C04_ATTACHMENT 3_LAND USE CATEGORIES.pdf

This document is a reference guide defining land use categories for properties eligible for enrollment in the Wetlands Reserve Easement (WRE) program in Mississippi.

The document establishes five land use categories with specific definitional criteria: Cropland (lands with hydric soils and active agriculture including row crops or harvested hay), Pasture (hydric soils with active grazing), Aquaculture (hydric soils with altered topography and hydrology for catfish or baitfish ponds), Conservation Reserve Program lands (hydric soils with established hardwood trees and current or past contracts), and Wooded/Other (non-cropland including woodlands with hydric soils, potentially containing intermittent streams, ponds, open water, naturalized land, or reverted wetlands). A comprehensive table specifies minimum and maximum acreage thresholds for each category across three geographic regions: Delta, Rest of State, and Coastal. Minimum acreage requirements range from 10 to 35 acres depending on the category and region, while maximum acreage ranges from 255 to 1,100 acres. Pastureland and Coastal properties across all categories are subject to appraisal-based acreage determination rather than fixed thresholds. All land categories require predominantly hydric soils exceeding 33 percent hydric content with significantly altered hydrology as a baseline qualification criterion.