United States

Department of

Agriculture

Economic

Research

Service

Economic

Information

Bulletin

Number 89

December 2011

Major Uses of Land

in the United States, 2007

Cynthia Nickerson, Robert Ebel,

Allison Borchers, and Fernando Carriazo
www.ers.usda.gov

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Recommended citation format for this publication:

Nickerson, Cynthia, Robert Ebel, Allison Borchers, and Fernando Carriazo. 

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007, EIB-89, U.S. Department of 

Agriculture, Economic Research Service, December 2011.

Cover photos: Arches National Monument, National Park Service; 

grazing cattle, Creatas; forest land, Comstock. All others, USDA.
United States 

Department 

of Agriculture 

www.ers.usda.gov 

A Report from the Economic Research Service

Economic

Information

Bulletint

Number 89

December 2011

Major Uses of Land 

in the United States, 2007

Abstract

The United States has a total land area of nearly 2.3 billion acres. In 2007, the major land 

uses were forestland at 671 million acres (30 percent); grassland pasture and rangeland 

at 614 million (27 percent); cropland at 408 million (18 percent); special uses (primarily 

parks and wildlife areas) at 313 million acres (14 percent); miscellaneous uses (like 

tundra or swamps) at 197 million acres (9 percent); and urban land at 61 million acres 

(3 percent). This report presents fi ndings from the most recent (2007) inventory of U.S. 

major land uses, drawing on data from the U.S. Census Bureau, public land management 

and conservation agencies, and other sources. The data are synthesized by State to estimate the use of several broad classes and subclasses of agricultural and nonagricultural 

land over time. National and regional trends in land use are compared with earlier major 

land-use estimates.

Keywords: Land use, land-use change, agricultural land, nonagricultural land, cropland, 

forest-use land, forestland, pasture, rangeland, rural residential land, urban land

Acknowledgments:

We appreciate the thoughtful reviews from Ralph Alig at the USDA Forest Service, 

Kevin Barnes at USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, Jim Benson at 

USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, Todd Kuethe at USDA’s Economic 

Research Service (ERS), Ruben Lubowski at the Environmental Defense Fund, Utpal 

Vasavada at USDA’s ERS, and Keith Wiebe at Food and Agriculture Organization. 

Marlow Vesterby provided valuable advice on historical estimation procedures, and 

Glenn Schaible from ERS provided assistance with irrigated acreage trends. The authors 

would also like to thank Angela Anderson for editorial input and Susan DeGeorge for 

graphic design support.

Cynthia Nickerson, cnickerson@ers.usda.gov

Robert Ebel, rebel@ers.usda.gov

Allison Borchers, aborchers@ers.usda.gov

Fernando Carriazo
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Preface

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service (ERS) has 

provided major land-use estimates for the United States for over 50 years, 

offering the only consistent accounting of all major uses of public and private 

land in the United States. Francis Marschner made some of the earliest 

contributions (1922-40) in the Atlas of American Agriculture when he was 

with ERS’s predecessor agency, the Bureau of Agricultural Economics. 

A consistent series was started in 1945 and has since been published at 

intervals coinciding with the Censuses of Agriculture. Marschner was also 

involved in the 1945 land-use inventory (Reuss et al., 1948). A wide range of 

researchers, policy analysts, and organizations have used the data in econometric models and elsewhere. The annual cropland portion of the series has 

been maintained since 1910. 

To ensure comparability with earlier estimates in the series, researchers 

rely on a standardized set of procedures to measure land use (Barnard and 

Hexem, 1988). Even so, comparability is sometimes hindered by changes in 

the types of data available over time. This change is inevitable because the 

estimates are not drawn from a single source but are derived by reconciling 

several data sources. 

Economic analyses often require consistent acreage estimates of land use. 

Before 1945, area estimates of major land uses were not consistently available for all States and all major uses of land. Various agencies had data on 

land use that differed widely in defi nition, collection criteria, and acreage. 

No single agency provided data on all land uses that would sum to the total 

land in the United States. For example, the USDA Forest Service had data on 

forestland, while the Bureau of Land Management provided public grazing 

land acreage. The Census of Agriculture collected information on cropland 

and rangeland, but only if the acreage was included in “land in farms,” 

missing agricultural land not in farms. Various other Federal and State agencies provided data on parks, fi sh and wildlife areas, roads, railroads, defense 

installations, and other categories. 

Data availability has continued to improve due to new data collection efforts 

and advances in technology, such as satellite imaging and geographic information systems (GIS). For example, the U.S. Geological Survey produced a 

satellite-based National Land Cover Database (NLCD), which covered the 

48 contiguous States for 1992, 2001, and 2006. These data offer comprehensive coverage and unparalleled detail on the distribution and pattern of land 

cover, as well as aggregate acreage statistics. Satellite data, however, cannot 

provide information on certain land uses as opposed to land covers. For 

example, NLCD cannot distinguish between grazed and ungrazed forests—

both of which have tree cover, but have different uses—or between hayland 

(a crop) and pasture (used for grazing). 
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Since 1982, USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) 

has published the National Resources Inventory (NRI), a successor to the 

Conservation Needs Inventory. The NRI is based on a survey of all nonFederal land and includes agricultural land not covered by the Census of 

Agriculture. The NRI, however, does not cover Federal land, which accounts 

for about 29 percent of total U.S. land area. Also, the 2007 NRI concentrated 

on the 48 contiguous States; estimates for Hawaii and Alaska’s 365 million 

acres (16 percent of the total U.S. land area) are underway. ERS remains the 

only source of consistent major land-use estimates for all 50 States.
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Contents

Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .ii

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v

How Land Is Used . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Historical Trends in Major Land Uses. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Basic Regional Land-Use Patterns. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Cropland. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Cropland Used for Crops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Cropland Pasture and Idle Cropland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Trends in Cropland Uses. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Grassland Pasture and Range, and Total Grazing Land . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Grassland Pasture and Range . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Cropland Pasture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Grazed Forestland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Trends in Grazing Acreage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Forest-Use Land and Total Forested Land. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Forest-Use Land . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Total Forested Land . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Trends in Forest-Use and Forested Acreage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Urban and Rural Residential Uses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Special Uses. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Miscellaneous Other Land Uses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Major Land Uses, by Class of Ownership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Conclusions and Challenges To Resolve. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Appendix 1: Defi nitions and Explanation of the Data. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Appendix 2: MLU Estimates: Primary Data Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Data fi les and additional summary tables with historical data are 

available online as part of the ERS data product, “Major Land Uses” 

at http://www.ers.usda.gov/data/majorlanduses/. This data product 

includes data by region and State (1945-2007) for major uses of cropland and components of cropland, pasture and range, land in specialuse areas, forest-use land, urban area, and irrigated land in farms.
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Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

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Summary

What Is the Issue?

The ERS Major Land Uses (MLU) series is the only accounting of all major 

uses of public and private land in all 50 States. These State estimates were 

started in 1945 and have been consistently published at roughly 5-year 

intervals, coinciding with the Census of Agriculture. Land use and land-use 

changes involve important economic and environmental implications for 

commodity production and trade, open space, soil and water conservation, 

and other policy issues. To study land-use change, statistics on land use over 

time must be developed. This publication presents the results of the latest 

inventory (2007) of U.S. major land uses and discusses national and regional 

trends in land use compared with earlier estimates. 

What Did the Study Find?

The U.S. land area totals nearly 2.3 billion acres. Major land uses in 2007 

included forest-use land at 671 million acres (30 percent); grassland pasture 

and range at 614 million acres (27 percent); cropland at 408 million acres (18 

percent); special uses at 313 million acres (14 percent); miscellaneous uses at 

197 million acres (9 percent); and urban land at 61 million (3 percent). 

Cropland. Total cropland includes land planted for crops (82 percent of 

total cropland), cropland used for pasture, and idled cropland (including 

acreage removed from production under Government programs, such as the 

Conservation Reserve Program). Total cropland increased in the late 1940s, 

declined from 1949 to 1964, increased from 1964 to 1978, and decreased 

again from 1978 to 2007. Between 2002 and 2007, total cropland decreased 

by 34 million acres to its lowest level since this series began in 1945, even 

though harvested cropland (which accounts for most land planted to crops) 

increased 5 million acres due to a recovery of failed cropland from severe 

droughts in 2002. A 26-million-acre decline in cropland pasture contributed 

to this trend, partly due to methodological changes in the 2007 Census of 

Agriculture that reclassifi ed some cropland pasture to permanent grassland 

pasture and range. 

Grassland Pasture and Range. The estimated acreage of grassland pasture 

and range increased by 27 million acres (almost 5 percent) between 2002 and 

2007, partly offsetting a decline in this land-use type during 1945-97. The 

recent increase almost exactly offsets the decline in cropland pasture over 

the same period. Based on acreage for all grazing land (the sum of grassland 

pasture and range, cropland used for pasture, and grazed forests), land available for grazing declined from 783 million acres in 2002 to 777 million acres 

in 2007, continuing a downward trend since the 1940s. 

Forest-Use Land. Forest-use land in 2007 includes 127 million acres of 

grazed forests, but excludes an estimated 80 million forest acres in parks, 

wildlife areas, and other special uses. Forest-use land increased 20 million 

acres (3 percent) from 2002 to 2007, continuing a trend that became evident 

in 2002 and reversing an almost 50-year downward trend. The 14-percent 

decline in forest-use land between 1949 and 2002 was largely due to forestuse land reclassifi ed to special-use areas. 
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Urban and Rural Residential Areas. Urban land acreage quadrupled from 

1945 to 2007, increasing at about twice the rate of population growth over 

this period. Land in urban areas was estimated at 61 million acres in 2007, 

up almost 2 percent since 2002 and 17 percent since 1990 (after adjusting 

the 1990 estimate for the new criteria used in the 2000 Census). The Census 

Bureau estimates that urban area increased almost 8 million acres (13 

percent) during the 1990s. Census estimates based on the previous criteria 

indicate that urban area increased 9 million acres (18 percent) during the 

1980s, 13 million acres (37 percent) during the 1970s, and 9 million acres 

(36 percent) during the 1960s. Estimated rural residential acreage outside 

urban areas increased to 103 million acres between 2002 and 2007. In 

percentage terms, this 9-million-acre (10-percent) increase is about a third 

of the 21-million-acre (29-percent) increase over the previous 5-year period 

(1997-2002) and refl ects the downturn in the residential housing market that 

occurred during the mid 2000s. Despite continuing large percentage increases 

in urban and rural residential areas, declines in the remaining rural area are 

small given the size of the available land base. 

Special-Use Areas. Special-use areas include rural transportation, national/

State parks, wilderness and wildlife areas, national defense and industrial 

areas, and farmsteads and farm roads. Over all 50 States, special-use areas 

have increased nearly threefold since 1959, including a fourfold increase 

in rural parks and fi sh and wildlife areas. Over 2002-07, special-use areas 

increased more than 16 million acres (6 percent). Some of the estimated rise 

in special-use areas from 2002 to 2007 was driven by improved data, leading 

to a reclassifi cation of miscellaneous and other land, which declined by 31 

million acres (14 percent) over the same period.

Regional Patterns. Regional land-use patterns vary with differences in soil, 

climate, topography, and population. Relatively stable patterns of land use 

at the national level obscure larger land-use changes at regional and State 

levels. For example, while cropland used for crops remained constant nationally between 1964 and 2007, cropland used for crops increased by 12 million 

acres in the Corn Belt and Northern Plains and decreased by 12 million acres 

in the remaining regions. Over this 43-year period, the distribution of acreage 

used for crops across major crop-producing regions remained about the same. 

Ownership. Nearly 60 percent (1.35 billion acres) of the land in the United 

States is privately owned. The Federal Government owns 29 percent (653 

million acres), over a third of which is in Alaska. State and local governments own about 9 percent (198 million acres). About 3 percent (66 million 

acres) is in trust by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. There were no major 

changes in these aggregate ownership statistics from 2002 to 2007. Foreign 

ownership accounted for about 1 percent (22 million acres) of U.S. land in 

2007.

How Was the Study Conducted?

Data from USDA Forest Service and National Agricultural Statistics Service, 

the U.S. Census Bureau, public land management and conservation agencies, and other sources were compiled by State to estimate the uses of several 

broad classes and subclasses of land in 2007. Standardized procedures were 

used to develop the estimates. Estimates of cropland, urban area, and special 
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Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

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uses, which are based largely on census data and administrative data, are 

developed fi rst. The estimates of forest-use land and grassland pasture and 

range are then developed, followed by miscellaneous land uses. Though all 

land-use categories require reconciliation among sources at the State level, 

some categories in the MLU series are adjusted more than others based on 

the residual amount of land after other uses are tabulated. These categories include miscellaneous land and, to some extent, grassland pasture and 

range—categories for which less reliable data sources are available relative to cropland and forest-use areas. In general, more confi dence should be 

put in the broader land-use trends over decades rather than specifi c 5-year 

fl uctuations. 

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Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

How Land Is Used

The United States has a total land area of about 2.3 billion acres, which are 

allocated among a variety of uses (fi g. 1). In 2007, the largest shares of the 

Nation’s land were allocated to forest use, grassland pasture and range, 

and cropland (see “Appendix: Defi nitions and Explanation of Data” for 

detailed descriptions of terms in bold in this report). About 18 percent of 

the U.S. land area was cropland in 2007, 27 percent was permanent grassland pasture and range, and 30 percent was forest-use land.1 Urban areas

accounted for 3 percent of U.S. land, while a variety of special uses—

including parks and wilderness areas, transportation, and national defense 

areas—accounted for 14 percent of the land base, and miscellaneous other

uses comprised the remaining 9 percent. These land-use percentages are 

affected signifi cantly by the land area of Alaska, which, relative to the 

contiguous 48 States, has small amounts of cropland and pasture but large 

areas of forest-use, special-use, and miscellaneous other land. The full set of 

historical estimates and summary tables for 2007, by region and State, are 

available as an ERS data product, Major Land Uses.

2

Land classifi ed as cropland totaled about 408 million acres in 2007 (fi g. 1) 

and represented all land in crop rotation, including cropland pasture (fi g. 

2). Cropland used for crops—cropland harvested, cropland failure, and 

cultivated summer fallow—totaled 335 million acres, or 82 percent of total 

cropland acreage (table 1). Nearly 9 percent of total cropland was used only 

for pasture, while another 9 percent of total cropland was classifi ed as idle 

cropland. Acreage enrolled in the USDA Conservation Reserve Program 

(CRP) is included in this category. The CRP, established by the 1985 Food 

Security Act, is the largest Federal program idling cropland, offering annual 

rental payments to farm owners and operators who voluntarily retire environmentally sensitive cropland under 10- to 15-year contracts.3 In 2007, the 

CRP paid about $1.8 billion to retire nearly 37 million cropland acres (an 

area slightly larger than the State of Iowa). 

In 2007, land used for agricultural purposes—cropland, grassland pasture and 

range, forestland grazed, land in farmsteads, and farm roads and lanes—

totaled 1.16 billion acres, about 51 percent of total U.S. land area (table 1). 

By comparison, the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) estimated 921 million acres of “land in farms” in 2007 (USDA/NASS, 2009a). 

The difference between the two estimates is mostly accounted for by grazing 

lands (both forested and nonforested) that are not included in the NASS defi -

nition of a farm. 

Livestock grazing was the primary use of an estimated 614 million acres 

of permanent grassland pasture and range, accounting for 27 percent of all 

U.S. land and slightly more than half of all agricultural land. When cropland 

pasture (36 million acres) and forested grazing land (127 million acres) were 

added to the permanent grassland acreage, total grazing land accounted for 

777 million acres, or 34 percent of the total U.S. land area and two-thirds of 

all agricultural land. 

Forest-use land not grazed (total forestland minus land grazed and in special 

uses, such as national and State parks) amounted to 544 million acres and the 

1The forest-use designation excludes 

about 80 million acres of forestland in 

special uses, such as parks and wildlife 

areas. Forestland used for all purposes 

in 2002 totaled 749 million acres, 

nearly a third of the land area of the 

United States.

2See http://www.ers.usda.gov/data/

majorlanduses/.

3Some CRP land is planted to trees. 

These lands are considered idled 

cropland because the CRP contracts are 

short term and the land could revert to 

cropland at the expiration of the contract. However, tree-covered CRP land 

may be less likely to revert to cropland 

once the contract expires (Petrolia and 

Ibendahl, 2008).
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largest share of nonagricultural land (table 1). Nonagricultural special-use 

areas (excluding 12 million acres of special-use land in farmsteads and farm 

roads) accounted for an estimated 301 million acres, about 13 percent of the 

Nation’s land area. Of this amount, Federal and State parks, wildlife refuges, 

and related acres occupied 252 million acres, 11 percent of the total land 

base. Rural transportation land accounted for another 27 million acres, and 

defense and other public installations and facilities accounted for about 22 

million acres.

48 States

All States

0 500 1,000 1,500 2,000 2,500

Figure 1

Major uses of land, 2007

Notes: Cropland includes all land in crop rotation, including cropland used for crops, idle 

cropland, and cropland used only for pasture. Idle cropland includes about 37 million acres 

under the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). Grassland pasture and range includes 

permanent grassland and other nonforested pasture and range. Forest-use land is total 

forestland as classified by USDA Forest Service, excluding an estimated 80 million acres used 

primarily for parks, wildlife areas, and other uses. Special-uses land includes areas for rural 

transportation, recreation and wildlife, various public installations and facilities, farmsteads, and 

farm roads, including the 80 million acres of forested land. Miscellaneous land includes areas in 

various uses not inventoried, marshes, open swamps, bare rock areas, desert, tundra, and 

other land generally of low agricultural value. Urban uses are listed as a separate category and 

are not included under the special uses category as was done in previous Major Land Uses

reports. The land base includes streams and canals less than an eighth of a mile wide, and 

ponds, lakes, and reservoirs covering less than 40 acres. Distributions by major use may not 

add to totals due to rounding. See Appendix 1 for more complete descriptions of the different 

land-use categories.

