Agricultural Land Conversion in the Twin Cities: Part II, the National Resources Inventory

Abstract

We divided the thirteen-county Twin Cities Metropolitan Statistical Area into a "core" and a "fringe" of seven and six counties, respectively. The National Resources Inventory estimates that 170 thousand acres of the Core were converted from agriculture to other uses between 1982 and 1987, while only about 46 thousand acres of the Fringe were so converted. The conversion rate was much greater in the Core than on the Fringe according to the NRI but not according to the Census of Agriculture. The number of acres of agricultural land converted for each new resident ranged from 0.15 in Sherburne County to 2.49 in Pierce County. Viewed another way, the increase in urban land to house new residents ranged from 0.28 in Ramsey County to 1.23 acres per person in Isanti County.