

[kabar]

Demography is destiny. If Australia's immigrants aren't assimilated, then they will be a drag on growth and change the culture of the country. Look at what is happening here in the US:

The U.S. adds one international migrant (net) every 34 seconds. Immigrants account for one in 8 U.S. residents, the highest level in more than 80 years. In 1970 it was one in 21; in 1980 it was one in 16; and in 1990 it was one in 13. In a decade, it will be one in 7, the highest it has been in our history. And by 2050, one in 5 residents of the U.S. will be foreign-born.

Currently, 1.6 million legal and illegal immigrants settle in the country each year; 350,000 immigrants leave each year, resulting in net immigration of 1.25 million. Since 1970, the U.S. population has increased from 203 million to 310 million, i.e., over 100 million. In the next 40 years, the population will increase by 130 million. Three-quarters of the increase in our population since 1970 and the projected increase will be the result of immigration. The U.S., the world’s third most populous nation, has the highest annual rate of population growth of any developed country in the world, i.e., 0.975% (2009 estimate), principally due to immigration.

[Sherman Logan]

The U.S., the world’s third most populous nation, has the highest annual rate of population growth of any developed country in the world, i.e., 0.975% (2009 estimate), principally due to immigration.

Oz isn't a developed country?

The rate given in the article is over 2% per year.