Sources: USDA, Economic Research Service calculations based on reports and records of the 

U.S. Department of Commerce/Census Bureau (2002b and 2003) and Federal, State, and local 

land management and conservation agencies, including the U.S. Department of the 

Interior/Bureau of Land Management (2007); U.S. Department of Transportation/Bureau of 

Transportation Statistics (2007); U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Aviation Administration (2002); U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Highway Administration (2007); U.S. 

Department of Transportation/Federal Railroad Administration (2004); U.S. Department of the 

Interior/Fish and Wildlife Service (2007); U.S. General Services Administration (2004); 

Geographic Data Technology (2007); USDA/National Agricultural Statistics Service (2009a and 

2009b); USDA/Farm Service Agency (2008); U.S. Department of the Interior/National Park 

Service (2007); USDA/Natural Resources Conservation Service (2009); Smith et al. (2009); and 

Wilderness Institute (2009).

Million acres

Cropland Grassland pasture and range Forest-use land

Special uses Miscellaneous land Urban land

408 614 671 313 197 61

408 612 576 169

68

60
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Sixty-one million acres were classifi ed as urban areas: All but 400,000 acres 

were in the contiguous 48 States.4 Urban acreage accounted for less than 3 

percent of the Nation’s overall land area and just over 3 percent of the land 

area of the contiguous 48 States. 

The remaining 197 million acres (9 percent) of the U.S. land area included 

various miscellaneous uses not inventoried, including tundra, deserts, bare 

rock areas, snow and ice fi elds, swamps, marshes, and other areas not independently categorized in this MLU report, such as wetlands and rural residential. The land classifi ed under other miscellaneous uses included some of 

the estimated 103 million acres of land used for rural housing lots in 2007.5

4In previous Major Land Uses (MLU) 

reports, urban areas were classifi ed 

as part of special-use areas. Given the 

growing interest in urban land-use 

trends, urban areas are treated as a 

distinct use in this report.

5Given the data used to defi ne rural 

residential area, it is not possible to 

distinguish rural housing lots from land 

classifi ed under other uses, such as 

forests or grassland pasture and range.

1949 54 59 64 69 74 78 82 87 92 97 2002 07

0

100

200

300

400

500

Figure 2

Major uses of U.S. cropland

Harvested cropland Crop failure Summer fallow

Idle cropland Cropland pasture

Million acres

Note: See Appendix 1 for descriptions of the different cropland categories.

Sources: USDA, Economic Research Service calculations for 2007 and 2002 are based on 

USDA/National Agricultural Statistics Service (2004a, 2004b, 2009a and 2009b) and 

USDA/Farm Service Agency (2003 and 2008). Estimates prior to 2002 are based on Vesterby 

and Krupa (2001); Daugherty (1991 and 1995); Frey (1973, 1979, and 1982); Frey and Hexem 

(1985); Frey et al. (1968); Wooten et al. (1962); Wooten and Anderson (1957); and Wooten 

(1953a).
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Table 1

Agricultural and nonagricultural uses of U.S. land, 2007 

Acreage Proportion of total

Land use 48 States United States 48 States United States

--------Million acres-------- --------Percent--------

Agricultural:

 Cropland—

 Cropland used for crops1 335 335 17.7 14.8

 Idle cropland 37 37 2.0 1.6

 Grazing land—

 Cropland used only for pasture 36 36 1.9 1.6

 Grassland pasture and range 612 614 32.3 27.1

 Forestland grazed 127 127 6.7 5.6

 Special uses—

 Farmsteads, farm roads 12 12 0.6 0.5

Total agricultural land2 1,159 1,161 61.2 51.3

Nonagricultural:

 Forest-use land not grazed3 449 544 23.7 24.0

 Special uses—

 Transportation4 26 27 1.4 1.2

 Recreation and wildlife areas5 110 252 5.8 11.1

 National defense areas6 21 23 1.1 1.0

 Urban land 60 61 3.2 2.7

 Miscellaneous other land7 68 197 3.6 8.7

Total nonagricultural land2 734 1,103 38.8 48.7

Total land area2 1,894 2,264 100.0 100.0

1 Cropland harvested, crop failure, and cultivated summer fallow.

2 Distributions may not add to totals due to rounding.

3 Excludes 80 million acres of forestland in parks and land in other special uses. 

4 Rural highways, roads and railroad rights-of-way, and rural airports.

5 National and State parks and related recreational areas, national and State wildlife refuges, and national wilderness and 

primitive areas.

6 Federal land administered by the U.S. Department of Defense for military purposes and land administered by the U.S. 

Department of Energy.

7 Includes areas in miscellaneous uses not inventoried, marshes, open swamps, bare rock areas, desert, and tundra.

Sources: USDA, Economic Research Service calculations based on reports and records of the U.S. Department of 

Commerce/Census Bureau (2002b and 2003) and Federal, State, and local land management and conservation agencies including the U.S. Department of the Interior/Bureau of Land Management (2007); U.S. Department of Transportation/Bureau of 

Transportation Statistics (2007); U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Aviation Administration (2002); U.S. Department 

of Transportation/Federal Highway Administration (2007); U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Railroad Administration 

(2004); USDA/Forest Service (2008); U.S. Department of the Interior/Fish and Wildlife Service (2007); U.S. General Services 

Administration (2004); Geographic Data Technology (2007); USDA/National Agricultural Statistics Service (2009a and 

2009b); USDA/Farm Service Agency (2008); U.S. Department of the Interior/National Park Service (2007); USDA/Natural 

Resources Conservation Service (2009); Smith et al. (2009); and Wilderness Institute (2009).
5

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Historical Trends in Major Land Uses 

The total amount of land in the most dominant land-use categories has fl uctuated over time. Total cropland area declined nearly 10 percent between 1945 

and 2007 but not consistently (table 2).6 Total cropland area increased in the 

late 1940s, declined from 1949 to 1964, increased from 1964 to 1978, and 

then declined again from 1978 to 2007. Total cropland area in 2007 was 408 

million acres, the lowest level since the MLU series began in 1945, and 34 

million acres (8 percent) below the previous low in 2002. The decline over 

this 5-year period includes a 26-million-acre (42 percent) decline in cropland pasture, a reduction partly due to a change in how the 2007 Census 

of Agriculture estimated cropland pasture (a component of total cropland) 

and other pasture on farms (a component of grassland pasture and range). 

Offsetting the decline in cropland pasture over 2002-07 is a 27-million-acre 

increase in grassland pasture and range. These changes suggest that the 

6 Major land-use estimates for the 48 

contiguous States began in 1945, but 

estimation for the entire United States 

did not begin until 1949. Estimates for 

1945 are indicative of total acreages in 

cropland, grassland pasture and range, 

and urban areas, which are concentrated in the contiguous 48 States, but 

not of forest, special uses, and other 

miscellaneous uses, which account for 

99 percent of Alaska’s land area.

Table 2

Major U.S. land uses, 1945-2007

Land use 19451 1949 1959 1964 1969 1974 1978 1982 1987 1992 1997 2002 2007

Million acres

Cropland 451 478 458 444 472 465 471 469 464 460 455 442 408

 Cropland used for crops 363 383 359 335 333 361 369 383 331 338 349 340 335

 Idle cropland 40 26 34 52 51 21 26 21 68 56 39 40 37

 Cropland pasture 2 47 69 66 57 88 83 76 65 65 67 68 62 36

Grassland pasture and range 2 659 632 633 640 604 598 587 597 591 591 580 587 614

Forest-use land 3 602 760 728 732 723 718 703 655 648 648 642 651 671

 Grazed forest-use land 345 320 245 225 198 179 172 158 155 145 140 134 127

 Other forest-use land 257 440 483 507 525 539 531 497 493 503 501 517 544

Special-use areas4 85 87 123 144 141 147 158 270 279 281 286 297 313

Urban areas 5 15 18 27 29 31 35 45 50 57 59 66 60 61

Miscellaneous other land 6 93 298 293 277 291 301 301 224 227 224 236 228 197

Total land area 1, 7 1,905 2,273 2,271 2,266 2,264 2,264 2,264 2,265 2,265 2,263 2,263 2,264 2,264

1The estimates for 1945, and for special uses until 1959, only account for the 48 contiguous States. The estimates for all other years include all 50 

States.

2 The 2007 cropland pasture estimates are not directly comparable with estimates in prior years due to a methodological change by the source 

agency in estimating cropland pasture and other pasture on farms. The grassland pasture and range estimate excludes cropland used only for 

pasture and grazed forestland. 

3 Excludes forestland in parks and other special uses of land.

4 Includes land specifi ed in table 11.

5 The 2002 and 2007 urban acreage estimates are not directly comparable with estimates in prior years due a change in the defi nition of urban 

areas in the 2000 Census of Population and Housing. The decrease in MLU “urban” acreage estimates between 1997 and 2002 should be viewed 

as a consequence of this defi nitional change, rather than refl ecting a decline in acreage.

6 Includes areas in miscellaneous uses not inventoried, marshes, open swamps, bare rock areas, desert, tundra, and other land generally with low 

value for agricultural purposes.

7 Totals differ over time due to remeasurement of the land area. Distribution of land uses may not add to totals due to rounding.

Sources: Estimates for 2002 and 2007 are from the U.S. Census Bureau (2002b and 2003) and Federal, State, and local land management 

and conservation agencies, including the U.S. Department of the Interior/Bureau of Land Management (2003 and 2007); U.S. Department of 

Transportation/Bureau of Transportation Statistics (2004 and 2007); U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Aviation Administration (2002); U.S. 

Department of Transportation/Federal Highway Administration (2002 and 2007); U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Railroad Administration 

(2004); USDA/Forest Service (1998 and 2008); U.S. Department of the Interior/Fish and Wildlife Service (2001 and 2007); U.S. General Services 

Administration (2001 and 2004); Geographic Data Technology (2000 and 2007); USDA/National Agricultural Statistics Service (2004a, 2005, 2009a 

and 2009b); USDA/Farm Service Agency (2003 and 2008); U.S. Department of the Interior/National Park Service (2002 and 2007); USDA/Natural 

Resources Conservation Service (2004a and 2009); Smith et al. (2009); and Wilderness Institute (2002 and 2009). Estimates prior to 2002 are from 

Vesterby and Krupa (2001); Daugherty (1991 and 1995); Frey (1973, 1979, and 1982); Frey and Hexem (1985); Frey et al. (1968); and Wooten et al. 

(1962). The estimates are not strictly comparable.
6

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2007 Census’ methodological change resulted in the reclassifi cation of a 

signifi cant share of cropland pasture from temporary pasture to more permanent pasture. Indeed, a comparison with National Resources Inventory

(NRI) data suggests that much of the change may be a result of the methodological change rather than an actual land-use change due to farm operator or 

owner decisions. Because of the change in methodology, these two estimates 

are not strictly comparable with prior years (see box above). Forest-use area 

generally declined from 1949 to 1997 but increased by more than 4 percent 

from 1997 to 2007. The most consistent trends in major land use during 

1945-2007 have occurred in the upward trend in special-use and urban

areas. Land classifi ed under miscellaneous other uses declined between 

1997 and 2007 by 39 million acres (17 percent).

Land-use shifts occur for a variety of reasons. Changing commodity prices, 

agricultural policies, and, more recently, bioenergy policies can affect land 

uses because landowners tend to respond to price and policy changes by 

shifting land to uses that maximize the returns to land. Increasing demand for 

land for residential, commercial, and industrial development also cause agricultural land-use changes near urban areas because characteristics that make 

land attractive for farming (e.g., relatively fl at land) also make it attractive 

for development. Once converted to an urban use, however, land rarely transitions back to a less intensive agricultural use.

The effects of changing conditions on land use can vary over time. Though 

not a complete picture of changes in all land uses, the NRI identifi es changes 

in non-Federal land over time in the 48 contiguous States (table 3). Because 

the same points are sampled over time, NRI data allow us to construct landuse transition matrices.7,8 The NRI data show that, since 1982, the period 

between 2002 and 2007 accounted for some of the largest gross fl ows into 

8Transition matrices specify where 

each inventoried change in land use 

came from and where it went. Selected 

transitions are presented for the largest 

land use categories in fi gure 3. NRI 

data on all transitions can be found in 

the 2007 NRI Summary Report (USDA/

NRCS, 2009).

7While wide coverage and repeat sampling make the NRI attractive as a data 

source for developing MLU estimates, 

NRI does not account for all land uses 

(e.g., Federal land and estimates for 

land in Alaska and Hawaii have been 

omitted). However, NRI data are used 

in the construction of the MLU grassland pasture and range estimates in the 

48 contiguous States.

Comparability of Land-Use Estimates

In maintaining the MLU series, USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) attempts to use a consistent methodology for measuring land use, but tradeoffs are sometimes necessary between consistency and accuracy. As 

source agencies improve methodologies and improved data become available, the estimates are amended to incorporate new data. When our historical estimates cannot be adjusted, however, ERS reports, where possible, when 

changes in the source data cause our estimates to refl ect differences on paper rather than differences in actual land 

use. For example, land in urban areas was estimated at 60 million acres in 2002, compared with an estimated 66 million acres in 1997. This decline is due to a change in the criteria used to define urban areas in the 2000 Census of 

Population (see “Urban and Rural Residential Uses,” p. 29). The Census Bureau estimates that if the same criteria 

had been used in 1990 and 2000, the urban area estimates would have refl ected a 13-percent increase over the period. However, when data sources do not quantify how changes in methodology affect historical results, we can neither adjust historical MLU estimates nor report on the extent to which land-use estimates have changed due to actual 

changes in land use. In these instances, we note that the change has occurred but that the effect cannot be quantifi ed. 

Changes in land-use estimates for one category necessarily imply changes in estimates for other land uses, given the 

fi xed amount of total land. Though all land-use categories require reconciliation among sources at the State level, 

some categories in the MLU series are adjusted more than others based on the residual amount of land after other 

uses are tabulated. These categories include miscellaneous land, and, to some extent, grassland pasture and range— 

categories for which less reliable data sources are available relative to cropland and forest-use areas. In general, 

more confidence should be put in the broader land-use trends over decades rather than specifi c 5-year fl uctuations.
7

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Economic Research Service / USDA

and out of cropland.9 Over this 5-year period, 14 million acres (nearly 4 

percent) exited cropland and about 4 million acres (1 percent) transitioned to 

cropland (for a net loss of 10 million acres). Most of the changes in cropland 

uses occurred due to transitions between cropland uses, pasture/rangeland, 

and forest (fi g. 3). Of the land exiting cropland, about 9.3 million acres (78 

percent) transitioned into pasture or rangeland use, and 700,000 acres transitioned to forest. Of the land entering cropland uses, about 3.4 million acres 

(85 percent) had been in pasture or rangeland uses in 2002. The transitions 

between these three land-use categories resulted in a net loss of about 6.5 

million acres (2 percent) of cropland over the 2002-07 period (USDA/NRCS, 

2009).

While movement between major land uses happen annually, annual transitions constitute a relatively small proportion of the total agricultural land 

base. Between 2002 and 2007, NRI data reveal that 96-99 percent of agricultural land remained in its pre-existing use (table 4). When measured over 

a 25-year period, however, land-use transitions show more movement. For 

example, 78 percent and 86 percent of land used for cropland and pasture/

9The NRI cropland category roughly 

corresponds to the sum of the MLU 

categories cropland used for crops plus 

cropland pasture.

Table 3

Land use in the 48 contiguous States: National Resources Inventory estimates

Year Cropland

Conservation 

Reserve Program (CRP)1

Pasture 

land

Range 

land

Forest 

land 

grazed

Forest land 

ungrazed

Other rural 

land2

Developed 

land3

Water and 

Federal 

areas Total4

Million acres

1982 419.5 0.0 130.9 417.9 66.0 337.3 47.2 71.0 447.7 1937.7

1987 405.5 13.8 126.7 412.6 63.9 341.4 47.5 76.9 449.3 1937.7

1992 381.4 34.1 125.0 408.9 63.2 342.1 48.1 83.9 450.9 1937.7

1997 376.1 32.7 119.8 407.5 60.7 345.9 48.7 94.6 451.6 1937.7

2002 367.1 32.0 117.8 408.2 56.5 350.8 48.9 104.0 452.4 1937.7

2007 357.0 32.9 118.6 409.1 56.1 350.3 49.6 111.3 452.8 1937.7

1 Initiated by the Farm Security Act of 1985. 2 Includes small and large urban built-up land as well as rural transportation land.

3 An NRI category, including farmsteads and other farm structures, fi eld windbreaks, barren land, and marshland.

4 Distributions may not add to totals due to rounding.

Source: The National Resources Inventory (USDA/NRCS, 2009). Margins of error for the 2007 estimates (in millions of acres) are cropland 

(±2.7); CRP land (not applicable); pastureland (±2.3); rangeland (±4.0); forest land (±3.1); other rural land (±1.4); and water and Federal areas 

(not applicable) (USDA/NRCS 2009).

Figure 3

Cropland transitions for selected land cover/use categories, 1982-2007 

Note: Total cropland: 419.6 million acres (1982); 357.0 million acres (2007).

