Agricultural Policy and Structural Reforms in the Baltics: Prospects for the Environmental Benefits

The Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania are undertaking rapid economic and structural reforms affecting the food and agricultural sectors. The environmental problems related to agriculture now and in the recent past are more in the area of chemical and animal waste runoff than in soil erosion. The radical change in economic incentives and progressing structural change in farming systems have already reduced chemical use and the intensity of livestock production. Some effects of the transition may also have negative environmental effects, as institutions and farming systems are in an unsettled state. The long-term effects of the reforms on the environment policies and the speed with which improved technologies for chemical use and waste management are transferred to farmers and farming partnerships are discussed.