The Census Bureau this week released its official U.S. population projection for January 1, 2008: 303,146,284.  That's 2,842,103 more than last year, a 0.9 percent increase.  The Bureau also announced that in January 2008, the U.S. will register one birth every eight seconds and one death every 11 seconds. "Meanwhile," the Bureau reports, "net international migration is expected to add one person every 30 seconds. The result is an increase in the total U.S. population of one person every 13 seconds."

Looking longer term, U.S. population is expected to jump from 300 million in 2007 to 420 million by 2050--an increase of 120 million people. That projected increase is equal to the current (July 1, 2007 estimated) population of California (36.5 million), Texas (23.9 million), New York (19.3 million), Florida (18.2 million), Ohio (11.7 million) and Michigan (10.7) million.

So where are all those people going to live?  The West and Southwest are the fastest growing areas of the country. The Census Bureau reported this week that  Nevada is "the nation’s fastest-growing state, with a population increase of 2.9 percent between July 1, 2006, and July 1, 2007."  Arizona slipped to second place.  Texas had the largest population gain at nearly half a million.

As the world's fastest growing industrial nation, the U.S. faces some significant challenge ahead, not the least of which is water scarcity.  Almost without exception, the fastest growing states are already suffering from drought and water shortages.

Georgia is one of those fast growing states.  Here's what WTOC TV in Savannah, Georgia reports today:

The Atlanta area has been in the news most of this year due to the record drought. Now, officials have confirmed that Atlanta's water crisis has come to a temporary end. The Lake Allatoona aquifer has stopped losing water, in part because of recent negotiated cuts in water releases downstream.

But, now the focus is on the water that's already gone. With just four days left in 2007, Atlanta is on pace to have its driest year in more than five decades. The city needs to get more than 2.5 inches of rain before New Year's Day to top the current record low for rainfall set in 1957.

http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/population/011108.html

http://www.wtoctv.com/Global/story.asp?S=7550617&nav=0qq6