Source: USDA, Economic Research Services calculations based on analysis of National Resources Inventory data (USDA/NRCS 2009).

1982-87 1987-92

Change in cropland acres (millions)

1992-97 1997-2002 2002-07

Crop to pasture/range

Pasture/range to crop

Forest to crop

Crop to forest

Net cropland change

-10 10 15 0-5 5 -10 10 15 0-5 5 -10 10 15 0-5 5 -10 10 15 0-5 5 -10 10 15 0-5 5
8

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range in 1982, respectively, remained in those uses in 2007. Forested acres 

were even more apt to remain in the same use, with more than 90 percent of 

forestland reported as forest over the 25-year period.

Comparison between NRI and MLU Land-Use Estimates

The land-use acreage totals and net changes in land use indicated by NRI 

differ from MLU estimates due to differences in estimation approach, 

coverage, and defi nitions. Nonetheless, comparing the changes in the two 

sets of estimates for the various land-use categories (rather than the levels 

of the estimates) shows how the two data sources are similar. The MLU 

cropland estimates, which are based on mandatory reporting in the Census 

of Agriculture, reveal a 61-million-acre decline in total cropland over 

1982-2007. The NRI estimates are based largely on interpretation of highresolution aerial photography; classifi cations according to land cover may 

not correspond to classifi cations according to land use. The NRI estimated 

decline in cropland for this period is 30 million acres if CRP and cropland 

are combined (CRP is classed as idle cropland in MLU but as a distinct land 

use in NRI). Some of this estimation difference is likely a result of methodological changes for measuring grassland pasture and other pasture on farms 

in the 2007 Census of Agriculture; MLU and NRI estimates were much 

closer over the 1982-2002 period (both indicated declines of about 20 million 

acres). Similarly, differences in estimated changes in grassland pasture and 

range—17-million-acre increase per MLU but a 16-million-acre decline per 

NRI—are due partly to this change in methodology. MLU’s inclusion of 

Federal lands, accounting for more than a quarter of grassland pasture and 

rangelands (see “Major Uses of Land, by Class of Ownership,” p. 37), may 

also contribute to this difference. For forestland, NRI shows an increase of 3 

million acres from 1982 to 2007, while the MLU series shows an increase of 

16 million acres. MLU includes public and Alaskan acreage in the forest-use 

category, excludes forested land in parks and other special uses, and employs 

different estimation procedures than NRI.

The MLU special-uses category increased by 43 million acres over 1982-

2007. NRI does not include a similar special-uses category, but accounts for 

some of those acres in forestland, other rural land, developed land (which 

includes rural transportation), and Federal areas. These comparisons emphasize that MLU estimates land use for all land in the United States, including 

Federal land and for all 50 States.

Table 4

Share of land use that remained the same, 1982-2007 

5-year periods

25-year 

period

1982-

87

1987-

92

1992-

97

1997-

02

2002-

07

1982-

2007

Percent

Cropland 93 92 95 93 96 78

Pasture/rangeland 95 96 95 96 98 86

Forestland 98 98 98 98 99 92

Source: USDA, Economic Research Service calculations based on USDA’s Natural Resources 

Conservation Service, National Resources Inventory data (2009).
9

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Basic Regional Land-Use Patterns

Land-use patterns vary greatly by region, refl ecting differences in soils, 

climate, topography, and patterns of population settlement. For example, 

cropland accounts for 12 percent of the total land in the Northeast and 54 

percent in the Corn Belt (table 5; see fi g. 4 for the farm production regions 

used in this report). Variation also exists among States within a region (fi g. 

4). For example, almost two-thirds of North Dakota is cropland, compared 

with 41 percent in South Dakota.

Some clear regional land-use patterns exist. Cropland is roughly concentrated in the central regions of the contiguous United States, where the 

Northern Plains and Corn Belt hold the majority of their land in cropland. 

The Southern Plains, Lake States, and Delta States also hold cropland shares 

above the national average. The Mountain region and Southern Plains have 

the majority of their land in grassland pasture and range. The Northern 

Plains and Pacifi c regions also have relatively high shares of grazing acreage, 

Cropland Forest

Special uses, miscellaneous, and urban land uses

Grassland/range

Lines in bold black represent USDA production regions

Major land use types

Mountain

Southeast

Appalachia

Northeast

Lake 

States

Corn Belt

Northern 

Plains

Southern 

Plains

Delta

States

Pacific

Far West

Figure 4

Shares of land in major uses, by State, 2007

Notes: The size of the pie charts is proportional to the land area in each State. The miscellaneous, special use, and urban areas 

categories were too small to effectively illustrate separately.
10

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

with more than a third and a quarter of their land area, respectively, allocated 

to grassland and pasture and range. Forest-use land is most prevalent in the 

Eastern regions, such as the Northeast, Appalachian, Southeast, and Delta 

States, which have a majority of their land in forest uses. In addition, forestuse land constitutes a relatively high share of land in the Lake States and 

Pacifi c regions, where the topography and precipitation patterns are conducive to growing trees. The Northeast and Southeast have the highest shares 

of urban land, while the Lake States, Corn Belt, Appalachian, and Pacifi c 

regions also have urban shares above the Nation’s average. 

Table 5

Major land uses, by region, 2007

Region1 Cropland2

 Grassland pasture and range3 Forest-use land4 Special and miscellaneous land Urban Total land5

Million 

acres Percent

Million 

acres Percent

Million 

acres Percent

Million 

acres Percent

Million 

acres Percent

Million 

acres Percent

Northeast 13.0 11.6 4.6 4.2 66.8 60.0 14.5 13.0 12.5 11.2 111.4 100.0 

Lake States 40.6 33.2 7.5 6.1 50.8 41.6 19.0 15.6 4.2 3.5 122.1 100.0 

Corn Belt 91.0 55.3 16.4 10.0 34.3 20.8 14.8 9.0 8.1 4.9 164.6 100.0 

Northern Plains 97.7 50.3 74.8 38.5 5.7 2.9 15.0 7.7 1.1 0.5 194.3 100.0 

Appalachian 22.7 18.3 10.6 8.5 70.8 57.2 13.0 10.5 6.7 5.4 123.7 100.0 

Southeast 12.5 10.1 10.3 8.3 75.1 60.9 16.5 13.4 8.9 7.2 123.3 100.0 

Delta States 18.2 20.0 7.2 7.9 52.3 57.4 11.2 12.3 2.3 2.5 91.2 100.0 

Southern Plains 47.0 22.2 120.4 56.9 24.8 11.7 13.9 6.6 5.4 2.5 211.5 100.0 

Mountain 43.2 7.9 303.4 55.4 121.5 22.2 76.0 13.9 3.8 0.7 547.9 100.0 

Pacifi c 22.1 10.8 57.0 28.0 74.0 36.3 43.4 21.3 7.2 3.6 203.8 100.0 

48 States 407.9 21.5 612.3 32.3 576.0 30.4 237.4 12.5 60.1 3.2 1,893.8 100.0 

Alaska 0.1 0.0 0.7 0.2 93.8 25.6 271.3 74.1 0.2 0.0 366.0 100.0 

Hawaii 0.1 3.5 0.7 18.0 1.6 37.8 1.4 35.2 0.2 5.5 4.1 100.0 

United States 408.1 18.0 613.7 27.1 671.4 29.7 510.1 22.5 60.5 2.7 2,264.0 100.0 

1 See fi gure 4 for a map of the farm production regions used in this report.

2 Total cropland, including cropland used for crops, cropland used only for pasture, and idle cropland.

3 Open permanent pasture and range, both in farms and not in farms, excluding cropland pasture.

4 Total forestland, including forests grazed but excluding an estimated 80 million forest acres in parks and other special uses of land. 

5 Distribution of land uses and percentages may not add to totals due to rounding.

Sources: USDA, Economic Research Service calculations based on reports and records of the U.S. Census Bureau (2002b and 2003) and Federal, 

State, and local land management and conservation agencies, including the U.S. Department of the Interior/Bureau of Land Management (2007); 

U.S. Department of Transportation/Bureau of Transportation Statistics (2007); U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Aviation Administration 

(2002); U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Highway Administration (2007); U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Railroad Administration 

(2004); U.S. Department of the Interior/Fish and Wildlife Service (2007); U.S. General Services Administration (2004); Geographic Data Technology 

(2007); USDA/National Agricultural Statistics Service (2009a and 2009b); USDA/Farm Service Agency (2008); U.S. Department of the Interior/

National Park Service (2007); USDA/Natural Resources Conservation Service (2009); Smith et al. (2009); and Wilderness Institute (2009).
11

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Cropland

Cropland includes fi ve components of acreage (table 6). The sum of three 

components—cropland harvested, crop failure, and cultivated summer 

fallow—is cropland used for crops or the acreage devoted to crop production in any year. The other two components—cropland pastured and idle 

cropland—are not directly involved in crop production in a given year, but 

may rotate into production in other years. Total cropland was estimated at 

408 million acres in 2007. 

Cropland Used for Crops

At 82 percent of the Nation’s cropland base, cropland used for crops (335 

million acres in 2007) accounts for the vast majority of total cropland (table 

6). While cropland used for crops occurs in every region, half of all this 

acreage was located in two regions: the Northern Plains and the Corn Belt 

(25 percent of cropland used for crops in each region). The Northeast and 

Southeast regions contained the least amount of cropland used for crops, with 

each region containing about 3 percent of the total (see MLU for cropland 

acreage, by region and State, from 1945 to 2007 at http://www.ers.usda.gov/

data/majorlanduses/). 

Regional land-use patterns in cropland used for crops are largely driven by 

the geographic distribution of cropland harvested, the dominant component 

Table 6

Major uses of cropland, selected years, 1949-2007 

Cropland used for crops

Idle3

Cropland

pasture4

Total

cropland2 Year Harvested Failed Fallowed1 Total2

Million acres

1949 352 9 22 383 26 69 478

1954 339 13 28 380 19 66 465

1959 318 10 31 359 34 66 458

1964 292 6 37 335 52 57 444

1969 286 6 41 333 51 88 472

1974 322 8 31 361 21 83 465

1978 330 7 32 369 26 76 471

1982 347 5 31 383 21 65 469

1987 293 6 32 331 68 65 464

1992 306 8 24 338 56 67 460

1997 321 7 21 349 39 68 455

2002 307 17 16 340 40 62 442

2007 312 8 15 335 37 36 408

1 Cultivated summer fallow.

2 Distribution may not add to totals due to rounding.

3 Includes all acreage diverted from crops under the Acreage Reduction Program (ARP), the Conservation Reserve 

Program (CRP), and other Federal acreage reduction programs shown in fi gure 5. 

4 Cropland used only for pasture.

Sources: Estimates for 2002 and 2007 are from USDA/National Agricultural Statistics Service (2004a, 2004b, 2005, 

2008, 2009a and 2009b) and USDA/Farm Service Agency (2003 and 2008). Estimates prior to 2002 are from Vesterby 

and Krupa (2001); Daugherty (1991 and 1995); Frey (1973, 1979, and 1982); Frey and Hexem (1985); Frey et al. (1968); 

Wooten et al. (1962); Wooten and Anderson (1957); and Wooten (1953).
12

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of cropland used for crops. Cropland harvested totaled 312 million acres 

in 2007 and includes row and closely sown crops, tree fruits and nuts, and 

vegetables. Crop failure occurred on 7.8 million acres (just over 2 percent) of 

the acreage planted for harvest in 2007, with a third occurring in the Northern 

Plains and about 27 percent in the Southern Plains. The 2007 failure rate 

is close to the average for recent years, excluding 2002, when 17.1 million 

acres (5 percent) failed. From 1945 to 2002, the rate of cropland failure averaged less than 3 percent.10 

Cultivated summer fallow refers to cropland in sub-humid regions that is 

cultivated for a season or more to control weeds and accumulate moisture 

before small grains are planted. Summer fallow is used extensively in the 

semiarid West. The use of summer fallow has been decreasing since the late 

1960s. In 2007, almost 15 million acres were devoted to summer fallow, 26 

million acres lower than MLU 1969 estimates. Forty percent of 2007 summer 

fallow acres were in the Mountain region, 36 percent in the Northern Plains 

region, and 24 percent in the Pacifi c and Southern Plains regions.

Cropland Pasture and Idle Cropland

The remainder of total cropland —the portion not used for crops—was used 

for pasture (36 million acres) or was idle (37 million acres) in 2007. In 

contrast to permanent grassland pasture and range, cropland pasture is 

considered crop rotation. Much of the cropland used for pasture is rotated 

between crop and pasture use, although the rotation period varies. 

While cropland used for pasture accounted for 14 percent of all cropland in 

2002 (62 million acres), the 2007 reported acreage (36 million acres) was 

nearly half that total and under 9 percent of all cropland.11 The relative distribution of cropland pasture across U.S. regions, however, remains the same. 

The largest acreages in cropland pasture were found in the Southern and 

Northern Plains and the Mountain States. 

The quantity and quality of cropland used for pasture varies across regions. 

Cropland pasture acreage in the Corn Belt and adjacent areas refl ects the high 

proportion of land classifi ed as cropland. On many farms in this region, the 

only land available for pasture may be good quality cropland. In contrast, 

cropland pasture in the Plains regions and much of the South is associated 

with higher proportions of marginal cropland.

Idle cropland includes both land completely idled and land seeded to cover 

or soil improvement crops, such as buckwheat and clover, but not harvested 

or pastured, and acreage diverted from crops under the CRP (initiated in 

1985) and other Federal acreage reduction programs (in effect prior to 1996). 

Idle cropland totaled 37 million acres in 2007, about 9 percent of U.S. cropland. Regionally, idle cropland ranged from 5 percent in the Corn Belt and 

Delta States to 17 percent in the Mountain States. In 2007, the Farm Service 

Agency (FSA) reported that almost 37 million acres were held under CRP 

contracts, or approximately 99 percent of idle land (USDA/FSA, 2008), 

compared with the 34 million acres (85 percent) of the 40 million acres idled 

in 2002. Some cropland is idle each year because of adverse weather and 

soil conditions at planting time or the lack of economic incentives to plant. 

However, high commodity prices and increased demand for corn arising from 

10Regional and State-level MLU 

estimates of cropland failure from 1910 

to 2007 are available at http://www.ers.

usda.gov/data/majorlanduses/.

11The cropland pasture estimate for 

2007 is not strictly comparable with 

previous MLU estimates (see discussion on pp. 5-6).
13

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Federal bioenergy policies likely contributed to the low amounts of non-CRP 

idled cropland in 2007 (Wallander et al., 2011). Overall, the amount of cropland idle in 2007 nearly equals the U.S. historical average of 38 million acres 

since the major land-use series began in 1945, but a great deal of fl uctuation 

in land use has taken place over time.12

Trends in Cropland Uses

Total cropland acreage has remained relatively constant since World War II 

but has declined slowly in recent decades. A drop from 478 million acres in 

1949 to 444 million acres in 1964 was largely the result of surplus production and subsequent acreage reduction programs. Cropland acreage was at 

or above 455 million acres in each census year from 1969 to 1997 (see table 

6). Between 1997 and 2002, total cropland dropped 13 million acres (about 

3 percent) to 442 million acres, then dropped another 34 million acres (about 

8 percent) from 2002 to 2007. The drop during 2002-07 can be explained 

largely by methodological changes in source agency estimates of cropland 

pasture, which declined 26 million acres (see discussion on pp. 5-6). With 

the change in methodology, the estimate of total cropland acres is below any 

previous estimate since the MLU series began in 1945. 

Changes in Cropland Used for Crops and Idled Cropland. Cropland used 

for crops declined between 1949 and 1969 and then rose to 383 million 

acres in 1982, matching the record high level set in 1949 near the advent of 

the MLU series. Since 1982, cropland used for crops has declined, though 

unevenly. Over the 2002-07 period, cropland used for crops fell 5 million 

acres to 335 million acres, despite an increase in cropland harvested over this 

period due to a reversion of an historic rate of crop failure in 2002 (see cropland harvested discussion). 

An inverse relationship exists between two of the components of total cropland: As cropland used for crops decreases, idled cropland increases and vice 

versa. Cropland used for crops was at a record high in 1949 at 383 million 

acres, when no acres were idled by Federal programs (see table 6, fi g. 5). In 

1972, cropland used for crops was at a near record low of 334 million acres 

when Federal programs idled 61 million acres. Two years later, the area 

under Federal cropland acreage reduction programs decreased to less than 3 

million acres in 1974 (fi g. 5). This decline was accompanied by a 27-millionacre (8 percent) increase in cropland used for crops over the period. Cropland 

used for crops climbed to 387 million acres in 1981, when Federal programs 

did not idle any cropland, and dropped to 333 million acres in 1983, when 

Federal program set-aside acres reached their historic peak of 78 million 

acres. Between 1987 and 2007, cropland used for crops fl uctuated between 

331 million acres (historic low) and 349 million acres, while acreage idled 

by Federal programs dropped from 76 million acres to just under 37 million 

acres. 

