Land suitable for building sells for up to $200,000 an acre, he said.
However, many developing countries are already facing a limited supply of land suitable for agricultural production.
The shortage of fertile land suitable for cultivation prevented the development of a truly agricultural economy.
Demand for housing in the area has increased, and land suitable for relatively high-end development is sought after.
Fresh water is scarce, and the only land suitable for an airstrip is a government nature preserve.
He described being asked by President Sadat in 1981 to scout land suitable for Israeli agricultural methods.
Napa Valley has run out of land suitable for vines, which drives the price of existing vineyards higher.
Donald Ross, the renowned golf-course architect of his time, had visited the Lincoln Avenue site in 1914 but didn't consider the land suitable for a quality course.
The area, once agricultural, is characterized by historic homes and rolling land suitable for equestrian estates with ponds and open views.
Penguin populations rose, and South Georgia has lately become even more hospitable to them, because the rapid retreat of its glaciers is exposing land suitable for nesting.
By contrast "the amount of land suitable for vineyards in the Finger Lakes is huge -- thousands of acres," Mr. Trezise said.
