DENVER—A
new report, released today by Environment Colorado Research and Policy
Center, analyzes agricultural land loss and the statewide environmental
and economic impacts. The report —"Losing Ground: Colorado’s Vanishing Agricultural Landscape"—documents
Colorado’s loss of 1.26 million acres of agricultural lands since 1997.
The report forecasts that an additional 3.1 million acres will be lost
if current trends continue.
“Colorado
is losing the equivalent of five family farms every week.” said Pam
Kiely, Environment Colorado Research & Policy Center’s Land Use
Associate and author of the report. “Loss of farm lands impacts the
environment, the economy and the very landscapes that define us as a
state.”
The
report highlights the importance of productive agriculture to the rural
economy, the environment, and to tourism. It details the value that
these lands provide to the state’s overall economic health.
Agribusiness is a $16 billion sector of Colorado’s economy, providing
13.2% of total jobs. “One third of Colorado counties are dependent on
agricultural income and employment,” explained John Stencel, President
of Rocky Mountain Farmers Union. “The loss of prime farmlands should
concern everyone.”
Open
agricultural lands are also critical to maintaining the state’s
biodiversity as well as preserving the natural cycles that clean and
renew our air and water. “The continued loss of farm and ranch land
results in significant environmental harms,” said Kiely. “Wildlife
habitats are jeopardized by landscape fragmentation and water quality
also suffers.”
Farmers and ranchers are facing new
challenges as this trend of agricultural land loss accelerates. “When
the land has been in your family for four generations, you think that
you are always going to be there,” explains Adams County farmer Barb
Marty, “but it is difficult to remain optimistic when suburban and
industrial development is closing in around you.”
The
report calls on all stakeholders to come together to develop strategies
to promote agriculture and rural development. “Farmers and ranchers are
essential stewards of Colorado’s landscapes,” concludes Kiely. “There
is a great deal at stake, and now is the critical time for key leaders
to unite around an agenda that promotes agriculture and rural
prosperity.”