The general trend of the changes in cropland used for crops and the land area 

idled under Federal acreage-reduction programs fl uctuate with commodity 

prices (fi g. 6). Declines in real commodity prices appear to be followed by 

increases in idled acreage and corresponding decreases in cropland used 

for crops, and vice versa. This relationship is consistent with a response by 

commodity producers to changing market incentives and with Government 

12Regional and State-level MLU 

estimates of idle cropland from 1945 

to 2007 are available at http://www.ers.

usda.gov/data/majorlanduses/.
14

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

efforts to manage commodity supplies and support farm incomes under 

adverse market conditions.13 The relative changes in acreage, however, are 

smaller than the relative changes in prices. Between 1980 and 2002, the 

prices of major commodities (e.g., wheat, corn, soybeans, etc.) declined by 

over 60 percent in infl ation-adjusted terms, while total cropland used for 

crops dropped by about 6 percent. Productivity increases might have mitigated some of the effect of real price declines on the real returns to crop 

production. The variation in cropland used for crops in the 1990s was also 

smaller than in the 1980s, despite signifi cant variation in real prices. This 

pattern may refl ect the phasing out and elimination of Federal acreagereduction programs other than the CRP in 1996. The pattern may also refl ect 

the fact that, as the area of cropland used for crops declines, the remaining 

cropland is generally of higher average quality and less likely to move in and 

out of production with short-term price fl uctuations. Since 2002, prices of 

major commodities dropped and then spiked between 2006 and 2008, while 

cropland used for crops changed very little.

A number of major changes in farm program policy could also have infl uenced agricultural land-use decisions during this period. Farm legislation 

in the 1980s and 1990s marked a shift toward greater market orientation 

with the addition of income-supporting (rather than price-supporting) 

commodity loan programs in 1985 and the introduction of planting fl exibility 

on acres qualifying for commodity program payments in 1990. The Federal 

Agriculture Improvement and Reform (FAIR) Act of 1996 subsequently 

13See Roberts et al. (2004) for a discussion of the counter-cyclical nature 

of Federal farm payments and the 

role of Government farm programs in 

insuring producer risks.

Figure 5

Cropland acreage reductions, by program type, 1933-2009

Notes: “Acreage reduction programs” include Acreage Conservation Reserve; 0, 50/85-82 programs; Paid Land Diversion; and Payment-inKind programs. Land under these programs is classified as idled cropland in MLU estimates. For yearly detail of programs during 1974-95, 

see USDA/ERS, 1997.

Source: USDA, Economic Research Service calculations based on Crosswhite and Sandretto (1991) and USDA/Farm Service Agency (2008). 

Million acres

1933 40 47 54 61 68 75 82 89 96 2003 09

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Acreage reduction programs

Idle cropland

Conservation Reserve Program

Cropland Adjustment Program

Soil Bank

Agricultural Conservation Reserve Program

Conservation Adjustment Act Program
15

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

eliminated acreage set-aside requirements and virtually all cropping restrictions that had been in effect under previous farm programs. The FAIR Act 

also replaced commodity payments directly tied to current planting decisions with payments tied to historic production choices (Nelson and Schertz, 

1996). Analyses of land-use changes have found that Federal direct payments 

to farmers increased land in crops, but the effects are offset by CRP cropland 

retirements (Lubowski et al., 2008; Gardner, 2002; Westcott et al., 2002). 

Meanwhile, the Federal Crop Insurance and Reform Act (FCIRA) of 1994 

increased Federal crop insurance premium subsidies, and additional increases 

were introduced in 2000 (Glauber and Collins, 2002). Programs that help 

insure crops against losses could increase landowner incentives to expand 

crop production to less productive land. A study on the effect of crop insurance subsidy increases after 1994 estimated that the subsidies increased cultivated acreage in 1997 by about 1 percent, with most of the land coming out 

of hay and pasture (Lubowski et al., 2006b).14

Relatively stable patterns at the national level obscure larger and sometimes 

offsetting changes at regional and State levels. Between 1964 and 2007, total 

acreage in cropland used for crops fl uctuated, but began and ended the period 

at 335 million acres. While cropland used for crops peaked in every region 

in 1982 and subsequently declined during the farm crisis of the 1980s, not all 

regions followed the same overall trend. Cropland increased over the 1964-

2007 period in the Corn Belt (11 million acres) and in the Lake, Appalachian, 

and Delta regions (2 million acres each) and decreased by 17 million acres in 

the remaining regions (fi g. 7). 

14The land-use changes induced 

by insurance subsidies were also 

found to increase annual wind and 

water erosion by an estimated 1.4 

and .9 percent, respectively, in 1997 

(Lubowski et al., 2006b).

0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1.0

1.2

1.4

Figure 6

U.S. cropland used for crops and commodity prices of key crops

Real price and cropland indices

Wheat price

Land in acreage 

reduction programs

Corn price Soybean price

Cropland used for crops

1981 2001 83 85 87 89 91 93 95 97 99 03 05 07 09

Notes: Prices are plotted with a 1-year lag to better track incentives at the time of planting. 

Prices and land areas are indexed to 1 for 1980 to illustrate relative time trends. To construct 

the index for land in acreage reduction programs, the acreage is scaled as a share of the 

acreage in cropland used for crops. As a result, equal percentage changes in the two 

cropland indices indicate equivalent changes in land area. 

Source: USDA, Economic Research Service calculations based on prices from the National 

Agricultural Statistics Service, deflated with the producer price index for all commodities from 

the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
16

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

Some regional changes in cropland used for crops represent year-to-year fl uctuations that tend to balance out over time. However, both the Northeast and 

Southeast have experienced a long-term decline in cropland used for crops. 

Urban pressures and a comparative disadvantage in many crops have resulted 

in the conversion of cropland to other uses in these regions. 

Changes at the regional level resulted in little change in the concentration of 

acreage used for crops in major crop-producing regions over the 1964-2007 

period.15 The Corn Belt represented 25 percent of U.S. land used for crops 

in 2007, compared with 21 percent in 1964. The remaining regions of the 

country experienced only 1-percentage-point changes in their proportion of 

the Nation’s cropland in crops over this same period. 

Changes in cropland harvested. Changes in cropland harvested parallel 

changes in cropland used for crops, except when the latter is affected by large 

changes in crop failure and cultivated summer fallow. Cropland harvested 

declined from 352 million to 286 million acres (19 percent) between 1949 

and 1969, then rose to 347 million acres in 1982. Between 1982 and 2007, 

the amount of cropland harvested declined, but not steadily, varying between 

293 million acres in 1987 to 321 million acres in 1997 in response to 

commodity price and policy changes (see table 6). The increase in cropland 

harvested from 307 to 312 million acres during 2002-07 partly demonstrates 

the recovery from a severe drought that occurred in some parts of the country 

in 2002, primarily in the Northern Plains, Southern Plains, and Mountain 

States. 

Changes in failed cropland. Land marked by crop failure has ranged 

between 5 million and 22 million acres since 1945. The possibility of a large 

acreage failure is always present. Crop failure in 1988, 1993, 1996, 1998, 

2000, and 2001 hovered around 10 million acres due to severe drought, 

extensive fl ooding, or wet weather. In 2002, crop failure on 17 million acres 

15MLU estimates by region and State 

are available at http://www.ers.usda.

gov/data/majorlanduses/.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

1945 97 49 54 59 64 69 74 78 82 87 92 2002 07

Figure 7

Cropland trends, by region, for contiguous United States, 1945-2007

Million acres

Source: See sources for figure 2. Data by region are summarized in the USDA, Economic 

Research Service, Major Land Uses data product, 2011 (http://www.ers.usda.gov/data/ 

majorlanduses/).

Northeast

Lake States

Corn Belt

Northern Plains

Appalachian

Southeast Delta States

Southern Plains

Mountain

Pacific
17

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

was the highest since the extensive droughts experienced in 1956. Moderate 

to extreme drought reached more than half of the contiguous United States 

during the summer of 2002 (NOAA, 2003). In 2007, the estimated 8 million 

acres of crop failure refl ects the average for the last 30 years. 

Changes in fallowed cropland. Summer fallow declined from its peak of 

41 million acres in 1969 to about 15 million acres in 2007, with a plateau of 

about 31 million acres annually from 1974 to 1987. Summer fallow occurs 

mostly in the Plains States, where it is used in alternate years with small 

grains, primarily wheat, to conserve moisture and control weeds. The longterm decline in the area under cultivated summer fallow is partly attributed 

to the adoption of moisture-conserving soil conservation practices, such 

as no-till and mulch-till, that have reduced the need for summer fallow. 

With less summer fallow, farm operators can use more land to grow crops, 

increasing farm income potential. Some of the decrease in summer fallow 

may also be attributable to the CRP. Much of the CRP acreage is in the 

Northern and Southern Plains regions, where summer fallow is commonly 

practiced. Land taken out of production and placed in the CRP includes some 

land that might otherwise have been in summer fallow. 

Changes in cropland pasture. At 36 million acres in 2007, cropland used 

for pasture appears to have been at its the lowest level in the 60 years that 

ERS has reported land-use statistics. However, this reduction is at least partly 

a result of the methodological changes in the 2007 Census of Agriculture 

that reclassifi ed some cropland pasture to permanent grassland pasture (see 

discussion on pp. 5-6). Prior to 2007, the previous low was in 1964 at 57 

million acres, compared with a high of 88 million acres in 1969 (see table 6). 

Trends in Irrigated Land

U.S. agriculture consumes over 80 percent of the water used in the United 

States (Schaible, 2004). Irrigation technology is an important contributor to 

U.S. agriculture, yet competing demands for water due to population growth, 

energy sector growth, and environmental needs have intensifi ed. In 2007, 

nearly 57 million acres (17 percent of all cropland used for crops) was irrigated, yet this acreage generated nearly half the value of all crops sold. In 

2007, the amount of irrigated land surpassed the previous high of 56 million 

acres set in 1997.16 Seventy-fi ve percent of irrigated acreage is located in the 

more arid Western regions (Northern and Southern Plains and Mountain and 

Pacifi c regions).17 Though it contains less cropland than many other regions, 

the Pacifi c region is the most dependent on irrigation, with nearly two-thirds 

of its 17.4 million acres of cropland used for crops irrigated in 2007. 

The proportion of irrigated cropland used for crops has been increasing since 

1949, when nearly 26 million acres were irrigated. Between 2002 and 2007, 

the small net increase of 1.3 million acres (2 percent) in the total amount of 

irrigated cropland masks greater changes occurring within regions (fi g. 8). 

Most regions experienced either a decline in irrigated acreage or a slowing 

of irrigated expansion. The 1-million-acre increase in irrigated cropland 

acreage in the Northern Plains occurred almost entirely in Nebraska and 

could be due to the potential for future restrictions on new irrigation development.18 Smaller expansions in irrigated acreage in the Delta, Mountain, 

Corn Belt, Lake States, and Northeast regions are attributed to recurring 

16MLU estimates for irrigated land 

acreage by region and State are available at http://www.ers.usda.gov/data/

majorlanduses/.

17The 17 States in these four regions 

accounted for about 85 percent of total 

agricultural withdrawals of freshwater 

in 2000 (Gollehon and Quimby, 2006).

18Glenn Schaible’s personal communication with Professor Raymond 

J. Supalla, Agricultural Economics 

Department, University of Nebraska–

Lincoln.
18

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

regional droughts, increased biofuel demand for corn, and increased irrigation cost-effectiveness (USDA/Natural Resources Conservation Service, 

2006). Irrigated cropland acreage decreased in the remaining regions, with 

an 800,000-acre decline in the Pacifi c region (mainly California, where 

increasing salinity has reduced soil productivity) and an 80,000-acre decline 

in the Southeast (primarily Florida, for a variety of reasons) (Ayars, 2010; 

California Department of Conservation, 2011; USGS, 2008). 

Changes in Principal Crops Harvested

Like trends in cropland used for crops, historical trends in the total principal 

crops harvested are closely associated with levels of cropland diverted from 

production through Federal programs (see fi g. 5). In 1963, 56 million acres 

of cropland were diverted through the Soil Bank and other acreage reduction programs. Between 1963 and 1981, harvested acreage of principal crops 

increased by 68 million acres and peaked at 354 million acres in 1981, when 

no cropland was diverted through acreage reduction programs. Between 

1981 and 2007, principal crops harvested declined nearly 58 million acres 

partly due to cropland diversions into the CRP, which had diverted almost 37 

million acres from production in 2007 (USDA/FSA, 2008).

Changes in the mix of crops also occurred between 1963 and 2007. Strong 

growth in the export market and rapid expansions through double-cropping 

of soybeans and small grains marked the 1970s and early 1980s. Food crops, 

such as soybeans, registered substantial increases over this time (fi g. 9). 

Soybean acreage more than doubled from about 29 million acres in 1963 

to over 64 million acres in 2007 and by 1997 had surpassed wheat as the 

second-leading food and feed crops in acreage terms (more acreage was 

planted to corn than any other crop during 1963-2007). Wheat acreage, some 

of which was double-cropped ahead of soybeans, increased 77 percent (35 

0

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

10,000

12,000

14,000

16,000

Northeast

Appalachia

Far West

Lake States

Corn Belt

Northern Plains

Southeast

Delta States

Southern Plains

Mountain

Pacific

Figure 8

Irrigated acres, by farm production region, 1949-2007 

Thousand acres

Source: Censuses of Agriculture (USDA/NASS, 2009a). Data by region are summarized in the USDA, Economic 

Research Service, Major Land Uses data product, 2011 (http://www.ers.usda.gov/data/majorlanduses/).

1949 54 59 64 69 74 78 82 87 92 2002 07 97
19

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

million acres) between 1963 and 1981 then declined nearly 37 percent (30 

million acres) between 1981 and 2007 (table 7). Total food crop acreage 

increased by 93 percent between 1963 and 1981, from 84 to 162 million 

acres, due to substantial increases in harvested wheat and soybeans over the 

period. By 2007, total food crop acreage was 51 percent higher than 1963 

levels, due primarily to the 124-percent increase in soybean acreage from 

1963 to 2007.

Feed crop acreage, on the other hand, declined from 1963 to 1981, as a 

whole, and remained below 1963 levels in 2007 (table 7). Feed crops’ 

10-percent decline from 1963 to 2007 was a result of losing 43 million acres 

in oats, barley, sorghum, and hay—a 93-percent reduction in oat acres, 

69-percent decrease in barley acres, 58-percent decrease in sorghum acres, 

and 8-percent decrease in hay acres. Corn’s 36-percent increase of 24 million 

acres counteracts the downward trend in the other feed crops. 

Other principal crops (cotton, fl axseed, and tobacco) declined by more than 

4.2 million acres (27 percent) since 1981 (table 7). Cotton, accounting for 

94 percent of other crop acreage, declined by 24 percent from 1981 to 2007, 

while fl axseed and tobacco acreage each declined by over 50 percent. 

Market forces and changes in farm programs have affected the supply and 

demand for the four agricultural crops (corn, soybeans, wheat, and hay) that 

comprise 86 percent of total harvested acres in the United States (see fi g. 9). 

The increase in planting fl exibility, introduced with the Food, Agriculture, 

Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 and culminating with the Federal 

Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996, allowed producers to 

increase more profi table soybean acreage without losing base acreage of 

wheat, corn, and other program crops, which could have been costly under 

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

Corn, all

Soybeans

Hay

Wheat

Cotton Sorghum, all

Barley

Rice

Figure 9

Principal U.S. crops harvested, 48 contiguous States, 1963-2007 

Million acres

1963 1981 1992 1997 2002 2007

Notes: The solid lines are feed crops and dashed lines are food crops. Some feed crops are used for biofuel 

purposes.

Source: USDA, Economic Research Service calculations based on data for principal crops harvested from 

Daugherty (1995) and USDA/National Agricultural Statistics Service (1999b, 2005, and 2009b).
20

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

previous farm programs. In addition, new varieties of corn and soybeans 

allowed expansion of these crops into previously wheat-producing areas of 

the Plains States (USDA/ERS, 2004). 

The use of crops as a renewable energy source has increased over the last 

30 years. In the past decade, the use of corn for this purpose has increased 

sharply due to the mandate in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to increase the 

amount of renewable fuels in the U.S. fuel supply. This law, coupled with 

an expansion of required amounts of renewable fuels in 2007, signifi cantly 

increased the production of corn ethanol. A congressional mandate in 2007 

also set an annual target of 16 billion gallons of cellulosic biofuels by 2022. 

A variety of feedstocks may potentially be used for cellulosic production, 

including stalks, leaves, grasses, or trees (USDA/ERS and OCE, 2011). 

Table 7

Principal U.S. crops harvested, 48 contiguous States, 1963-2007 

Change

 Crop 1963 1981 1992 1997 2002 2007 1963-81 1981-2007 2002-07

Million acres

Food crops:

Wheat 45.5 80.6 62.8 62.8 45.8 51.0 35.1 -29.6 5.2

Soybeans 28.6 66.2 58.2 69.1 72.2 64.1 37.6 -2.1 -8.1

Rice 1.8 3.8 3.1 3.1 3.2 2.7 2 -1.1 -0.5

Rye 1.6 0.7 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.3 -0.9 -0.5 -0.1

Peanuts 1.4 1.5 1.7 1.4 1.3 1.2 0.1 -0.3 -0.1

Sunfl owers NR 3.8 2 2.8 2.2 2.0 3.8 -1.8 -0.2

Dry edible beans 1.4 2.2 1.5 1.8 1.7 1.5 0.8 -0.7 -0.2

Dry edible peas 0.3 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.3 0.8 -0.2 0.7 0.5

Potatoes 1.3 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.3 1.1 -0.1 -0.1 -0.2

Sweet potatoes 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 -0.1 0.0 0.0

Sugar beets 1.2 1.2 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.2 0 0.0 -0.2

Sugarcane 0.5 0.7 0.9 0.9 1.02 0.9 0.2 0.2 -0.1

 Total 83.8 162.1 133.6 145.4 130.8 126.9 78.3 -35.3 -4.0

Feed crops:

Corn, all 68.3 83.2 78.1 78.7 76.8 92.6 14.9 9.4 15.8

Sorghum, all 17 15.5 12 9.6 7.7 7.2 -1.5 -8.3 -0.5

Oats 21.3 9.4 4.5 2.8 2.1 1.5 -11.9 -7.9 -0.6

Barley 11.2 9 7.3 6.2 4.1 3.5 -2.2 -5.5 -0.6

Hay 66.4 59.6 58.9 61.1 64.5 61.0 -6.8 1.4 -3.5

 Total 184.2 176.7 154.8 158.4 155.2 165.8 -7.5 -10.9 10.6

Other crops:

Cotton 14.2 13.8 11.1 13.4 12.4 10.5 -0.4 -3.3 -1.9

Flaxseed 3.2 0.6 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.3 -2.6 -0.3 0.2

Tobacco 1.2 1.0 0.8 0.8 0.1 0.4 -0.2 -0.6 0.3

 Total 18.6 15.4 12.1 14.3 12.6 11.2 -3.2 -4.2 -1.4

Total principal 

crops1 286.6 354.2 300.5 318.1 298.6 303.9 67.6 -50.4 5.2

NR = Not reported.

