Source: US Geological Survey
Agriculture and food industries make up a significant part of many states’ economies, along with the United States as a whole. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service produces the Cropland Data Layer annual map, based on satellite imagery, of crop types in fields across the United States. This provides acreage estimates for major commodities and additional digital products based on specific crops. The non-crop areas on the map, such as forests and cities, are classified using NLCD data.
NLCD allows users to compare how specific land cover types, like cropland, have changed in area over time. It can show where cropland has been lost to expanding cities, barren land, forest, shrubland, grasses or wetlands, which can be useful information for city and state land use planning as well as the agriculture industry.
One 2024 Ohio State University study earned attention when it used NLCD to determine that 51% of the cropland loss in Ohio from 2001 to 2021, more than 180,000 acres, could be attributed to development, or land that’s covered with artificial surfaces impervious to water such as pavement and buildings. Another 2024 Ohio State University study examining eight Midwest states using NLCD for the same time period found a similar result, with 55% of cropland loss attributed to development, most occurring in Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs).
To help with grazing management in western states, Rangeland Condition Monitoring Assessment and Projection (RCMAP) mapping serves as a complement to NLCD. RCMAP provides much greater detail about the condition and trends of rangeland. The Western Landowners Alliance published an overview of online tools for range health in 2022, which included RCMAP.