Hancock County's Fragmented Farmland

An exploration of current and possible agricultural land on this coastal county in Maine.

Why farm in Maine?

Given our rapidly changing climate, we have to come up with creative and thoughtful ways to use the limited land, and even more limited viable soil, we have available on our one and only Earth. Growing food crops is an essential part of our human lives. We use these cultivated plants to convert energy from the sun into a digestible form of energy- carbohydrates! With global warming shifting prime agricultural land to higher latitudes, it’s a good idea to determine and set aside land for farming up North.

Challenges

Maine is not necessarily the best state for farming when it comes to land available. Unlike the midwestern United States, the best soils for farming are patchy and scattered. Additionally, much of the land is mountainous, covered in forest, or absurdly wet. Farming in this state can be a challenge, but that does not mean it’s not worth it.

Though Hancock County seems to have plenty of farmland, it is majorly fragmented compared to the Midwestern United States...

Maine's Farming Community

There is an active and growing network of farmers in Maine, including many organic farms. There’s also a strong community associated with this type of farming, connected by MOFGA(Maine Organic Farmers Association). This organization brings farmers together through events such as the yearly Common Ground Fair, and by sharing knowledge by compiling informational resorces and leading educational workshops.

It is beneficial to grow food crops in all locations, including Maine, in order to serve local communities and cut down on transportation emissions.

Mapping Hancock County

Example Imagery

Land with negative values are darkened, and positive values are transparent yellow. The rich farmland soil is colored blue, and where this soil overlaps with good land the color registers as green.

In Maine, many suitable soils lay under forest. This terrain is not easy to convert to farmland, and is signified with crosshatching. Other negative land use(such as wetlants and development) are darkened.

Farms are represented with pins. If certified organic by MOFGA, they're magenta. If not, they're rose.


Hancock's Suitability

Though there is some overlap of farmable soil and compatable land use(grass, open, partial cut forest, and current farmland), there is also a significant amount of unsuitable land in the county(wetlands and development). Swipe to explore this.

Further, creating farmland is difficult in forested areas. It takes a good amount of effort and resources to clear trees before you can farm. Use the following map to explore the extent of forested areas(symbolized with crosshatching).

Map

The following is my completed map. Feel free to explore current farms and additional suitable farmland.

Credits

Example Imagery