What % of the US surface area would you guess is "built-up"?

[Amused]

The answer:

According to the federal government, only 6.4 percent of non-federal land in the United States is developed. When federal land is considered, the percentage of developed land drops to about 4 percent.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=29186

BTW, read the article. It is very enlightening.

 

[Viper GTS]

Originally posted by: Eli
Hmm.. I guess 40%.

All these guesses of 1% are crazy.

There's no way.

I would be shocked.

Maybe my guess is a little high, but I would be shocked if it was even under 10%.

I take it you've never been outside the Portland/Metro area?



Viper GTS

 

[Mr N8]

I'm guessing its around 3-4%. I think I've heard the answer to this before, but its been a long time since then.

edit:
NM, Amused did some research.

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: Viper GTS

Originally posted by: Eli
Hmm.. I guess 40%.

All these guesses of 1% are crazy.

There's no way.

I would be shocked.

Maybe my guess is a little high, but I would be shocked if it was even under 10%.

I take it you've never been outside the Portland/Metro area?



Viper GTS

I have.. but not really to much extent, I guess.

Well.. I can live with ~6% better than I can less than 1%, I guess.

Does that include farmland? Personally, I think farmland should count. It's not natural. Parks count.

 

[kranky]

Link to article with answer.

According to NOAA, the total amount of impervious surface area (land covered by buildings, roads, parking lots, etc.) in the 48 states would all fit into a space the size of Ohio. That's about 1.5% of the total surface area of the continental US.

 

[MikeyIs4Dcats]

Originally posted by: MikeyIs4Dcats
oh, about 3%

Is this like the Price Is Right? Closest without going over???

edit: bummer.....guess NOAA is a little more precise than the government.

 

[rahvin]

Originally posted by: Eli

I have.. but not really to much extent, I guess.

Well.. I can live with ~6% better than I can less than 1%, I guess.

Does that include farmland? Personally, I think farmland should count. It's not natural. Parks count.

Farmland isn't natural? A good chunk of the farmland in the US grows corn and wheat, which are both grasses. The farmland that this grass farming occupies used to be *suprise* grassland. So explain to me how growing grass on grassland isn't natural?

 

[jagec]

Originally posted by: Eli
Does that include farmland? Personally, I think farmland should count. It's not natural. Parks count.

If parks count, farmland should surely count...parks (at least in big cities) are far from natural.

 

[Amused]

Originally posted by: kranky
Link to article with answer.

According to NOAA, the total amount of impervious surface area (land covered by buildings, roads, parking lots, etc.) in the 48 states would all fit into a space the size of Ohio. That's about 1.5% of the total surface area of the continental US.

Elvidge notes that few areas have ISA maps, because they are difficult and expensive to create. He used a variety of data sources to produce the map accompanying his article, including nighttime lights observed by satellite, Landsat images, and data on roads from the U.S. Census Bureau, along with aerial photography. He anticipates that this map will be useful to scientists and planners managing conservation and resource allocation, as well as those working on issues of water quality, biodiversity, habitat loss and fragmentation, and climate change.

It's an estimate. So is the US government data. Who's right?

 

[MikeyIs4Dcats]

Originally posted by: Amused

Originally posted by: kranky
Link to article with answer.

According to NOAA, the total amount of impervious surface area (land covered by buildings, roads, parking lots, etc.) in the 48 states would all fit into a space the size of Ohio. That's about 1.5% of the total surface area of the continental US.

Elvidge notes that few areas have ISA maps, because they are difficult and expensive to create. He used a variety of data sources to produce the map accompanying his article, including nighttime lights observed by satellite, Landsat images, and data on roads from the U.S. Census Bureau, along with aerial photography. He anticipates that this map will be useful to scientists and planners managing conservation and resource allocation, as well as those working on issues of water quality, biodiversity, habitat loss and fragmentation, and climate change.

It's an estimate. So is the US government data. Who's right?

I don't think one shoudl judge unrabinzation and land development from nightime light photos. Did he also account for the curvature of the earth?

 

[Amused]

Originally posted by: MikeyIs4Dcats

Originally posted by: Amused

Originally posted by: kranky
Link to article with answer.

According to NOAA, the total amount of impervious surface area (land covered by buildings, roads, parking lots, etc.) in the 48 states would all fit into a space the size of Ohio. That's about 1.5% of the total surface area of the continental US.

Elvidge notes that few areas have ISA maps, because they are difficult and expensive to create. He used a variety of data sources to produce the map accompanying his article, including nighttime lights observed by satellite, Landsat images, and data on roads from the U.S. Census Bureau, along with aerial photography. He anticipates that this map will be useful to scientists and planners managing conservation and resource allocation, as well as those working on issues of water quality, biodiversity, habitat loss and fragmentation, and climate change.

It's an estimate. So is the US government data. Who's right?

I don't think one shoudl judge unrabinzation and land development from nightime light photos. Did he also account for the curvature of the earth?

I dunno. I am just goung by the article he posted.

 

[MikeyIs4Dcats]

Originally posted by: Amused

Originally posted by: MikeyIs4Dcats

Originally posted by: Amused

Originally posted by: kranky
Link to article with answer.

According to NOAA, the total amount of impervious surface area (land covered by buildings, roads, parking lots, etc.) in the 48 states would all fit into a space the size of Ohio. That's about 1.5% of the total surface area of the continental US.

Elvidge notes that few areas have ISA maps, because they are difficult and expensive to create. He used a variety of data sources to produce the map accompanying his article, including nighttime lights observed by satellite, Landsat images, and data on roads from the U.S. Census Bureau, along with aerial photography. He anticipates that this map will be useful to scientists and planners managing conservation and resource allocation, as well as those working on issues of water quality, biodiversity, habitat loss and fragmentation, and climate change.

It's an estimate. So is the US government data. Who's right?

I don't think one shoudl judge unrabinzation and land development from nightime light photos. Did he also account for the curvature of the earth?

I dunno. I am just goung by the article he posted.

I'm all for the 4%, cause that means I'm closer!

 

[kranky]

I would expect that some amount of estimating is necessary for a calculation like that. But as NOAA has no logical reason to slant the number one way or the other, it's probably as accurate as it can be. Even if they are off by a factor of two, that would still put the number between 0.75% and 3% of the total surface area.

 

[Amused]

Originally posted by: kranky
I would expect that some amount of estimating is necessary for a calculation like that. But as NOAA has no logical reason to slant the number one way or the other, it's probably as accurate as it can be. Even if they are off by a factor of two, that would still put the number between 0.75% and 3% of the total surface area.

Yet the government has it at 4%. And that is the number used by a pro-development writer.

Curious

 

[Bassyhead]

hmm wow 6.4%, any idea what the rate of growth is?

 

[Amused]

Originally posted by: Bassyhead
hmm wow 6.4%, any idea what the rate of growth is?

6.4% NOT including government land (i.e., privately owned land only).

4% if government land is included.

So 4% is the real number.