Why is it happening?
Both forests and farmlands are being threatened by development
pressures. For over 50 years, Puget Sound and Washington State
have been losing farmland and forestland. This pattern has been
caused by increases in aviation operations, World War II building,
development of extensive port and railway operations, urbanization
and increasing population. In 1950 King County had 153,301 acres
in farmland compared to 1992, when only 42,290 acres were in agricultural
production (five percent of the County's overall land base).
Threats to the Agricultural Land Base
-
Speculative
buying (in hopes of influencing land use and zoning changes)
- Taking land out of production
- Fragmentation of agricultural lands, which leads to lack
of the critical mass of farms and farmers needed to sustain
feed stores, equipment supplies
- Incompatible Adjacent Uses Lawsuits (odor, noise, drift of
pesticides)
- Incompatible Regulations
- Difficulties associated with irrigation
- Appraisal at "Highest and Best Use" which raises
property taxes (but farmers can apply to participate in the
Open Space Taxation Program)
- Ability to obtain financing
- Cost of providing seasonal farm worker housing
- Higher minimum wage
- Transportation
- Consolidation of food markets globally6
We
are Losing Forestlands for Similar Reasons
- Development pressure
- Complex regulations
- Depressed market prices for forest products
- Consolidation and globalization of markets
- Fire suppression policies
- Migration to suburban areas that make conversion attractive
- Forest vulnerability due to exotic species, pests and pathogens
- Development of Real Estate Investment Trusts
- Pressure on trust land to produce income in the face of decreased
state revenue7
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Urbanization
and Forest Change