Think about a site's potential for agriculture
Potential farmland is worth preserving.
Identifying prime agricultural land could help increase local food production in the future even if it's not feasible or necessary now. Stone walls, abandoned farm implements, historical land use records, and interviews with old-timers in the area all can be useful in identifying land once used for farming. A useful resource for soil assessment is the Natural Resources Conservation Service (previously the Soil Conservation Service), which has offices in many counties of the U.S. Local or state regulations may restrict development on agricultural land.
Green points
LEEDLeadership in Energy and Environmental Design. LEED for Homes is the residential green building program from the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). While this program is primarily designed for and applicable to new home projects, major gut rehabs can qualify. -H: 2 points for avoiding portions of sites that contains "prime soils" or "soils of state significance" (LL 2).
Learn more in the Green Building Encyclopedia
