Increase in Rate of Loss of Open Space to Development

The

rate at which open space is being lost to development has more than doubled since 1992, according to a report released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in early November. During the decade 1982 to 1992 and excluding Alaska, 13.9 million acres (5.6 million ha) were converted from farmland, forest, and wetland to development in the U.S., while during the five-year period of 1992–97, almost 16 million acres (6.5 million ha) were developed. The states of Texas, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Florida, and North Carolina lead the nation in land converted to development since 1992. The dramatic increase in developed land is particularly surprising in Pennsylvania, where 1.1 million acres (0.45 million ha) were developed between 1992 and 1997 while the population increased by only 6,000 people (0.05%) from 1992 to 1998. Nationwide, an average of 3.2 million acres (1.3 million ha) of open space were developed annually between 1992 and 1997, compared with 1.4 million acres (0.57 million ha) per year between 1982 and 1992. For more information, visit the NRCS 1997 National Resources Inventory web site:

www.nhq.nrcs.usda.gov.