ROCKLAND, Maine, March 27 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Island Institute today released a new report that provides a snapshot of demographic, economic, and social data on Maine's 15 remaining year-round island communities. Island Indicators was prepared by Island Fellows Sarah Curran and Jeremy Gabrielson to provide a glimpse into the realities of Maine's islands today, and to provide baseline data that will help measure change into the future. In addition to data on island population trends, age, income, and educational attainment, Island Indicators looks at data surrounding critical island issues. These include the importance of fishing and tourism to island economies, working waterfront access, housing affordability, and school funding. The complete report is available on the Island Institute's Web site, .
Among the report's key findings: -- Overall, island populations increased by 7 percent between 1990 and 2000. Of the 13 islands where individual island data are available, populations were stable or grew on eight of them. Populations declined slightly on Swan's (from 349 to 327), Frenchboro (from 42 to 38) and Matinicus (from 63 to 51), and markedly on Monhegan (from 88 to 75) and the Cranberry Isles (from 196 to 128). -- The median age of all but one island community -- North Haven -- is higher than the average for the State of Maine (39 years). As a state, Maine's population is older than the U.S. median of 35 years. -- Island residents are better educated than Mainers as a whole: 89 percent of islanders have a high school diploma, and 32 percent have college degrees (compared to 85 percent and 23 percent statewide). -- Island median incomes lag behind median incomes for Maine as a whole. On nine islands, the median income is below the state median of $37,240. This is especially noteworthy given that Maine's state median income lags well behind the national median of $41,994. -- Lobstering and tourism are critically important to most island economies. On average, about 20% of Maine's island population hold lobster licenses. Nearly half (47%) of island taxable sales can be attributed to the summer tourist season in July, August, and September. -- Housing affordability is an important factor on Maine's islands. Islanders earning the median income cannot afford the median-priced island home, and valuations of island property (on every island except Frenchboro and Matinicus) have increased at a rate that significantly exceeds the state average.
The report's authors mined many public databases for objective information -- an effort that showed the gaps in available data for certain islands, and highlighted the need for significant further research on such issues as environmental quality and land conservation, health care, social capital, and the importance of the informal economy to island life. "The information we have collected is sometimes frustratingly absent on specific islands, as in the case of many of Portland's Casco Bay islands, where data are buried in overall city totals," says Philip Conkling, president of the Island Institute. "Specific numbers for Great Cranberry and Islesford -- two different islands in one township -- are often combined, although their community profiles are completely different."
The Island Institute is a nonprofit organization that serves as a voice for the balanced future of the islands and waters of the Gulf of Maine. We are guided by an island ethic that recognizes the strength and fragility of Maine's island communities and the finite nature of the Gulf of Maine ecosystems.
Island Institute