1 Distributions may not add due to rounding.

Sources: USDA, Economic Research Service calculations based on data for principal crops harvested from Daugherty (1995) and USDA/

National Agricultural Statistics Service (1999b, 2005, and 2009b).
21

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

In recent years, higher corn prices, driven partly by increased demand for 

corn as an ethanol feedstock, have contributed to complex changes in the 

production of principal crops. Using data from a special survey of corn and 

soybean farmers, Wallander et al. (2011) found that the expansion in corn 

acreage over 2006-08 was due to soybean producers shifting acreage into 

corn. However, other producers shifted acreage from other crops, primarily 

cotton, into soybeans, offsetting much of the shift from soy into corn. Total 

acreage in harvested crops on corn and soybean farms expanded, with 

about a third of the increase due to shifts from hay and CRP land, as well as 

increases in double-cropping and a reduction in idle land. Because the MLU 

data is presented only through 2007, it does not fully capture these changes. 
22

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

Grassland Pasture and Range, 

and Total Grazing Land

Nearly 35 percent of U.S. land area, or 777 million acres in 2007, is grazing 

land (i.e., grassland pasture and range, cropland pasture, and forestland 

grazed) (see table 1). This estimate of total grazing area includes forestland 

on which grazing occurs as a multiple use, but the estimate excludes land 

grazed before or after crops were harvested (e.g., fall and winter grazing 

of small grains and after-harvest grazing of hay land). The three types of 

grazing land measured differed greatly in terms of acreage, distribution, 

productivity, and other characteristics (see Daugherty (1989) for an overview 

of U.S. grazing lands from 1950 to 1982).

Grassland Pasture and Range

The 614 million acres of grassland pasture and range account for more than 

three-quarters of total grazing land.19 Four regions have about 556 million 

acres (91 percent) of U.S. grassland pasture and range—over half of grassland pasture and range is in the Mountain region; another 20 percent is in the 

Southern Plains; and the Northern Plains and Pacifi c regions together account 

for 21 percent. The rest is distributed among the remaining regions, none of 

which have more than 2 percent. Grassland pasture and range dominate all 

other types of grazing land in all regions.

Grassland pasture and range account for more than half of the total land area 

in the Southern Plains and Mountain regions. Grazing of this varied cover 

type accounts for 39 percent of the area in the Northern Plains, where a larger 

proportion of the land area is used for crops, and 28 percent of the area in 

the Pacifi c region, where forest-use land predominates. In other regions, the 

proportion of area in grassland pasture and range varied from 10 percent in 

the Corn Belt to less than 1 percent in the Far West (Alaska and Hawaii). 

Eighteen percent of the land in Hawaii is grazed, but because of the State’s 

small size, grassland pasture there contributes little to the total national 

acreage.

Cropland Pasture

At 36 million acres, cropland pasture—the smallest but generally most 

productive component of grazing acreage—accounted for 2 percent of total 

U.S. land area and 5 percent of total grazing acreage in 2007. While cropland 

pasture is considered part of the cropland base and is included in the estimate 

of total cropland, it may be marginal for crop use and remain in pasture for 

extended periods. Two-thirds of the 36 million acres in this category were 

concentrated in the Southern Plains (30 percent), Mountain (14 percent), 

Northern Plains (12 percent), and Corn Belt (10 percent) regions. The share 

of land area in grassland pasture is much higher in the Plains and Mountain 

regions than in the coastal regions. 

Grazed Forestland 

The 127 million acres of grazed forestland include acreage in open forest, 

land reverting to forest, and other forested areas with grass or other forage 

growth that are grazed to some extent. Grazed forestland ranged from 

19Although both “grassland pasture” 

and “range” are used for grazing, the 

two terms are primarily distinguished 

by the type of grass species present. 

The former term is more commonly 

used in the Eastern United States and 

the latter is used in the Western United 

States.
23

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

less than 1 million acres in Alaska and Hawaii to 68 million acres in the 

Mountain region. Acreage of this pasture type is relatively high throughout 

the West. The value of forestland for grazing varies widely across regions 

and depends on the productivity of forested grazing, the demand for grazing, 

the amount of forestland, and other factors, including climate and forest 

characteristics, such as species composition, stand density, and tree canopies. 

Values are relatively high on open stands of pine in the South, for example, 

where climate permits grazing throughout the year. Upland hardwoods, 

on the other hand, with a more complete canopy, allow little production of 

forage, although substantial acreage is grazed because of their availability 

on farms. Ponderosa pine and other open forest types in the West enable 

seasonal grazing, but forestland with thick growing trees, such as fi r, offers 

little grazing value.

Trends in Grazing Acreage

Total grazing land in 2007 accounted for 777 million acres, the lowest 

amount since the MLU series began in 1945.20 Total grazing land declined 

by about 243 million acres (about 24 percent) from 1949 to 2007 (table 8). 

Over the most recent 5-year period (2002-07), cropland pasture declined 

by 26 million acres, and estimated acreage of grassland pasture and range 

increased by 27 million acres; these offsetting changes are at least partly due 

to methodological changes in the Census of Agriculture for estimating cropland pasture (see additional discussion on pp. 5-6). 

Pasture and range acreage sometimes converts to cropland when demand for 

crop products is high. Cropland pasture, in particular, may shift to cropland 

used for crops when commodity prices are high. Shifts are more frequent, 

however, between idled cropland and cropland used for crops because idled 

cropland is generally more suited to crop production than cropland pasture; 

these shifts may be more pronounced in regions with higher quality cropland 

pasture, such as the Corn Belt. 

In general, grazing lands are less economically suited for crop production 

than for other uses. Substantial acreages of land used for grazing have shifted 

to recreational, wildlife, and environmental uses. Under favorable growing 

conditions, particularly in the South, pasture land may revert to forest. 

Some acres are converted to urban uses to serve the needs of a growing 

population. These factors have combined to cause a long-term net decline 

in grazing acreage, from over 1 billion acres in 1949 to 777 million acres in 

2007 (table 8).

Not all regions experienced long-term declines (see MLU for trends by 

region at http://www.ers.usda.gov/data/majorlanduses/). Between 1949 and 

2007, nonforested grazing land (cropland pasture and pasture and range) 

declined by 51 million acres in total, but increased by 28 million acres in 

the Southern Plains and by 1 million acres in the Southeast. These increases 

offset large declines in the Mountain (44 million acres) and Corn Belt regions 

(11 million acres). Large decreases in the Western States mainly involved 

Federal range that was withdrawn for wilderness and similar purposes or that 

was reclassifi ed as unsuitable for grazing.

20Statistics for 1945 do not include 

Alaska and Hawaii. Nevertheless, these 

States have little infl uence on total 

grazing acreage, accounting for just 

0.22 percent of the total grazing area 

in 1949. 
24

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

Grazed forestland decreased 192 million acres (60 percent) from 1949 to 

2007 (table 8), and by 7 million acres during 2002-07. The long decline in 

forest grazing activity may be partly due to fewer farms and less land in 

farms, increases in forest stand density restricting grazing possibilities, and 

improvements in both livestock feeding and forest management practices. All 

of these factors have been especially important in the South, where woodland 

grazing acreages have been high.

Table 8

Total U.S. grazing land, by type, 1945-2007

 Year

Cropland

pasture1

Grassland pasture

and range2 Subtotal3

Forestland

grazed4 Total3

Million acres

1945 47 659 706 345 1,051

1949 69 632 701 319 1,020

1954 66 634 700 301 1,001

1959 66 633 699 245 944

1964 57 640 697 225 922

1969 88 604 692 198 890

1974 83 598 681 179 860

1978 76 587 663 172 835

1982 65 597 662 158 820

1987 65 591 656 155 811

1992 67 591 658 145 803

1997 68 580 648 140 788

2002 62 587 648 134 783

2007 36 614 650 127 777

1 Cropland used only for pasture estimate based on the Censuses of Agriculture (USDA/

National Agricultural Statistics Service, 2009a). 2 Grassland and other nonforested pasture and range based on the National Resources 

Inventory (e.g., USDA/Natural Resources Conservation Service, 2009), Censuses of Agriculture 

(e.g., USDA/National Agricultural Statistics Service, 2009a), and estimates of open or nonforested grazing land on Federal land (e.g., USDA/Forest Service, 2010; U.S. Department of the 

Interior/Bureau of Land Management, 2011).

3 Distribution may not add to totals due to rounding.

4 Estimates of total grazed forest acreage are based on acreage estimates of active grazing 

allotments in National Forests, plus grazed woodlands on non-Federally owned land from the 

Census of Agriculture and the National Resources Inventory. Though available for grazing, not 

all the acreage in active grazing allotments may be currently grazed. 

Sources: USDA, Economic Research Service calculations based on reports and records 

of the Census Bureau and Federal and State land management and conservation agencies. The estimates are not strictly comparable. Estimates for 2007 and 2002 based on U.S. 

Department of the Interior/Bureau of Land Management (2003 and 2011); USDA/Forest Service 

(1989 and 2008); U.S. General Services Administration (2001 and 2004); USDA/National 

Agricultural Statistics Service (2004a, 2004b, 2005, and 2009a); and USDA/Natural Resources 

Conservation Service (2000, 2004a, and 2009). Estimates for years prior to 2002 are from 

Daugherty (1989); Frey (1983); and previous Major Land Uses reports by: Vesterby and Krupa 

(2001); Daugherty (1991 and 1995); Frey (1973, 1979, and 1982); Frey and Hexem (1985); Frey 

et al. (1968); Wooten et al. (1962); Wooten and Anderson (1957); and Wooten (1953).
25

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

Forest-Use Land and Total Forested Land

Forested land used for all purposes totaled 751 million acres in 2007, 

including forest-use land and land in special uses that has forest cover (table 

9). The “forest-use” category is based on the use of the forestland as opposed 

to the forest cover alone. The forest-use designation includes both grazed and 

ungrazed forests but excludes forestland in parks, wildlife areas, and other 

special uses. This reduced area is a more realistic approximation of the land 

that may serve commercial forest uses as opposed to having forest cover. 

Forest-Use Land

An estimated 671 million acres were in a forest-use in 2007. About 127 

million acres of forest-use land (19 percent) is grazed. Forest-use land is 

about equally divided between the eastern half of the country (Northeast, 

Appalachian, Southeast, Lake, Corn Belt, and Delta regions) and the western 

half (the Plains States, Mountain, Pacifi c, and Far West regions) (table 9). 

Forest-use land predominates in the Northeast, Southeast, Appalachian, 

and Delta States, comprising 57-61 percent of all land in these regions. 

Forest-use land is also a relatively large share of the Lake States and Pacifi c 

regions, accounting for 36-42 percent of all land in these regions. Forest-use 

acreages in the Mountain region and Alaska are quite large but make up a 

smaller proportion of total land area in those regions (22 and 26 percent, 

respectively). 

Total Forested Land

More than two-thirds of total forested land in 2007 was timberland—forests 

capable of commercial timber production but not removed from timber 

use by statute or administrative regulation (table 10, fi g. 10). The greatest 

proportion of timberland was in the Southeast (15 percent), followed by 

the Appalachian (14 percent), Northeast, and Mountain regions (13 percent 

Table 9

Total U.S. forested land, by region, 2007

 Region

Grazed

forest 

Other 

forest-use 

land

Total

forest-use 

land

Forested

land in

special uses

Total 

forested land

1,000 acres

Northeast 511 66,263 66,774 6,015 72,789

Lake States 1,638 49,122 50,759 1,451 52,211 

Corn Belt 5,258 29,006 34,264 768 35,032 

Northern Plains 2,824 2,853 5,677 79 5,757 

Appalachian 3,150 67,668 70,819 1,851 72,670 

Southeast 2,773 72,377 75,150 1,220 76,369

Delta States 3,695 48,622 52,317 357 52,674 

Southern Plains 10,877 13,902 24,779 159 24,938 

Mountain 68,402 53,076 121,478 23,427 144,905 

Pacifi c 27,975 46,045 74,021 11,245 85,266 

Far West 27 95,327 95,354 33,264 128,617 

United States 127,130 544,261 671,390 79,837 751,228 

Source: See sources for tables 2, 8, and 10. 
26

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

Table 10

Total U.S. forestland, by major class and region, 2007 

 Region

Timberland Reserved

and other 

forested land2

Total forestland

Federal Non-Federal Total1 Federal Non-Federal Total1

1,000 acres

Northeast 1,884 66,122 68,006 4,783 2,335 70,454 72,789

Lake States 6,182 43,996 50,178 2,033 7,323 48,888 52,211

Corn Belt 2,744 31,293 34,038 994 2,989 32,043 35,032

Northern Plains 1,294 3,993 5,287 469 1,449 4,307 5,757

Appalachian 6,459 64,124 70,583 2,087 8,106 64,564 72,670

Southeast 4,290 70,099 75,019 1,350 5,883 70,487 76,369

Delta States 5,638 46,493 52,132 542 5,964 46,711 52,674

Southern Plains 1,234 16,859 18,093 6,845 1,405 23,533 24,938

Mountain 47,318 18,362 65,681 79,224 103,620 41,284 144,905

Pacifi c 30,310 32,324 62,633 22,632 45,904 39,361 85,266

48 States1 107,984 393,665 501,649 120,961 184,978 437,633 622,610

Alaska 4,750 7,114 11,865 115,004 63,423 63,446 126,869

Hawaii 0 700 700 1,049 12 1,736 1,748

United States1 112,734 401,479 514,213 237,014 248,413 502,814 751,228

1Distributions may not add due to rounding.

2 Includes about 80 million acres of forestland in parks, wildlife areas, and other special land uses.

Source: Smith et al. (2009).

Albers Equal-Area Conic Projection

500 miles

Figure 10

Timberland, reserved forest, and other forestland in the contiguous United States

Forestland use

Timberland

Reserved forest

Other forestland

No data

Source: Perry et al. (2009).
27

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

each). The remainder of total forested land is a combination of reserved 

forestland and other forestland. Much of the reserved forestland is available for recreational use (see “Special Uses,” p. 33). These forested lands 

provide watershed protection, wildlife habitats, and parks and serve other 

special purposes depending on the region. Other forested land includes land 

that is less productive for commercial harvest, but produces other wood and 

tree products, such as fuelwood. Much of this land is located in high-elevation areas like Alaska or in the dry, pinion-juniper lands of the interior West 

(Smith et al., 2009).

About 43 percent of the reserved and other forested land (e.g., parks, wilderness areas, and wildlife refuges) are in the Mountain and Pacifi c regions, 

where it accounts for over 44 percent of all forested land in those regions. 

Much of the remainder (49 percent) is in Alaska, where it accounts for 91 

percent of all forested land in that State (table 10). In contrast, acreages 

of reserved and other forestland in the Eastern States are relatively small, 

accounting for no more than 8 percent of all forested land in any region east 

of the Mississippi River.

Trends in Forest-Use and Forested Acreage

Forest-use land, which does not include the forest area counted under special 

uses, increased 20 million acres (3 percent) from 2002 to 2007 due mainly 

to increases in timberland on non-Federal land in many regions, but also 

due to better classifi cation of forestland in some States.21 Forest-use land 

trended downward from 1949 to 1997, but has increased over the past 10 

years. Much of the 14-percent decline in forest-use land from 1949 to 2002 

was a result of land reclassifi cation from forest-use to special-use areas (see 

“Special Uses,” p. 33). Urbanization of forested land in Southern regions 

also contributed to the declines; declines, however, may have been greater if 

various Federal and State programs had not provided incentives for private 

landowners to plant trees (Smith et al., 2009). 

Total forested land, including forest-use land (the MLU classifi cation) 

and multiple-use areas, declined from colonial times until about 1920, 

increased from 1920 to 1960, then trended downward until 1987 (USDA/

FS, 1982). Total forested area has increased since 1987, rising by about 15 

million acres between 1987 and 1997 and by about 5 million acres between 

1997 and 2007. Forested land classed as timberland has followed a similar 

upward trend since 1987, when it was at a 35-year low of 485 million acres. 

Timberland area increased by 19 million acres over 1987-97 and increased 

another 10 million acres over 1997-2007, due largely to re-evaluations of 

productivity that resulted in reclassifi cation of other forestlands to timberland and to marginal farmland in the East reverting to productive forestland 

(Smith et al., 2009). Even when total forested acreage does not change, 

forests change in terms of composition and health due to human-induced 

changes and natural processes of mortality and regeneration (Smith et al., 

2009).

