cropland-out-of-production-agreements

What Constitutes "Cropland Out of Production"

Complete Out of Production

Tower/structure footprint: Land physically occupied by structure where NO farming possible. Footprint scales with voltage class — from 15-20 m² for 69kV H-frames up to 80-120 m² for 500kV lattice towers. Per-voltage footprint sizes and headland calculation tables → see impact-quantification.md.

Example: 230kV transmission line, 12 towers across 100-acre farm → 12 × 50 m² = 600 m² = 0.15 acres of direct tower footprint (complete out of production).

Partial Out of Production (Operational Inefficiency)

Internal headlands: Turning space required around each tower. Typical impact per tower: 20-30 meter diameter circle (300-700 m² lost productivity per structure).

Example: 100-acre farm, 12 towers, 25m diameter headlands per tower → 12 × 490 m² = 5,880 m² = 1.45 acres partial loss. Combined with 0.15-acre tower footprints, total impact = 1.6 acres (1.6% of farm).

Right-of-Way Operational Restrictions

Activities restricted within ROW even where farming continues: