Geographic perspective on amenity migration across the USA: national-, regional- and local-scale analysis.

This chapter explores the relationship between amenities and migration at different geographic scales in the USA, with an emphasis on the Rocky Mountain Region. Drawing on the USDA's Natural Amenity Index and on two studies examining non-metropolitan migration in the 1990s, the analysis highlights: (i) the changing importance over time of amenities in explaining population change for non-metropolitan counties; (ii) differences within regions for amenities' role in explaining migration patterns, with a focus on New England and the Rocky Mountains; and (iii) the importance of more qualitative dimensions of amenities embedded in both natural and social landscapes on the local level within the Rocky Mountain Region.