Recent increases in timberland area are partially the result of a reclassifi cation of some national forestland due to standardization with protocols in use 

on other land ownerships. Some of the increases in total timberland since 

1987 may also indicate a response to rising real prices for forest products. 

21In particular, reclassifi cations of low 

productivity forestland from the MLU 

miscellaneous category explain the 

5-million-acre and nearly 2-million-acre 

increases in Texas and Washington State 

forest-use land estimates, respectively, 

between 2002 and 2007. Also, forestuse land in Wyoming increased 2 

million acres over this period, refl ecting 

a change in the U.S. Forest Service’s 

defi nition of a forest to include lands 

in the Great Plains that historically had 

not been classifi ed as forest (e.g., wide 

windbreaks and strips). Also the Forest 

Service’s defi nitional change to exclude 

chaparral, sparse juniper, and scrub oak 

land in the West largely explains the 

6.8-million-acre decline in California 

forest-use land (Smith et al., 2009).
28

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

Based on a national-level analysis of NRI data, Lubowski et al. (2008) 

estimate that increases in net returns from timber production, combined 

with a decline in crop profi ts, were the major determinants of forest area 

change from 1982 to 1997. While timberland acreage increased nationally, 

changes were not uniform across the country. Some timber-producing States, 

such as California, Washington State, and Michigan, experienced small 

decreases in timberland acreage from 1997 to 2002 (1.0, 0.4, and 0.3 percent, 

respectively). 

Forestlands under non-Federal ownership have remained relatively constant 

over the last 10 years. Acreage classifi ed as woodlands on farms decreased 

by about 1 million acres (1 percent) from 1997 to 2002 and by 2 million 

acres from 2002 to 2007 (USDA/NASS, 1999a and 2009a). Federal timberland increased by about 600,000 acres (0.5 percent) from 1997 to 2002 and 

by 3 million acres from 2002 to 2007. Earlier declines in Federal timberland 

area from 1952 to 1992 were primarily the result of transferring timberland 

into reserved areas. 
29

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

Urban and Rural Residential Uses

The land in urban areas was estimated at 61 million acres in 2007, less 

than 3 percent of the total land area in the United States, or an increase of 1 

million acres since 2002. The 2007 estimate remains below the 1997 estimate of 66 million acres in urban areas (see table 2) due to changes in the 

defi nition of urban and rural areas in the 2000 Census, the source for the 

MLU estimate (DOC/CB, 2002b). The census’ redefi ning of urbanized areas 

was intended to more precisely delimit high-density areas, which resulted 

in a downward revision of urban area estimates (see DOC/CB (2002a) for 

a complete overview). Although restating all prior year estimates is not 

possible, the Census Bureau did re-estimate the amount of land in urban areas 

in 1990 based on the 2002 defi nition. The results of this analysis showed that 

land in urban areas increased by about 7.8 million acres from 1990 to 2000. 

These historical changes in census defi nitions are also discussed in the 2002 

MLU report (Lubowski et al., 2006a). 

The Census Bureau’s method for estimating urban area includes urbanized areas with at least 50,000 people and urban clusters with 2,500-50,000 

people but excludes portions of extended cities that are essentially rural in 

character and lands in rural residential uses. The 2007 American Housing 

Survey (AHS), a periodic national survey published by the U.S. Department 

of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Census Bureau, 

provides estimates of land area in both urban and rural regions attributable 

to residential housing lots (DOC/CB, 2008). Land in residential use in both 

urban and rural areas was estimated at 135.7 million acres; 32.7 million 

acres was estimated to be urban residential area (and included in the 61 

million acres estimated in urban uses). The MLU estimate for nonfarm, rural 

residential areas was 103 million acres in 2007. Urban land plus rural residential areas together comprise 164 million acres, or 7.2 percent of total U.S. 

land area. 

The National Resource Inventory (NRI) is another data source available for estimating developed land areas in both urban and rural regions of 

the United States. Unlike the Census Bureau defi nition of urban areas, the 

NRI-developed land area estimate seeks to identify all residential, industrial, 

and commercial lands of at least a quarter acre in size or larger (see Alig 

and Healy (1987) for a discussion of the differences). According to the NRI, 

developed land totaled 111 million acres in 2007 (see table 3). This estimate 

includes 89 million acres in urban and built-up areas and 22 million acres 

in rural transportation land22 (USDA/NRCS, 2009). 

Distinguishing these rural residential lands from land areas identifi ed in other 

MLU categories is diffi cult. The NRI urban and built-up area estimate of 89 

million acres overlaps the Census Bureau-based estimate of urban land area, 

but only a portion of the AHS-based estimate of rural residential land area. In 

addition, the NRI-based estimate includes nonresidential built-up rural land 

area not captured in other estimates in this section, but may fall under the 

miscellaneous other land category in the MLU series (see “Miscellaneous 

Other Land Uses” section, page 36). Also, rural residential lots may have 

been classed as forests or grassland pasture and range, particularly given 

that NRI estimates are based largely on the interpretation of high-resolution 

22An estimate of the land area used 

for rural transportation based on U.S. 

Department of Transportation records 

is included in the MLU special uses 

category, see page 33.
30

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

aerial photography, and the prevalence of large lots in rural residential land 

use and the potential for a house to be obscured by vegetative cover may 

contribute to their classifi cation in other uses (fi g. 11). To partially account 

for the potential overlap with farmsteads included in “Special Uses,” rural 

residential lots associated with farms (with annual agricultural sales greater 

than $1,000) have been excluded from the rural residential estimate. Due to 

these data constraints, the estimate of rural residential area is presented but is 

not added to the urban estimate. 

Trends in Urban and Rural Residential Uses

Urban land area has quadrupled from roughly 15 million acres in 1945 to an 

estimated 61 million acres in 2007. The Census Bureau reports that the U.S. 

population nearly doubled over this same period. Though the defi nition of 

urban land area changed somewhat in 2000, urban land area has increased 

at about twice the rate of population growth. The change in defi nitions used 

by the U.S. Census Bureau makes changes in urban land areas over shorter, 

more recent periods more diffi cult to compare from this data source. The 

prior defi nition showed that census estimates of urban areas increased by 9.1 

million acres (36 percent) in the 1960s, 12.8 million acres (37 percent) in 

the 1970s, and 8.6 million acres (18 percent) in the 1980s. The new defi nition showed estimates of a 7.4-million-acre increase (14 percent) from 1990 

to 2000. The estimated increase from 2002 to 2007 was 1 million acres (less 

than 2 percent). 

The AHS-based estimate of land in rural residential use has also been continually increasing, from 56 million acres in 1980, 73 million acres in 1997, to 

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Figure 11

U.S. urban and rural residential area, by lot size, 2007

Notes: Farm housing units and housing units with unreported lot sizes (e.g., apartments) are 

not included in these estimates. The American Housing Survey topcodes some of the data 

fields to preserve respondent confidentiality. For this reason, the estimates of residential area 

in lots greater than 10 acres is conservative, as all lots greater than 22 acres have been 

recorded as 22 acres. 

Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and Department of Commerce, 

Census Bureau, 2007.

<1/8 1/8 to 1/4 1/4 to 1/2 1/2 to 1

Lot size, in acres

1 to 5 5 to 10 10

Urban Rural

Million acres
31

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

94 million acres in 2002. The estimated 10-percent increase of land area in 

rural residential use from 2002 to 2007 was signifi cantly below the estimated 

29-percent increase in rural residential land use seen in the 5-year period 

prior. 

NRI estimated that urban and built-up areas increased from 49.7 million 

acres to 89 million acres (79 percent) from 1982 to 2007. The increases in 

urban and built-up areas varied over this period. Between 1982 and 1992, 

these areas increased 12.8 million acres (26 percent), and between 1992 and 

2002 these areas increased 19.6 million acres (31 percent). Over 2002-07, the 

estimated increase was 7 million acres (8 percent). 

Only a relatively small fraction of the American landscape is dedicated to 

urban uses (about 3 percent), however, the U.S. population continues to grow 

which, in combination with household formation, drives the conversion of 

agricultural and forestland to residential, commercial, and industrial uses. 

Over 1982-2007, NRI data indicated that most of the rural land converted to 

urban uses was previously in agricultural use. Over 23 million acres of cropland, pasture, and rangeland were converted to developed uses, representing 

56 percent of the 40 million acres developed during that period. An additional 41 percent of land developed was previously in forest uses, some of 

which may have been grazed.

Even when rural land is not converted, proximity to these forces can affect 

landowner decisions about investing in and using rural land. The amount 

of land subject to urban infl uence is not insignifi cant. Nationally, about 20 

percent of the land in farms was subject to some form of urban infl uence in 

2007.23 On average, ERS estimates that an additional 4 percent of agricultural land became newly subject to urban infl uence between 1980 and 2000. 

The relative infl uence of urban areas expanded the most in the Appalachian 

and Southeast regions, where ERS estimates an additional 13 percent of land 

became newly subject to urban infl uence over this period (fi g. 12). On a State 

level, the greatest proportion of land in Delaware—an additional 40 percent 

of land—became newly subject to urban infl uence by 2000.

Proximity to urban areas can have both positive and negative impacts on land 

remaining in rural uses. One benefi t of proximity is easier access to markets 

(Heimlich and Anderson, 2001). Using Census Bureau delineations of counties based on proximity to population centers and 2007 Census of Agriculture 

data, ERS analysis reveals that about 40 percent of the market value of agricultural products sold was produced on farms in metropolitan counties,24

where urban infl uence and conversion pressures are greatest. Also, about 

40 percent of farms were located in these counties. Farms in metro areas 

tend to be smaller, more diverse, and more focused on high-value crops 

than nonmetro farms (Barnard and Heimlich, 1993; Heimlich and Barnard, 

1992 and 1997). Dairy, fruit, and vegetable production comprise much of 

farming activity near urban areas, and 65 percent of the market value of these 

products was produced on farms in metropolitan counties. Yet, the often 

highly fragmented conversion of rural lands to urban uses can cause confl icts 

between rural landowners and new nonfarming neighbors (Heimlich and 

Anderson, 2001). These challenges have led every State (and many localities) 

to pass legislation to control urban growth and/or protect the rights of rural 

landowners to farm (Heimlich and Anderson, 2001). Many of these policies, 

23The estimate is based on ERS 

analysis of NRI data using a 2000 index 

measuring proximity to population 

called Population-Interaction Zones for 

Agriculture (PIZA) codes. PIZA codes 

are based on a population-interaction 

index, which provides a cardinal 

measure of the potential interaction 

between a nearby urban-related population and agricultural production activities in each 5-kilometer grid cell in the 

continental 48 States.

24See metropolitan counties defi nition 

at http://www.ers.usda.gov/Briefi ng/

Rurality/RuralUrbCon/.
32

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

however, are often intended to both protect high-quality rural land from the 

pressures of development and to maintain the amenities offered by rural agricultural and forested land for the suburban and rural residents in these fringe 

areas (e.g., Hellerstein et al., 2002). 

Several studies also suggest that forest production is negatively impacted 

by urban infl uence. These studies found evidence that population growth, 

population density, and urban expansion decrease management, investment, 

and harvest rates on private forestlands (Kline et al., 2004; Munn et al., 2002; 

Wear et al., 1999). Development near forested land is also found to impact 

forests negatively due to the increased threat from pests, disease, pollution, and fi re (Smith et al., 2009). Increasing urban infl uence has had both 

economic implications for the timber industry and environmental implications for the forestland. Forestland in some regions of the country is under 

more pressure than other regions, such as in the rapidly developing Northeast 

and Southern United States. Concern over the interaction of urban pressures 

and forestland is heightened in these regions, as the Eastern United States 

accounts for 90 percent of the hardwood timber volume (Smith et al., 2009). 

Populations located near forestland, however, do receive benefi ts from the 

forest resource, such as ecosystem services and recreational opportunities. 

Figure 12

Degree of urban influence, 1980-2000

* includes some low density development not defined by the Census Bureau as urban areas or urban clusters.

Sources: USDA, Economic Research Service calculations based on 2000 Census population data and U.S. Census Bureau 2003 

urban areas.

Urban influence

Urban areas and urban clusters

High influence in 1980*

Low to medium influence in 1980

Rural

Newly subject to high influence between 1980 to 2000

Newly subject to low influence between 1980 to 2000
33

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

Special Uses 

Land for all special uses, including parks, recreational areas, rural highways, 

roads, railroads, and airport rights-of-way, comprised 313 million acres 

in 2007 (table 11). These areas, refl ecting a continuum of intensity of use, 

represented 14 percent of all land in the United States in 2007.

The largest share—land used for outdoor recreation and land being maintained in its natural/wild/preserved state—is estimated at 252 million acres 

(80 percent of the special uses total). This acreage can be further dissected 

into national and State parks (32 percent of the special uses total) and wilderness/wildlife uses (49 percent of the special uses total). Of the total acreage 

used for parks, recreation, and wildlife purposes in 2007, 30 percent was in 

the Mountain and Pacifi c regions (combined) and 56 percent was in Alaska. 

The remaining 14 percent spans rural parks, recreation, and fi sh and wildlife 

refuges east of the Rocky Mountains, including large tracts in New York, 

Pennsylvania, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, Tennessee, Florida, 

and Texas (each with a million or more acres). Areas like the national parks 

system were selected because of specifi c or unique site characteristics, 

including natural amenities or historical signifi cance (DOI/NPS, 2000). 

Table 11

Trends in special uses of U.S. land, 1959-2007

Special-use areas1 1959 1964 1969 1974 1978 1982 1987 1992 1997 2002 2007

Million acres

Rural transportation 25 26 26 26.3 26.7 26.8 25.7 25.2 25.4 27.3 26.5

 Highways/roads 20.2 21.2 21 21.2 21.5 21.5 21.2 21 21 21.8 21.2

 Railroads 3.4 3.3 3.2 3.1 3 3 2.3 2 1.9 3.1 3.0

 Airports 1.4 1.5 1.8 2 2.2 2.3 2.2 2.2 2.5 2.4 2.4

Rural parks and 

wilderness areas 61.4 75.5 81.4 87.5 97.9 210.9 224.9 228.8 237.1 242.2 251.7

 National/State parks 29.7 31.9 35 36.8 38.5 89.7 96 94.3 98.1 99.2 99.5

 Wilderness areas 14.5 14.6 14.3 14.8 18.1 26 32.5 35.7 40 41.4 47.5

 Wildlife areas 17.2 29 32.1 35.9 41.3 95.2 96.4 98.8 99 101.6 104.8

Defense/industrial 26.3 31.9 25.6 25 24.9 24 20.9 20.5 16.4 16.7 23.0

Farmsteads 10.1 9.2 8.4 8.1 8.4 8 7.1 6.2 6.6 10.8 12.2

Total2 122.8 142.6 141.4 146.9 157.9 269.7 278.6 280.8 285.5 296.8 313.4

1 See defi nitions in Appendix 1. The MLU data product with regional and State-level estimates from 1945 to 2007 is available at 

http://www.ers.usda.gov/data/majorlanduses/.

2 Distributions may not add to totals due to rounding.

Sources: USDA, Economic Research Service calculations. Estimates for 2002 and 2007 are based on reports and records of the U.S. Department 

of Commerce/Census Bureau (2003) and Federal and State land management and conservation agencies, including the U.S. Department of the 

Interior/Bureau of Land Management (2003 and 2007); U.S. Department of Transportation/Bureau of Transportation Statistics (2004 and 2007); 

U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Aviation Administration (2002); U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Highway Administration 

(2002 and 2007); U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Railroad Administration (2004); USDA/Forest Service (1998 and 2008); U.S. 

Department of the Interior/Fish and Wildlife Service (2001 and 2007); U.S. General Services Administration (2001 and 2004); Geographic Data 

Technology (2000 and 2007); USDA/National Agricultural Statistics Service (2004a and 2009); U.S. Department of the Interior/National Park 

Service (2002 and 2007); USDA/Natural Resources Conservation Service (2000 and 2009); Wilderness Institute (2002 and 2009); U.S. Department 

of Defense (2007); and U.S. Department of Energy (2007). Estimates prior to 2002 are from Vesterby and Krupa (2001); Daugherty (1991 and 

1995); Frey (1973, 1979, and 1982); Frey and Hexem (1985); Frey et al. (1968); and Wooten et al. (1962).
34

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

Land used for rural transportation accounted for roughly 27 million acres, 

based on U.S. Department of Transportation records, about 9 percent of the 

total special use land. The 23 million acres in national defense and industrial 

areas are concentrated primarily in less agriculturally productive areas of the 

Western States and Alaska (with smaller areas in the Eastern States). Over 70 

percent of the national defense and industrial lands are in the Mountain and 

Pacifi c regions. Land in farmsteads accounted for the remaining 12 million 

acres of land in special uses, as of 2007. 

Trends in Special Uses

Land used for rural transportation, recreation, wildlife, defense, and other 

special uses in the United States has increased about 2.5 times over a 48-year 

period, increasing from 123 million acres in 1959 to 313 million acres in 

2007. This increase is largely a result of a fourfold increase in rural parks 

and wilderness/wildlife areas. Alaska alone now has about 146 million acres 

(46 percent) of total special-use acreage due to the establishment of national 

parks, wilderness areas, and wildlife refuges in what was previously inventoried as forest or other unclassifi ed land use. At 39 percent of its land base, 

Alaska has the largest share of land in special uses, followed by California at 

25 percent. The Midwest and Delta States have the lowest percentage of land 

in special uses (fi g. 13). 

