ACCESS NUMBER: 30660-19939 

STUDY TITLE: Commuting, Migration, and Offshore Oil and Gas Extraction 

REPORT TITLE: Effect of the Oil and Gas Industry on Commuting and Migration 

Patterns in Louisiana: 1960-1990 

CONTRACT NUMBER: 14-35-0001-30660-19939 

SPONSORING OCS REGION: Gulf of Mexico OCS Region 

APPLICABLE PLANNING AREA: Central Gulf of Mexico 

COMPLETION DATE OF REPORT: January 2003 

COST: $80,806 

PROJECT MANAGER: Joachim Singelmann 

AFFILIATION: Louisiana State University 

ADDRESS: Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803 

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATORS: Joachim Singelmann and Natusumi Aratame 

KEY WORDS: Louisiana, oil and gas, commuting, migration 

BACKGROUND: Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) activities have been the major source 

of income and employment in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) Region. This study will present 

a dynamic picture of the impact of OCS activities by studying the exchange of workers 

between coastal and inland counties. It will use longitudinal data for 1960 to 1990 to 

analyze the stability of such linkages, and whether or not they changed during the boom 

and bust periods. Although the main employment effects of OCS activities are found in 

GOM counties and parishes, the effects tend to spread into inland counties and 

parishes through commuting and labor migration. Little is known about which locations 

are more affected or the magnitude of those effects yet this information is important to 

estimate the full socioeconomic impact of OCS activities. 

OBJECTIVES: The proposed study seeks: (1) to identify the extent of commuting in 

response to OCS activities; (2) to analyze migration and commuting flows and patterns 

to indicate the extent to which the effects of OCS activities reach inland communities; 

and (3) to more clearly identify the distribution of socioeconomic effects that is due to 

commuting-migration differences. 

DESCRIPTION: The oil and gas industry comprises a very important part in the history 

and economy of coastal states in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) region. In Louisiana, the 

strong impact of the oil and gas industry on revenues and employment is explained by 

(1) the amount of production and, (2) oil prices, with the latter affecting the revenue and 
ACCESS NUMBER: 30660-19939 

employment structure more strongly after 1974. This report studies the effect the oil 

and gas industry has on commuting and migration patterns in coastal and non-coastal 

areas of Louisiana from 1960-1990. It covers commuting networks and commuting 

distance; trend and level patterns of migration; and it quantifies factors and establishes 

models for predicting commuting and migration patterns. 

SIGNIFICANT CONCLUSIONS: Commuting is closely associated with proximity and 

industrial characteristics while migration is more strongly affected by general economic 

conditions that are present in the sending and receiving areas. The fluctuation in the oil 

industry caused by a change in oil prices affected the employment structure after 1974. 

STUDY RESULTS: During the period 1960-1990 the number of commuters increased 

four-fold from 104,485 to 412,605. Additionally, the eleven coastal parishes of 

Louisiana received more commuters than the state’s 53 non-coastal parishes combined. 

Commuters tended to travel from non-coastal parishes to coastal parishes and, over the 

years, commute distances increased. 

The migration patterns in coastal and non-coastal areas are similar, although the 

proportion of migrants in the coastal areas peaked during the period 1965-70, whereas 

the peak for the non-coastal areas occurred during the period 1975-80. Migration rates 

between coastal and non-coastal areas never differed by more than 2 percent. 

STUDY PRODUCTS: Aratame, N. and J. Singelmann. 2002. Migration and 

Commuting in Louisiana’s Coastal Area. Prepared by Louisiana State University. A 

final report for the U.S. Department of the Interior, Minerals Management Service Gulf 

of Mexico OCS Region, New Orleans, La. OCS MMS Study 2002-072. 47 pp.