Land use

People use land in many ways.

Some land is for farms. Some is for forests. We also build cities on land. This helps us live.

Humans change the land to meet their needs. For example, people cut down forests to make room for farms. This is called deforestation.

These changes can affect the air and the soil. Changing land can also change the weather in a place.

We can learn about these changes by looking at pictures from space. This helps us take care of our world.

Land use describes how people use pieces of the Earth.

Humans use land for many things. We use it for forests and grasslands. We use it for wetlands. We also use it for cropland to grow food. Some land is for settlements, like our towns and cities.

People change the land to meet their needs. This is called land-use change. One big change is deforestation. This is when people cut down forests to use the land for other things. Since people started farming, forest cover has dropped by 35%.

These changes can affect our world. Changing land can change the air and the weather. It can also hurt the soil. Land-use change helps make carbon dioxide. This is a gas that can cause climate change.

Scientists study these changes. They use tools like satellite imagery. These are pictures taken from space. They help us see how the land is changing over time. This helps us plan for a better future.

Land use is a term used to describe how humans use different parts of the Earth.

It includes the things we get from the land and the actions we take to manage it. People group land into different categories to stay organized. These categories include forest land, cropland, grassland, and wetlands. We also include settlements, which are places where people live, and other types of land. Understanding land use is important because it shows how we interact with our planet.

When people change one type of land into another, it is called land-use change. This can happen in many ways. For example, deforestation is when people permanently turn forest land into something else. This often happens to create space for farms or new roads. Another change is urbanization, where natural land becomes part of a city.

These changes can affect the environment in many ways. They can lead to soil erosion or make the land less healthy. Land-use change also releases carbon dioxide, which is a major greenhouse gas.

Humans have been changing the land for a very long time. These changes first began more than 10,000 years ago. Before the Industrial Revolution, things like irrigation and cutting down forests were the biggest ways humans changed the air. Since people started farming, global forest cover has gone down by 35%.

Today, almost half of the land on Earth that is not covered in ice has been changed by human activity. About 40% of that land is now used for agriculture. This shows how much our needs have grown over the centuries.

There are many specific facts about how land is used around the world. In the early 1990s, about 13% of Earth was used for farming. By 2015, this number was about 10.7%. In the United States, the 48 contiguous states show different uses. In 2017, about 65 million acres were used for pasture or range. Forest land covered about 538 million acres in those same states. Urban areas took up about 69 million acres.

These numbers help us see the scale of human impact.

Scientists work hard to study these changes so we can protect our world. They use many tools to see what is happening on the ground. One important tool is satellite imagery, which uses pictures from space. They also use field observations and historical records to track patterns.

Scientists use these facts to create models that predict future changes. This helps leaders make better rules for managing land. By understanding land use, we can find ways to grow more food and reduce waste. This helps keep the Earth healthy for everyone.

Land use is an umbrella term for how humans interact with specific parcels of land. It describes both the benefits we get from the land and the management actions we take to produce those benefits. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) defines land use as the total of all arrangements, activities, and inputs applied to a piece of land.

This concept is vital because our choices shape the natural world. How we manage land affects resources like water, soil, nutrients, plants, and animals. Understanding these patterns helps us see how human needs impact the Earth's systems.

To study these interactions, scientists group land into specific categories. The most common categories include forest land, cropland (which is agricultural land), grassland, and wetlands. Other categories include settlements, where people build homes and cities, and "other lands" for different purposes.

In the United States, the Department of Agriculture identifies even more specific types. These include special use areas like national parks, military bases, and airports. They also include miscellaneous areas like cemeteries, golf courses, and deserts.

When one category of land is converted into another, it is called land-use change. This process is a major driver of environmental shifts. For example, deforestation is the systematic and permanent conversion of forested land for other uses.

This change can be caused by many interconnected forces. Industrial agriculture is a common driver, but small-scale migrant farming also plays a role. Sometimes, building roads or railways for economic development leads to forest loss. As forests are cleared, resources may become exhausted, forcing people to move to new areas.

Land-use change has profound consequences for the Earth's atmosphere. Along with the burning of fossil fuels, land-use change is a major anthropogenic source of carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide is a dominant greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change.

Before the Industrial Revolution, deforestation and irrigation were actually the largest sources of human-driven greenhouse gas emissions. Today, land-use or land-cover changes account for approximately 35% of anthropogenic carbon dioxide contributions. These changes can alter climate at both local and regional levels.

Human impact on the landscape has a very long history. People began changing land surfaces more than 10,000 years ago. Over the centuries, these changes have fundamentally altered key Earth systems.

Currently, almost 50% of the Earth's non-ice land surface has been transformed by human activities. Of that transformed land, about 40% is used for agriculture. This agricultural use has surpassed natural systems as the principal source of nitrogen emissions. As global populations grow, the pressure on land continues to increase.

We can see these changes through specific data and historical shifts. In the early 1990s, about 13% of the Earth was considered arable land, which is land suitable for farming. By 2015, the total arable land had changed to 10.7% of the land surface. In the contiguous 48 United States, 2017 statistics show that pasture and range covered 654 million acres. Forest land covered 538.6 million acres, while urban areas occupied 69.4 million acres.

These numbers show how much space different human activities require.

To manage these changes, scientists use land change science to monitor the planet. They use satellite imagery and aircraft imagery to observe land from above.

They also use field observations, historical accounts, and reconstruction modeling. These tools allow scientists to document long-term patterns and predict future risks. By using land change modeling (LCM), they can simulate how land might change under different circumstances. This information helps leaders create policies to improve food productivity and reduce waste, which can help free up land and protect the environment.