Local Economic Vitality - Grazing (Midwest Conservation Blueprint 2026 Indicator)

Definition This indicator identifies the economic support of local economies from natural resources or associated activities (e.g. grazing, timber, pollination, outdoor recreation, and fisheries). It prioritizes the value of grazing areas based on the five-year average pasture rental rate of Midwest counties. Pixels can take the following values: 1 – Lowest county grazing value 2 – Low county grazing value 3 – Medium county grazing value 4 – High county grazing value 5 – Highest county grazing value Selection This indicator was chosen as a targetable, important feature of the MLI goals that will be used to track conditions over time and prioritize areas for conservation. Indicators were defined through elicitation and prioritization exercises with federal and state participants. Criteria for the indicators includes 1) actionable, 2) measurable, 3) relevant to multiple groups across the region, and/or 4) representative of other social and/or environmental values. Input Data & Mapping Steps This indicator originates from the US Census Bureau USA County Boundaries, USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, and the Midwest Conservation Blueprint Grasslands Indicator. To create this layer, MLI partners, members, and staff completed the following mapping steps: projected all input data to NAD83 (2011) UTM Zone 15N, calculated the 5-year average grazing value for each county, joined the grazing value to county boundaries, converted counties to a 30m raster, extracted only grassland pixels, and reclassified the resulting layer into the following values: 1 – Lowest county grazing value, 2 – Low county grazing value, 3 – Medium county grazing value, 4 – High county grazing value, and 5 – Highest county grazing value. Finally, we removed highly altered areas using our Highly Altered Areas mask. For full mapping details, please refer to the Midwest Conservation Blueprint Development Process. For a complete download of all Blueprint input and output data, visit the Midwest Conservation Blueprint 2026 Data Download.### 定义 本指标用于识别自然资源或其关联活动（如放牧、木材采伐、授粉、户外休闲及渔业）为地方经济带来的支撑作用。该指标基于美国中西部各县的五年期牧场租金平均值，对放牧区域的价值进行优先级排序。像元取值如下： 1 – 县域放牧价值最低 2 – 县域放牧价值较低 3 – 县域放牧价值中等 4 – 县域放牧价值较高 5 – 县域放牧价值最高 ### 遴选依据 该指标被选为MLI目标中具备可针对性施策潜力的重要特征，将用于长期追踪生态状况并优先划定保护区域。指标通过与联邦及州级参与方开展的意见征询与优先级排序工作得以确立。指标遴选标准包括：1）可落地执行；2）可量化评估；3）对区域内多类群体具有相关性；及/或4）可代表其他社会及/或环境价值。 ### 输入数据与制图步骤 本指标的数据来源包括美国人口普查局（US Census Bureau）美国县界图层、美国农业部国家农业统计服务处（USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service）数据，以及《中西部保护蓝图》草地指标。为生成该图层，MLI合作方、成员及工作人员完成了如下制图步骤：将所有输入数据投影至NAD83（2011）UTM 15N带坐标系；计算每个县域的五年期平均放牧价值；将放牧价值属性与县界图层进行关联；将县界矢量图层转换为30米分辨率栅格；仅提取草地像元；将生成的图层重分类为如下取值：1 – 县域放牧价值最低、2 – 县域放牧价值较低、3 – 县域放牧价值中等、4 – 县域放牧价值较高、5 – 县域放牧价值最高。最后，通过"高度改造区域"掩膜去除受人类活动严重干扰的区域。如需完整的制图流程细节，请参阅《中西部保护蓝图》开发文档；如需下载所有蓝图输入及输出数据，请访问《中西部保护蓝图2026》数据下载页面。