Take a look, in particular, at the fascinating "map slide show" which shows how growth has occurred over time -- available at the above Web site.

-- Land Conversion in South Carolina: State Makes the Top 10 List, by James B. London & Nicole L. Hill (in pdf format), analyzes data on land conversion from the National Resource Inventory as applied to South Carolina. As the authors note: "While the land conversion rate was 30.2 percent, the state's population grew by 5.3 percent over this same time period. Put another way, land was converted at six times the rate of population growth." ... "The recent development that South Carolina has experienced has brought unprecedented opportunity, but the high rates of land conversion are irrevocably changing the character of this state. The rates of agricultural prime land, woodlands, and wildlife habitat conversion now rank among the highest rates in the country. At the same time, the infrastructure costs of servicing this low density development pattern will be staggering."