Environmental Flows from Alternate Land Uses in the Delta, Pacific, and the Southeastern States: 1947-2007

Abstract

Land use policy involves allocating land between production alternatives to meet society’s wants and desires. Increase in the affluence in the United States has increased the demand for environmental flows that could be met from public ownership or as joint products of private ownerships. The empirical results of this study indicated that land use patterns remained relatively unchanged between 1947 and 2007. The lack of change suggests that a large part of the demand for environmental services is being as byproducts of other commercial decisions.