Intact native grasslands have continued to decline across North America with 1.9 million acres converted to croplands in 2022 alone, according to a recently published World Wildlife Fund study.

A separate 2020 study in the journal Nature Communications found that Montana was the only state with greater conversion to cropland after 2012 than before.

The study also found that many of the marginal lands converted to cropland had lower yields since they are typically less productive soils.