Figure 13

Percent of U.S. land in special uses, by State, 2007

Sources: USDA, Economic Research Service calculations based on reports and records of the 

U.S. Department of Commerce/Census Bureau (2003) and Federal, State, and local land 

management and conservation agencies, including the U.S. Department of the Interior/Bureau 

of Land Management ( 2007); U.S. Department of Transportation/Bureau of Transportation 

Statistics (2007); U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Aviation Administration (2002); 

U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Highway Administration (2007); U.S. Department of 

Transportation/Federal Railroad Administration (2004); USDA/Forest Service (2008); U.S. 

Department of the Interior/Fish and Wildlife Service (2007); U.S. General Services Administration (2004); Geographic Data Technology (2007); USDA/National Agricultural Statistics Service 

(2009); U.S. Department of the Interior/National Park Service (2007); Smith et al. (2009); 

Wilderness Institute (2009); U.S. Department of Defense (2007); and U.S. Department of 

Energy (2007).

0-5

Percent 

5-10

10-15

15-20

20+
35

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

Special-use areas increased 16.6 million acres (5.6 percent) from 2002 to 

2007, continuing a steady upward trend since the 1940s. The long-term 

change, however, should be interpreted with caution, as it refl ects an upward 

adjustment due to new data and methods. 

Nearly two-thirds of the estimated increase in special-use land over 2002-07 

resulted from a nearly 10-million-acre increase in rural parks and wildlife/

wilderness land. Driving this number are substantial increases in federally 

owned outdoor recreation and preservation areas, State-owned fi sh and wildlife areas, and State parks. Complementary ERS research shows that these 

increases in rural natural amenities are associated with increasing rural population and job growth (USDA/ERS, 2011). 

National defense (airfi elds, training land, and miscellaneous military land) 

and industrial (energy and research areas) acres differ from other special uses 

mainly in that location is paramount and higher values and intensive uses 

characterize much of the land. This land category consisted of 23 million 

acres in 2007, an increase of 6.3 million acres over the 2002 estimate, 

returning defense and industrial acreage to levels more comparable with 

pre-1990. The 37-percent increase may be partly attributable to improved 

data sources.25

Estimated land in rural transportation uses decreased by less than 1 million 

acres from 2002 to 2007. The change in estimated rural area in roads, 

airports, and railroads likely refl ects improved transportation data; some 

acreage may also have been reclassifi ed as urban due to expansion of those 

areas. For this report, the availability of data and the use of GIS techniques 

improved the estimations of rural transportation land.

Land in farmsteads and associated uses (farm roads and lanes) continues to 

trend upward. The 2007 estimate was nearly double the 1992 estimate. The 

current estimate was computed from NRI data using the average farmstead 

size in 2007 (USDA/NRCS, 2009), then multiplied by the number of farms 

in 2007. Census of Agriculture data show a signifi cant increase in the number 

of small farms from 2002 to 2007 (USDA/NASS, 2010), as special emphasis 

was placed on identifying more small farms. MLU reports prior to 2002 

used signifi cantly smaller coeffi cients for average farmstead size and did not 

utilize the NRI data.

25The 2002 MLU report utilized aggregated 2000 GSA data (the most 

recent). The 2007 MLU report utilized 

2007 data directly from the Department of Defense and the Department 

of Energy. The sharp increase may be a 

result of the increased defense budgets 

and military operations post-September 11, 2001.
36

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

Miscellaneous Other Land Uses 

The remaining 197 million acres (9 percent) of the Nation’s land are included 

in the miscellaneous other land category (see table 2). Miscellaneous land 

declined by 31 million acres (14 percent) from 2002 to 2007, due partly 

to the improved measurement of other land-use categories. These acres 

consist largely of wetlands, rural residential land (see “Urban and Rural 

Residential Uses” section on page 29), desert, tundra, and other barren land 

generally of low value for agricultural purposes that are not independently 

classifi ed in the MLU report. Acreage of this unclassifi ed land is relatively 

large in arid portions of the West and several Atlantic and Gulf Coast areas. 

Alaska and its ecologically sensitive tundra areas had 128 million acres, 65 

percent of the total. 

According to the NRI, non-Federal acreage of wetlands in the contiguous 48 

States totaled almost 111 million acres in 2007, of which NRI estimated over 

60 percent were wetland acres on forestland; 22 percent were on cropland, 

pasture and rangeland; 1 percent was on developed land; and 3 percent were 

grouped with water areas (USDA/NRCS, 2009). Fifteen million (13 percent) 

of these wetland acres are included in miscellaneous other land in MLU. 

The amount of wetland cover fl uctuated in the decade from 1992 to 2002. 

Between 2002 and 2007, the estimate remained unchanged (USDA/NRCS, 

2009). 

Using a different sampling technique and including Federal and non-Federal 

land, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) estimated total wetland 

acreage in the contiguous 48 States at 108 million acres in 2004, nearly 5 percent of land area, and a 0.2-percent increase in area from 1998 (Dahl, 2006).26

The miscellaneous other MLU category remains diffi cult to itemize given 

the various sources of land-use and land-cover data in the United States and

the various defi nitions, motivations, and missions for each data-gathering 

entity.

26See USDA (2009, p.6) for details on 

the differences between NRI and FWS 

wetland estimates.
37

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

Major Land Uses, by Class of Ownership 

About 60 percent of the land in the United States is privately owned (table 

12). The Federal Government owns 29 percent of the land base, mostly in 

the West. State and local governments own nearly 9 percent, and Indian trust 

land accounts for about 2 percent. These proportions have changed only 

gradually over time, except in Alaska, where large areas of Federal land have 

been transferred to State and native (private) ownership. 

Federal land, at 653 million acres in 2007, includes the original public 

domain and land acquired by purchase and other means. Total federally 

owned land increased by 18 million acres between 2002 and 2007. About 39 

percent of all Federal land is in Alaska, 40 percent in the Mountain region, 

and 14 percent in the Pacifi c region. The remaining 7 percent is distributed 

among the other eight farm production regions and Hawaii. The largest 

portion among these remaining regions—1.5 percent of all Federal land—is 

found in the Appalachian region. 

About 145 million acres of Federal grassland and a portion of Federal forestland are used for grazing. Federal land also includes forestland in special 

uses and miscellaneous other land, such as marshes, open swamps, bare 

rock areas, desert, and special uses not inventoried.

State and local governments have accumulated landholdings of various sizes 

through grants from the Federal Government, tax reversions, purchases, gifts, 

Table 12

Ownership and use of U.S. land, by major categories, 2007

Ownership Cropland

Grassland 

pasture and 

range Forestland 

Total special, 

urban, and miscellaneous landTotal

land area

Million acres

Federal1 - 145 165 343 653

State and other public2 - 40 75 83 198

American Indian3 6 49 9 2 66

Private 402 380 422 142 1,347 

Total4 408 614 671 570 2,264 

- = Less than 500,000 acres.

1 Includes reserved forestland in parks and other special uses.

2 Excludes an estimated 80 million acres in special uses that have forest cover and, therefore, are included 

with forestland in this table. 

3 Managed in trust by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Does not include the 36 million acres of land in Alaska 

managed for Alaskan Natives.

4 Distributions may not add to totals due to rounding.

Sources: Federal, State, and local Government and Indian land acreage are approximations based on 

public records and reports (U.S. Department of the Interior; USDA Forest Service; U.S. General Services 

Administration). Private land is the remainder of the land in each use category. Land-use data are from 

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development/Census Bureau (1992, 2002, and 2003); U.S. 

Department of the Interior/Bureau of Land Management (2003); U.S. Department of Transportation/Bureau 

of Transportation Statistics (2004); U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Aviation Administration 

(2002); U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Highway Administration (2002); U.S. Department of 

Transportation/Federal Railroad Administration (2004); USDA/Forest Service (1989 and 1998); U.S. 

Department of the Interior/Fish and Wildlife Service (2001); U.S. General Services Administration (2001); 

Geographic Data Technology (2000); USDA/National Agricultural Statistics Service (2004a, 2004b, and 

2005); U.S. Department of the Interior/National Park Service (2002); USDA/Natural Resources Conservation 

Service (2000 and 2004a); and Wildlife Institute (2002).
38

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

and escheats.27 These publicly administered areas are distributed throughout 

the Nation more evenly than Federal land, but are still highly concentrated 

in the Western States. State and local governments hold land for forests, 

parks, wildlife refuges, highways and roads, institutional uses, and other 

specifi c purposes. Most Western States also own relatively large acreages to 

earn income, provide fi nancial support to schools, and meet other objectives. 

About 40 million acres in this category are used for grazing.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) manages 66 million acres in trust for 

tribes and individuals. Like Federal and State land, most land managed by 

BIA is concentrated in the Western States. About 49 million acres is grazing 

land and a small amount of acreage is used for crop production.

Private land, except that under American Indian ownership, totaled 1.3 billion 

acres in 2007. Privately owned land includes about 99 percent of the Nation’s 

cropland; 62 percent of the grassland pasture and range; 63 percent of 

the forest-use land; and 25 percent of the special-use, urban, and miscellaneous land. Between 2002 and 2007, private ownership of forest-use land 

remained about the same; private ownership of land in special uses, urban, 

and miscellaneous declined by about 20 million acres. This decline is likely 

attributable to the increases seen in federally owned outdoor recreation and 

preservation areas, State-owned fi sh and wildlife areas and State parks, and 

National defense and industrial acres (see “Special Uses” section on page 33). 

Land ownership can have far-reaching implications for how the land is 

managed, as different types of owners may have different objectives for 

owning land, such as for generating short-term profi ts versus as a long-term 

capital investment or for meeting individual/private needs versus achieving 

broader societal benefi ts. These different objectives give owners different 

incentives to adopt farming and forestry practices that minimize potential 

environmental degradation. Research in the agricultural sector found that 

operators who farm rented land were signifi cantly less likely than owneroperators to adopt conservation practices that provide only long-term benefi ts, such as grassed waterways, strip cropping, and contour farming (Soule et 

al., 2000). In a survey of forest owners, the USDA Forest Service found that 

of the 264 million acres of privately owned forestland, only 19 percent were 

covered by forest management plans (Smith et al., 2009). 

Of the 922 million acres of land in farms—cropland, privately owned pasture 

and rangeland, and privately owned grazed woodland on farms—62 percent 

is owned by individuals that farm the land. These operating owners rent an 

additional 9 percent to other operators, and 29 percent of land in farms is 

owned by entities that are not otherwise engaged in farming (USDA/NASS, 

2009a). In 2007, in three of the top four regions with the most land in farms, 

nonoperating landlords owned more than 30 percent of the land (fi g. 14).

The USDA Forest Service tracks ownership patterns of timberland—the 

component of forest-use land used for commercial timber production. 

Ownership patterns vary across the country. Most federally owned timberland is in the western half of the country (Northern and Southern Plains, 

Mountain, Pacifi c, and Far West regions), while most privately owned land 

is in the eastern half of the country (fi g. 15). The private corporate category 

includes timber investment management organizations (TIMOs) and real 

27A common law doctrine that operates 

to ensure that property is not left in 

limbo and ownerless.
39

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

estate investment trusts (REITs). TIMOs and REITs account for much of 

the land previously classifi ed as forest industry land, which was sold off or 

converted by the latter ownership type (Smith et al., 2009). 

Percent land 

in farms 2007

Less than 10

10 - 29

30 - 49

50 - 69

70 - 89

90 or more

Rented from nonoperator

Rented from operator

Owner operated

Figure 14

Share of U.S. farmland, by ownership type, 2007

Source: USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service.

Mountain

Southeast

Appalachia

Northeast

Lake

States

Corn

Belt

Northern 

Plains

Southern 

Plains Delta

States

Pacific

29%

22%

33% 33%

33%

38%

19%

28%

27%

24%

Figure 15

Share of U.S. timberland area (million acres), by major ownership 

categories, 2007

Western United States Eastern United States

Total Federal

State and other public

Private noncorporate

Private corporate

40.6

25%

26.6

16%

209.8

60%

79.5

23%

84.9

52%

12.2

 7%

 27.8

8% 32.8

8%

Source: Smith et al. (2009).
40

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

Land use is closely interlinked with land ownership, and these proportions 

refl ect historic land management priorities. During the 19th century, Federal 

agencies actively encouraged westward settlement and economic development through the selective transfer of more productive agricultural lands 

from Federal ownership to private companies and individuals (Wiebe et al., 

1996). After the turn of the 19th century, the emphasis of land-use policies 

evolved to balance private economic interests with the provision of recreation, wilderness and wildlife, and environmental and resource conservation.

Foreign Ownership of Land

The private land category includes land held by foreign owners. Since 

1978, foreign owners have been required to submit information to the U.S. 

Department of Agriculture on farm and forestland holdings in compliance 

with the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act of 1978.

In 2007, foreign owners held an interest in 21.8 million acres (1 percent) of 

U.S. land, 19.5 million acres of which were farm and forestland (Blevins et 

al., 2008). These holdings represent about 1.2 percent of farm and forestland (based on MLU estimates). While foreign land holdings of farm and 

forestland have remained relatively constant between 1996 and 2006, 

foreign holdings of these lands increased 23 percent (3.6 million acres) 

from 2006 to 2007. This signifi cant increase was largely in forestlands (fi g. 

16) and occurred as a result of timber company acquisitions by foreignowned companies (Blevins et al., 2008). Foreign landowners hold property 

in all U.S. States, primarily forest or timber land, with the largest amount 

of foreign-owned land in Maine (3.324 million acres, about 17 percent of 

foreign-held farm and forestland). Foreign landowners hold more than 1 

million acres of farm and forestland in Texas, Alabama, Washington State, 

and Florida, with less than a million acres owned in other States.

Other agricultural land

Homesteads, farm roads, 

idle agricultural land

Figure 16

Trends in foreign holdings of U.S. agricultural land, by type of use, 

2000-09 

Million acres

Source: Blevins et al. (2009).

2000 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

Forest

Pasture

Cropland
41

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

Conclusions and Challenges To Resolve

This update to the MLU series presents land-use estimates spanning from 

1945 to 2007 for the United States (State-level estimates are available at 

http://www.ers.usda.gov/Data/MajorLandUses/). In addition to providing the 

only comprehensive estimates covering all land uses for that length of time, 

this report also provides a number of insights into the factors driving changes 

in major land-use categories over time. 

Primary Challenges When Compiling Estimates 

for All Major Land Uses

Out of necessity, the data are drawn from a number of sources. A challenge 

arises because each source defi nes land-use categories somewhat differently 

to best meet its own agency’s needs, and no single agency measures all land 

uses. These defi nitional differences create challenges when attempting to use 

the land-use estimates provided by multiple agencies. Yet, the land that could 

potentially fall into multiple land-use categories, such as grassland on which 

forest is starting to regenerate, may be the most susceptible to factors causing 

land-use change, so it is important to accurately measure changes in those 

lands. A systematic effort to clearly highlight the differences between datasets that provide estimates of the same land-use types would facilitate use of 

data by those seeking to explain the factors driving land-use changes. 

Another challenge arises from understanding what various data collection 

efforts actually measure. Advances in GIS mapping techniques and increased 

availability of satellite imagery and high resolution aerial photography 

provide state-of-the-art capability for developing estimates of land cover at 

spatially disaggregate levels, but the extent to which land cover corresponds 

to land use is often unclear. For example, interpretation of satellite imagery 

or aerial photographs could result in residential land being classifi ed as forest 

if the canopy cover obscures dwellings; canopy could also easily obscure 

areas actually used for grazing purposes. Clarifying the extent to which land 

cover corresponds with land use in different regions will improve our understanding of how and when land-use changes lead to land-cover changes. 

Many factors impact land uses, including policy, socioeconomic, and environmental factors. Identifying which factors make the most signifi cant 

impact is challenging because data are not always available at the same 

spatial or temporal scale. Ideally, data on land use should be available at 

a spatially disaggregated level and collected at the same point over time. 

Satellite data/aerial photography and the NRI (a survey covering 800,000 

data points) collect data on land use and natural resource characteristics over 

time but do not offer much information about the land operators or owners 

who make land-use decisions. Conversely, other data sources like the Census 

of Agriculture collect data on how land operators and owners use land, but 

generally these data are not linked to the land base, limiting users’ understanding of how physical land characteristics can affect land-use decisions. 

Combining these data can potentially improve policymakers’ understanding 

of the factors that drive land-use changes and whether the relative importance 

of different factors varies across regions. 
42

Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

Economic Research Service / USDA

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49

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Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007 / EIB-89

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Appendix 1: Defi nitions and 

Explanation of the Data 

The major land uses presented in this report are the latest in a series of landuse inventories conducted by USDA’s Economic Research Service and 

predecessor agencies. The inventories are based on available data from a 

wide variety of sources. The estimates were constructed from available data, 

rather than used exactly as developed by source agencies because land-use 

data, regardless of origin or utility for specifi c purposes, have limitations for 

comprehensive inventory purposes. 

Data are typically obtained from censuses and surveys that differ greatly 

in scope, methods, defi nitions, and other characteristics. Individual sources 

account for only few uses and for only a limited part of the total land area. 

The available data contain confl icts and overlaps that must be reconciled or 

removed. 

Defi nitions and Explanations of the Various Land-Use Categories 

American Housing Survey (AHS)—A periodic survey conducted by the 

U.S. Census Bureau to obtain housing statistics for the U.S. Department of 

Housing and Urban Development (HUD). This national survey began in 

1973 as the Annual Housing Survey. The current series began in 1981 and 

is conducted every odd-numbered year by fi eld representatives who collect 

information through interviews with home occupants, landlords, rental 

agents, and neighbors (in 2007 the sample was 52,850 and the response rate 

was 88 percent). The sample is randomly drawn from the 1980 Census and 

updated for coverage improvement and newly constructed housing units. 

