Chapter 4: Population Distribution

 As of today, Merced has a population of approximately 80,600 with 3, 386 people per square mile.

Below is the Population Growth and Status as of 2012:

Total Population	67,584
Square Miles	83.96
Population Density	804.90
Population Change Since 1990	14.65%
Population Change Since 2000	5.78%
Forecasted Population Change by 2014	-2.33%
Population Male	33,280	49.24%
Population Female	34,304	50.76%
Median Age	29.10

As you can observe, Merced has had a 5.78% increase since 2000. This could be because of the new University which created new jobs such as teachers, engineers, landscapers, architects, scientists, builders, and contractors. The forecasted population change in another two years is in the negative. This could be because many major plants have closed such as Pepsi, and Color Print. A local Budweiser distribution plant has also closed, so many families may be relocating for another job opportunity. http://www.clrsearch.com/Merced_Demographics/CA/Population-Growth-and-Population-Statistics

http://www.clrsearch.com/Merced_Demographics/CA/95340/Employment-Occupation-and-Industry

Above is a graph depicting the 2010 employment by job type. The occupations of "Professional and Related" has increased to about 26.5% and the "Sales and Office" has increased to about 25.5%. You can see that the "Farming, Fishing and Forestry" are relatively low compared to the others and this is because many farmers have established themselves long ago, and most of the land for farming in Merced is privately owned. Merced County is not looking to hire anymore agriculturalists. As far as fishing goes, Merced is about 30 minutes from a recreational lake named Lake McClure. This lake is used for recreational fishing and sport fishing, but not to create a means of revenue for Merced.