Abstract: In many countries where the economy has shifted from agriculture to industry, abandoned agricultural lands are converted to urbanization. Up until the early part of this century, the Puerto Rican economy depended almost entirely on agriculture, but socio-political changes resulted in a shift to light industry. This shift in the economy and an increase in population has resulted in an increase in urban areas. The objective of this study was to describe the rate and distribution of urban growth on the island from 1977 to 1994. Urban growth was determined by interpreting aerial photographs and satellite imagery. For 1977 we generated an urban/non-urban map derived from an existing land use map for the island. The 1994 map was produced by "on - screen digitizing" of urban areas from a SPOT panchromatic image. The maps were combined to determine the rate of urban growth. A soil map of agricultural potential was produced using USDA prime farmland definitions. The 1977 and 1994 urban/non-urban maps and the soil map were combined to determine the distribution of urban areas relative to potential farmlands. In 1977, 11.3% of Puerto Rico was classified as urban. In the following 17 years, urban areas increased by 27.4% for a total coverage of 14.4% of the island. Urban growth on soils suitable for agriculture (24.7% of the island) increased by 43.7% between 1977 and 1994. If this pattern of encroachment by urban sprawl into potential farmlands continues, Puerto Rico’s potential for food production will be greatly limited.

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