Weights are used to adjust the responses to refl ect the probability of selection and noninterview adjustments. Additional information on the AHS can 

be found in the Current Housing Report, and sample design and weighting is 

detailed in that report’s Appendix B (DOC/CB, 2008). 

Cropland—Total cropland includes fi ve components: cropland harvested, 

crop failure, cultivated summer fallow, cropland used only for pasture, and 

idle cropland. The estimate of total cropland in 2007 included total cropland as reported by the 2007 Census of Agriculture (USDA/NASS, 2009a) 

plus an upward adjustment to conform to data on principal crops harvested 

in each State as reported by the National Agricultural Statistics Service for 

2007 (USDA/NASS, 2009b). In 2007, the census’ estimate of total principal 

crops harvested was about 98 percent of the estimate for the same crops from 

NASS.

The Census of Agriculture data are derived from a census of all farm operations that produce, or normally would produce and sell, $1,000 or more of 

agricultural products annually. USDA’s NASS undertakes extensive procedures to include all eligible farms in the census. The census was conducted 

through mailings and, to a lesser extent, telephone or personal enumeration 

with a goal of achieving at least a 75-percent response rate in all counties. 

Missing data were calculated from responses to other surveys or imputed 

from reporting farms of a like type. The response rate for the 2007 Census 

of Agriculture was 85.2 percent, compared with 88.0 and 86.2 percent for 
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the 2002 and 1997 Censuses, respectively. Details on the methodology and 

reliability of estimates are contained in Appendix A of the 2007 Census of 

Agriculture (USDA/NASS 2009a).

The components of cropland are: 

Cropland used for crops—Three of the cropland acreage components—cropland harvested, crop failure, and cultivated summer 

fallow—are collectively termed cropland used for crops, or the land 

input to crop production. Annual estimates of cropland harvested are 

based on both census data and the series on principal crops harvested 

as maintained by NASS. Annual estimates of crop failure are based on 

differences in planted and harvested acreage of principal crops from 

the NASS data series. Annual estimates of cultivated summer fallow 

historically have been based on fragmentary data from a variety of 

sources. Since the late 1970s, the estimates have been based on data 

from the Census of Agriculture and unpublished NASS data.

Cropland harvested: Includes row crops and closely sown crops; 

hay and silage crops; tree fruits, small fruits, berries, and tree nuts; 

vegetables and melons; and miscellaneous other minor crops. In 

recent years, farmers have double-cropped about 4 percent of this 

acreage.

Crop failure: Consists mainly of the acreage on which crops failed 

because of weather, insects, and diseases, but does include some 

land not harvested due to lack of labor, low market prices, or other 

factors. Crop failure is calculated using the difference between 

cropland planted and cropland harvested. However, some cropland 

planted is not intended to be harvested. Thus, the acreage planted 

to cover and soil improvement crops not intended for harvest is 

excluded from crop failure and is considered idle. In recent years, 

crops have failed on about 2-3 percent of the acreage planted for 

harvest.

Cultivated summer fallow: Refers to cropland in subhumid 

regions of the West that are cultivated for one or more seasons to 

control weeds and accumulate moisture before small grains are 

planted. This practice is optional in some areas, but it is a requirement for crop production in the drier cropland areas of the West. 

Other types of fallow, such as cropland planted to soil improvement crops but not harvested and cropland left idle all year, are 

not included in cultivated summer fallow but are included as idle 

cropland.

Cropland pasture—Generally is considered to be in long-term crop 

rotation. This category includes acres of crops hogged or grazed but 

not harvested and some land used for pasture that could have been 

cropped without additional improvement. Cropland pastured before or 

after crops were harvested was included as harvested cropland and not 

cropland pasture. Estimates in this land-use category are derived from 

the Census of Agriculture (USDA/NASS, 2009a). 

Idle cropland—Includes land in cover and soil-improvement crops 

and cropland on which no crops were planted. Some cropland is idle 
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each year for various physical and economic reasons. Acreage diverted 

from crops to soil-conserving uses (if not eligible for and used as 

cropland pasture) under Federal farm programs is included in this 

component. Cropland enrolled in the Federal Conservation Reserve 

Program (CRP) and Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) is included in 

idle cropland.

Grassland pasture and range—Grassland pasture and range encompass all 

open land used primarily for pasture and grazing, including shrub and brushland types of pasture, grazing land with sagebrush and scattered mesquite, 

and all tame and native grasses, legumes, and other forage used for pasture 

or grazing—regardless of ownership. Because of the diversity in vegetative 

composition, grassland pasture and range are not always clearly distinguishable from other types of pasture and range. At one extreme, permanent grassland may merge with cropland pasture, or grassland may often be found in 

transitional areas with forested grazing land. The estimates in this report are 

composites of data from the National Resources Inventory (NRI), Census of 

Agriculture, the Bureau of Land Management, USDA Forest Service, and 

several other Federal agencies (see defi nitions for cropland, forested land, 

special uses, and NRI for details on the data from these sources). The 614 

million acres classed as grassland pasture and range in 2007 included 409 

million acres in farms (USDA/NASS, 2009a). Also included are estimates of 

private grazing land not in farms and public, nonforested grazing land. 

Forested land—As defi ned by the USDA Forest Service, the 751 million 

acres of forested land in 2007 (see table 9) consists of “land at least 

10-percent stocked by trees of any size, including land that formerly had such 

tree cover and that will be naturally or artifi cially regenerated.” Forested land 

includes transition zones, such as areas between heavily forested and nonforested lands, that have at least 10 percent cover (or equivalent stocking) with 

live trees and forest areas adjacent to urban and built-up lands. Fruit orchards 

or other tree covered areas in agricultural production settings, or tree-covered 

areas in urban settings such as city parks, are not considered forest land 

(Smith et al., 2009). 

The USDA Forest Service’s inventories of forested land are the primary basis 

for the Major Land Uses (MLU) estimate of forest-use land. The inventories 

are based on remote sensing data and supplemented by fi eld sampling to 

exclude lands with forest cover that are not considered forest use (primarily 

but not exclusively urban uses) (Smith et al., 2009).1 The inventories are 

designed so that estimates are accurate within 1 standard deviation at the 

67-percent confi dence level for each State. States with little forest area will 

be of lower accuracy, and users of the inventory are cautioned to consider 

small States, such as those in New England, as a group for analysis (see 

Appendix A in Smith et al., 2009). There are a number of components to 

total forestland, including:

Timberland: Forestland that produces or is capable of producing 

crops (in excess of 20 cubic feet per acre per year) of industrial 

wood and not withdrawn from timber utilization by statute or 

administrative regulation. Currently inaccessible and inoperable 

areas are included (Smith et al., 2009).

1The USDA Forest Service notes that 

forest area estimates in parts of Texas, 

Oklahoma, and in interior Alaska have 

been based on remote sensing without 

fi eld inventory verifi cation.
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Reserved forestland: Forestland withdrawn from timber utilization 

through statute, administrative regulation, or designation without 

regard to productive status (Smith et al., 2009). Wilderness areas 

and parks are included in this category. The defi nition changed 

slightly in 1997. Prior to 1997, the reserved forestland defi nition 

depended on the timberland designation. Reserved timberland 

was classed as “productive reserved” forest, while nontimberland 

reserved forests were classed as “unproductive reserved” and 

included under the “other forest” land category (see below).

Other forestland: Forestland other than timberland and reserved 

forest land. This includes available and reserved unproductive forest 

land, which is incapable of producing 20 cubic feet per acre per 

year of industrial wood under natural conditions because of adverse 

site conditions, such as sterile soils, dry climate, poor drainage, high 

elevation, steep slopes, or rockiness (Smith et al., 2009). This defi -

nition changed slightly starting in 1997. “For 1997, Other Forest no 

longer includes land classifi ed as unproductive reserved. This area, 

amounting to about 12 million acres in 1997, is now included in the 

Reserved Forest category” (Smith et al., 2001).

Forest-use land—An MLU category based on the use of the forestland as opposed to the forest cover alone. The forest-use category 

includes both grazed and ungrazed forests but excludes an estimate 

of forestland in parks, wildlife areas, and similar special-purpose uses 

from the USDA Forest Service’s inventory of total forest land. While 

it is impossible to eliminate overlap with other uses, this reduced area 

is a closer approximation of the land that may serve commercial forest 

uses as opposed to having forest cover. Nevertheless, some forestuse land may still be economically unsuited for timber harvests. In 

addition, private landowners may have objectives other than timber 

harvest. For example, Birch (1996) found that only 29 percent of 

private forest owners reported managing their land primarily for 

timber production. There are two components of forest-use land:

Forest land grazed: Forested pasture and range consisting mainly 

of forest, brush-grown pasture, arid woodlands, and other areas 

within forested areas that have grass or other forage growth. The 

total acreage of forested grazing land includes woodland pasture 

in farms plus estimates of forested grazing land not in farms. For 

many States, the estimates include signifi cant areas grazed only 

lightly or sporadically. The Census of Agriculture, the NRI, and the 

USDA Forest Service data on active grazing allotments are the principal sources of data used to develop the MLU estimate (USDA/

NASS, 2009; USDA/NRCS, 2009). Historical data from these 

and other sources were useful in developing the 129-million-acre 

approximation.

Forestland not grazed: Forest-use land not used for grazing. 

Forestland in special uses—Forest land in special uses, such as in 

parks, wildlife areas, and similar special-purpose uses, estimated at 80 

million acres for 2007.
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Miscellaneous other land—Includes miscellaneous other uses, such as 

industrial and commercial sites in rural areas, cemeteries, golf courses, 

mining areas, quarry sites, marshes, swamps, sand dunes, bare rocks, deserts, 

tundra, rural residential, and other unclassifi ed land. In this report, urban land 

is reported as a separate category. 

National Resources Inventory (NRI)—The NRI has been conducted by 

USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), in cooperation 

with Iowa State University since 1982, to assess the condition and trends in 

soil, water, and natural resources on the Nation’s non-Federal lands. The NRI 

covers privately owned land, tribal and trust lands, and lands controlled by 

State and local governments in the 48 contiguous States, and by 2011, estimates for Alaska, Hawaii, and U.S. territories are expected to be available. 

The NRI was conducted in 5-year intervals between 1977 and 1997; since 

2000, NRI data have been gathered annually on about 40,000 “core” points 

and a rotating panel of about 31,000 points. The NRI is a survey conducted 

using a stratifi ed two-stage, unequal probability area sampling scheme and 

includes about 800,000 total points. The use of remote sensing techniques 

increased during the 1990s and is supplemented by onsite verifi cation and 

comparison against administrative data (USDA/NRCS, 2009). See table 3 in 

the NRI report for margins of error associated with the NRI estimates. 

NRI defi nes the following land-cover/use categories as (USDA/NRCS, 

2009):

Cropland: Areas used for the production of adapted crops for harvest, 

including pasture that is in a rotation with row or close-grown crops.

Pastureland: Land with a vegetative cover of grasses, legumes, and/

or forbs, regardless of whether it is being grazed by livestock. 

Rangeland: Includes land on which the climax or potential plant 

cover is composed principally of native grasses, grasslike plants, forbs 

or shrubs suitable for grazing and browsing and introduced forage 

species that are managed like rangeland. Grasslands, savannas, many 

wetlands, some deserts, and tundra are considered rangeland. Certain 

communities of low forbs and shrubs, such as mesquite, chaparral, 

mountain shrub, and pinyon-juniper, are also included as rangeland.

Forestland: Includes land that is at least 10-percent stocked by singlestemmed woody species of any size that will be at least 4 meters (13 

feet) tall at maturity. This category also includes land bearing evidence 

of natural regeneration of tree cover (cut over forest or abandoned 

farmland) and not currently developed for nonforest use. Ten-percent 

stocked, when viewed vertically, equates to an areal canopy cover of 

leaves and branches of 25 percent or greater. The minimum area for 

classifi cation as forestland is 1 acre, and the area must be at least 100 

feet wide.

Other rural land: Includes farmsteads and other farm structures, fi eld 

windbreaks, barren land, and marshland.

Developed land in the NRI consists of urban and built-up areas and land 

devoted to rural transportation.
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Urban and built-up areas: Consists of residential, industrial, 

commercial, and institutional land; construction and public administrative sites; railroad yards; cemeteries; airports; golf courses; sanitary 

landfi lls; sewage plants; water control structures; and small parks and 

transportation facilities within urban areas. 

Large urban and built-up areas: Include developed tracts of 10 

acres or more.

Small built-up areas: Include developed tracts of a quarter of an 

acre to 10 acres, which do not meet the defi nition of urban area but 

are completely surrounded by urban and built-up land.

Rural transportation land: Includes highways, roads, railroads, and 

rights-of-way outside of urban and built-up areas.

Water areas—Include water bodies and streams that are permanent open 

water.

Residential area—The sum of acres in lots used for housing units. This 

data series was introduced in 1997 to the MLU report. Due to the limits of 

available data, it is not possible to distinguish rural housing lots from land 

classed under other uses. The majority of this land may be included with 

“miscellaneous other” land, but some overlap could also exist with forest use, 

grassland pasture and range, and other categories. Data for this series come 

from the AHS, which is conducted every other year (DOC/CB, 1996, 1999a, 

1999b, 2002, 2004, and 2008). 

Special-use areas—Includes highways, roads, and railroad rights-ofway and airports; Federal and State parks, wilderness areas, and wildlife 

refuges; national defense and industrial areas; and farmsteads and farmroads. 

Estimates are based on reports and administrative records of the Census 

Bureau and Federal and State land management and conservation agencies. 

Urban area—Urban areas in the MLU series follow the Census Bureau 

urban areas defi nition. The Census Bureau compiles urban area every 10 

years, coincident with the census of population. Census urban areas include 

densely populated areas with at least 50,000 people (“urbanized areas”) and 

densely populated areas with 2,500 to 50,000 people (“urban clusters”). 

Densely populated areas include census blocks with a population density of 

at least 1,000 people per square mile, surrounding blocks with a density of at 

least 500 people per square mile, and “less densely settled blocks that form 

enclaves or indentations, or are used to disconnect discontinuous areas with 

qualifying densities” (DOC/BOC, 2002). In the 2000 Census, urban clusters 

(UCs) replaced previous designations that were based on the boundaries of 

census-designated places. The census’ urban area defi nition includes residential areas and concentrations of nonresidential urban areas, such as commercial, industrial, and institutional land; offi ce areas; urban streets and roads; 

major airports; urban parks and recreational areas; and other land within 

urban-defi ned areas. The defi nition allows for exceptions and special cases. 

Portions of extended cities that are essentially rural in character are excluded.
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.

Land use Primary data sources1

Cropland: Cropland used for crops, idled 

cropland and cropland pasture

Census of Agriculture, conducted every 5 years (USDA/National Agricultural 

Statistics Service, 2009a) and Conservation Reserve Program administrative 

data (USDA/Farm Service Agency, 2008).

Grassland pasture and range National Resources Inventory (USDA/Natural Resources Conservation 

Service, 2009), Census of Agriculture (USDA/National Agricultural Statistics 

Service, 2009a), and estimates of open or nonforested grazing land on Federal 

land (USDA/Forest Service, 2010; U.S. Department of the Interior/Bureau of 

Land Management, 2011).

Forest-use land Forest Inventory (Smith et al., 2009). Estimates of total grazed forest acreage 

are based on acreage estimates of active grazing allotments in national forests 

(USDA/Forest Service, 2008), plus grazed woodlands on nonfederally owned 

land from the Census of Agriculture (USDA/National Agricultural Statistics Service 2009a) and the National Resources Inventory (USDA/Natural Resources 

Conservation Service, 2009).

Special-use areas National parks and wilderness areas include areas in national and State park 

systems (U.S. Department of Commerce/Census Bureau, 2003; U.S. Department of the Interior/National Park Service, 2007; U.S. Department of the Interior/Bureau of Land Management, 2007; Wilderness Institute, 2009). 

Wildlife areas include areas administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 

(U.S. Department of the Interior/Fish and Wildlife Service, 2007) and State 

wildlife agencies (from numerous State fi sh and wildlife agency websites). 

Defense and industrial uses based on areas administered by the U.S. Department of Defense, 2007; and Department of Energy, 2007.

Rural highway and road estimates use average right-of-way widths and mileage data (U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Highway Administration, 2007). Railroad area is from U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal 

Railroad Administration, (2004). Airport area is from U.S. Department of 

Transportation/Bureau of Transportation Statistics, (2007); U.S. Department of 

Transportation/Federal Aviation Administration, (2002) and Geographic Data 

Technology, (2007).

Farmsteads and farm roads are estimated based on the State-by-State number of farms and acreage of unclassifi ed land in farms from the Census of Agriculture. Farmstead area was computed using the average based on National 

Resources Inventory data (USDA/Natural Resources Conservation Service, 

2009) multiplied by the number of farms in 2007 (USDA/National Agricultural 

Statistics Service, 2009).

Urban areas Decennial Census of Population (U.S. Department of Commerce/Census Bureau, 2002b). Inter-census estimates are extrapolated. 

Miscellaneous other land Miscellaneous land and low density residential land from the National Resources Inventory (USDA/Natural Resources Conservation Service, 2009).

1The year refers to the source used to construct the 2007 MLU estimates.

Appendix 2: MLU Estimates: Primary Data Sources