Laserfiche WebLink
<br />Region 6 <br /> <br />Region 6, composed of six counties in southwestern Kansas, is a little <br />more than halfway between Wichita and the Colorado state line. The <br />area is primarily an agricultural region special izing in large scale <br />crop and cattle farming. The region had a population of 42,000 <br />people in 1965. Dodge City is the largest city in the region with a <br />population of 13,704 in 1965. Nearly two-thirds of the region is <br />cropland which produces wheat, sorghum, and legumes. The average <br />farm size increased from about 710 acres in 1940 to over 1,110 acres <br />in 1964. <br /> <br />The total population of the region has been stable since about 1940. <br />However, all counties except Ford have lost people gradually over <br />the period. There has been a widespread drop in rural population and <br />a subsequent growth in the region's largest city. Existing industry <br />is geared mainly to agriculture, machinery, and printing and publishing. <br /> <br />The level of economic activity forecast for this region reflects some <br />of the historic trends. Future population growth on a percenrage <br />basis may be less than for the state as a whole. The population by <br />the year 2000 is forecast to be 56,200 and to increase to 80,300 by the <br />end of the forecast period. As much as 56 percent of the population <br />in the region may reside in Ford County by 2020. The forecast of <br />agricultural output indicates an increase from $88 mill ion by 1965 to <br />Over $301 mil lion by the end of the forecast period. Agricultural <br />output appears uniformly distributed between crops and livestock. <br />Agricultural employment decl ines even past the turn of the century. <br />This decl ine affects population growth in the less populous counties <br />of the region. This is one of the few regions in which agricultural <br />output exceeds manufacturing. In 1965, the manufacturing output was <br />$36 million and the forecast indicates an increase to $231 million by <br />the end of the forecast period--an increase of over sixfold. The <br />food and kindred products and machinery and fabricated metals industries <br />have the greatest output within the manufacturing category, and this <br />probably reflects the strong agricultural base of the region. The <br />employment in manufacturing was 1,060 persons in 1965 and may increase <br />to 2,100 by the end of the period. <br /> <br />Irrigation water requirements may increase tenfold over the projection <br />period (Table 4-11). In 1965, over 177,300 acre-feet of water were <br />used by irrigators, and this figure may increase to 1,748,200 acre- <br />feet by the end of the projection period. AI I other uses of water <br />within this region used 22,400 acre-feet in 1965. The water require- <br />ment for these uses may increase to 49,500 acre-feet by the end of the <br />forecast period. The total water requirement in Region 6 by the year <br />2020 may be II percent of the total state requirement. <br /> <br />44. <br />