The population of Pahrump continues to edge closer to the 40,000 mark, according to Nye County Planning Department estimates.

But figures from the third quarter of 2007, ending Sept. 30, continue to show a slower growth rate last year than in 2006.

Nye County as a whole gained 335 residents in the third quarter, county planners estimate, to 46,762 people. Pahrump accounted for almost all the growth, growing by 367 residents in those three months, to 38,798 residents.

That's close to the 363 residents Pahrump gained in the second quarter, but well below the 847 residents the valley added in the first quarter, and it may possibly be a sign of the construction slowdown due to the economy.

Pahrump grew by 2,334 residents in 2006. If the growth rate in the second and third quarter of 2007 continues into the last quarter, Pahrump would add only 1,469 residents in 2007, down over a third from 2006.

During the boom year from the first quarter of 2005 to the first quarter of 2006, Pahrump's population grew by 3,636 people.

Almost everywhere else in Nye County, population figures were down in the third quarter of 2007. Despite a heavy parceling of lots during the year, Amargosa Valley lost three residents and dropped to 1,383 residents. Tonopah lost four residents, to 2,613 people, while the population went down in Beatty by 42 residents in the third quarter to 1,091.

Smoky Valley had two fewer residents, with an estimated 1,765. Gabbs however added 17 people, to finish the quarter with 401 residents.

The population estimates are based on the number of residential customer accounts serviced by electrical utilities, multiplied by the average number of persons in each household as determined by the 2000 census. People living in group housing, like nursing homes, are estimated using population trends, which are checked in annual telephone interviews.

The population estimates are used for baseline projections for Nye County for the Yucca Mountain project and other planning purposes.