This layer represents agricultural resource priorities in the Highlands region. This layer is intended to inform grant proposals for the Highlands Conservation Act. The Highlands Conservation Act authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to provide financial assistance to the States of Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania (Highland States) to preserve and protect high priority conservation land in the Highlands region.
This layer ranges from 0 to 8, with 8 being highest priorities for agricultural preservation in the Highlands Region. The layer scores all 30m cells that are, or were, in agricultural use in 2016 or 2021 based on the 2021 NLCD layer (classes 81 and 82). Cells with prime, state, and local/unique agricultural soils (using SSURGO) were given scores of 4, 3, and 2, respectively. Cells near high densities of agricultural land use (i.e., within 800m of cells classified as 81 and 82 in the 2021 NLCD layer, using a focal statistics analysis) were scored 1 (lowest) to 4 (highest) density based on quantiles of agricultural density in the 2004 federal Highlands Conservation Act boundary.
