| Arch | ||||||||||
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| Population | 1,531 (Dec 2010)[1] | |||||||||
| - Density | 239 /km2 (620 /sq mi) | |||||||||
| Area | 6.37 km2 (2.46 sq mi)[2] | |||||||||
| Elevation | 450 m (1,476 ft) | |||||||||
| Postal code | 3296 | |||||||||
| SFOS number | 0381 | |||||||||
| Surrounded by | Bettlach (SO), Bibern (SO), Grenchen (SO), Leuzigen, Rüti bei Büren | |||||||||
| Website | www.arch-be.ch SFSO statistics |
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Arch
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Map of Arch
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Arch is a municipality in the Seeland administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is also a church parish of the Swiss Reformed Church.
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The first historical mention of the town was in 1236 as Archo. In 1561, a ferry across the Aare was set up.
In Arch there are two blocks of multi-family homes and one of single-family homes, built to conform with MINERGIE, a Swiss trademark for sustainable construction. Because of these buildings, the municipality is ranked third among the municipalities of the canton in energy awareness.
Arch has an area, as of 2009[update], of 6.37 km2 (2.46 sq mi). Of this area, 3.29 km2 (1.27 sq mi) or 51.6% is used for agricultural purposes, while1.75 km2 (0.68 sq mi) or 27.5% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 1.02 km2 (0.39 sq mi) or 16.0% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.31 km2 (0.12 sq mi) or 4.9% is either rivers or lakes and 0.04 km2 (9.9 acres) or 0.6% is unproductive land.[3]
Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 0.6% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 6.3% and transportation infrastructure made up 6.4%. Power and water infrastructure as well as other special developed areas made up 2.4% of the area. 25.9% of the total land area is heavily forested and 1.6% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 40.3% is used for growing crops and 10.0% is pastures, while 1.3% is used for orchards or vine crops. All the water in the municipality is in rivers and streams.[3]
Arch has a population (as of 31 December 2010) of 1,531.[1] As of 2007[update], 7.2% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 7.1%. Most of the population (as of 2000[update]) speaks German (94.6%), with French being second most common ( 1.5%) and Italian being third ( 0.6%).
In the 2007 election the most popular party was the SVP which received 50.6% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS (17.6%), the FDP (10.6%) and the Green Party (8.6%).
The age distribution of the population (as of 2000[update]) is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 26.1% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 61.8% and the seniors (over 64 years old) make up 12%. The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Arch about 77.7% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either University or a Fachhochschule). In Arch there is a primary school and a secondary school, which is shared with the municipalitiesRüti bei Büren and Leuzigen.
| Historical population | |
|---|---|
| Year | Population |
| 1764 | 234 |
| 1850 | 512 |
| 1950 | 796 |
| 1990 | 1313 |
| 2002 | 1577 |
| 2003 | 1553 |
Arch has an unemployment rate of 1.07%. As of 2005[update], there were 35 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 17 businesses involved in this sector. 289 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 29 businesses in this sector. 170 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 45 businesses in this sector.[4]