Demographics of the Black Warrior River Watershed
Black Warrior Riverkeeper’s service area, the Black Warrior River watershed, includes the parts of 17 Alabama counties that drain to the Black Warrior River. Click on each county’s name to view its 2020 Census Data: Bibb, Blount, Cullman, Etowah, Fayette, Franklin, Greene, Hale, Jefferson, Lawrence, Marengo, Marshall, Morgan, Perry, Tuscaloosa, Walker, and Winston.
The total population of our watershed’s 17 counties, according to the 2020 Census, is 1,616,257. Using the same language as the Census, we have calculated the following demographic information* for the total population of our watershed’s 17 counties:
White alone, 68.6%
Black or African American alone, 28.0%
American Indian and Alaska Native alone, 0.6%
Asian alone, 1.2%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, 0.1%
Two or More Races, 1.5%
Hispanic or Latino, 5.4%
White alone, not Hispanic or Latino, 63.9%
Persons in poverty, 14.9%
*Population data is from the 2020 Census, while Race and Hispanic Origin percentages are from the Vintage 2019 Population Estimates Program, and the Persons in Poverty percentages are from the 2020 Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates (SAIPE) Program. Our final calculations are based on these estimates, so they are not exact representations.
We at Black Warrior Riverkeeper are protecting the watershed for all of its inhabitants and visitors alike. Clean water is essential to everyone, regardless of their ethnicity, beliefs, politics, or anything else. As clean water advocates, we are often especially active in communities that bear disproportionate burdens of pollution across the Black Warrior River watershed. We have collected demographic data to support our efforts to improve justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion throughout the watershed, which is mapped below. Franklin County’s name is covered by the map legend.
Click on the map to view a large PDF file that allows for scrolling and zooming.
