| Kappelen | ||||||||||
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| Population | 1,257 (Dec 2010)[1] | |||||||||
| - Density | 114 /km2 (297 /sq mi) | |||||||||
| Area | 10.96 km2 (4.23 sq mi)[2] | |||||||||
| Elevation | 437 m (1,434 ft) | |||||||||
| Postal code | 3273 | |||||||||
| SFOS number | 0305 | |||||||||
| Surrounded by | Aarberg, Bargen, Bühl, Hermrigen, Jens, Lyss, Merzligen, Walperswil, Worben | |||||||||
| Website | www.kappelen.ch SFSO statistics |
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Kappelen
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Map of Kappelen
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Kappelen (French: Chapelle) is a municipality in the Seeland administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.
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Kappelen has an area, as of 2009[update], of 10.96 km2 (4.23 sq mi). Of this area, 8.04 km2 (3.10 sq mi) or 73.4% is used for agricultural purposes, while 1.56 km2 (0.60 sq mi) or 14.2% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 1.19 km2 (0.46 sq mi) or 10.9% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.04 km2 (9.9 acres) or 0.4% is either rivers or lakes and 0.05 km2 (12 acres) or 0.5% is unproductive land.[3]
Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 3.9% and transportation infrastructure made up 5.7%. 13.7% of the total land area is heavily forested. Of the agricultural land, 67.7% is used for growing crops and 4.8% is pastures. All the water in the municipality is in rivers and streams.[3]
Kappelen has a population (as of 31 December 2010) of 1,257.[1] As of 2007[update], 6.4% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 21.5%, mostly due to immigration into the municipality. Most of the population (as of 2000[update]) speaks German (87.2%), with Arabic being second most common ( 1.6%) and Albanian being third ( 1.5%).
In the 2007 election the most popular party was SVP which received 52.8% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS (15.5%), the FDP (9.8%) and the Green (8%).
The age distribution of the population (as of 2000[update]) is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 26% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 60.5% and the seniors (over 64 years old) make up 13.5%. The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Kappelen about 73.9% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule).
Kappelen has an unemployment rate of 0.84%. As of 2005[update], there were 113 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 32 businesses involved in this agricultural sector. 309 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 30 businesses in this manufacturing sector. 112 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 24 businesses in the services sector.[4]
Kappelen is home to Biel-Kappelen Airport, which has an ICAO code of LSZP.