"After nearly 30 years of watching a decline in the number of Catholics applying for marriage annulment"

Well, the main reason for that is that the number of marriages (both sacramental and civil) has been steadily declining over the past decades as well. 

While some of the changes make the new process somewhat simpler, and that and the media attention to the process may have contributed to a temporary increase, it is unlikely that it will lead to a sustained increase.