How Land Is Used

Excerpts: The Nation's land use has shifted slightly from agricultural to non-agricultural over the past several decades. Nearly one of every two acres—47 percent of all land—was in agricultural uses in 1982, the most recent estimate available. In comparison, about 52 percent was in agricultural uses in 1910 and 49 percent in 1950 including Alaska and Hawaii which became States in 1959. Land-use changes will continue as economic conditions for competing uses of land vary and as governmental programs and policies affecting land-use decisions are altered. Conversions to urban and other nonagricultural uses will continue. Legislation to protect and preserve agricultural land will discourage and, in some situations, prohibit such conversions. Legislation to expand park systems, wildlife refuges, and wilderness areas is likely.

节选内容：过去数十年间，美国土地利用格局已从农业用地向非农业用地小幅转移。据现有可获得的最新估算数据，1982年时全美近半数（47%）的土地均为农业用地；相较而言，1910年农业用地占比约为52%，1950年为49%，两项统计均包含1959年才正式成为美国州份的阿拉斯加与夏威夷。随着土地竞争性用途的经济条件发生变化，以及影响土地利用决策的政府规划与政策调整，土地利用格局的转变仍将持续。向城市及其他非农业用途的土地转换进程将延续，旨在保护与留存农业用地的立法将抑制这类转换，在部分情形下甚至会明令禁止。此外，旨在扩张公园体系、野生动物保护区及荒野区域的立法也有望出台。