Map Courtesy of Texas Land Trends
I often find myself describing how the area around where I grew up has changed since I was a kid. Folks find it hard to believe that what is now a booming city known as Pflugerville was once thousands of acres of farmland with a sleepy town in the middle . Population 4000 became population 40,000 in the blink of an eye, and a lot of land changed along with it. In my Father's time, it was mostly large farms, covering hundreds, if not thousands of acres. Now, it's mostly neat suburbs and small lots. With the influx of new folks to Texas, it can be hard to see just what has changed, and how much.
The folks over at the Institute of Renewable Natural Resources (IRNR) and the American Farmland Trust have developed a new tool, Texas Land Trends to help Texans understand the changing dynamic of land use in the state.
The website showcases various changes, ranging from land use, property size (in acres), land type (such as native grasses, forest, etc), and loss of agricultural lands over a variety of searchable areas, sorted by county, watershed, ecoregion, metro area, or statewide. Clear graphs and maps make changes easy to understand, but ample data is also provided. These can be viewed as overall, general trends by region, such as the I-35 Corridor or the Rio Grande Valley (briefings), or as detailed graphs, maps and charts, based on more local interests.
This information is a helpful resource for landowners and conservation professionals, but probably is most helpful to general public in helping to convey information about our changing state to everyone. Even if you think you know how your area sits on all these topics, take a look and you may be surprised. I certainly was!