IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/ecolec/v219y2024ics0921800924000466.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Comparing Australian public and farmer views on agricultural land use and management practices for sustainability

Author

Listed:
  • Dumbrell, Nikki P.
  • Wheeler, Sarah Ann
  • Zuo, Alec
  • Adamson, David

Abstract

Using a survey of the public (n = 2032) and broadacre farmers (n = 351) in South Australia and Victoria, Australia, this research compares public and farmers' concerns regarding the acceptability and sustainability of agricultural operations. A principal component analysis was conducted on survey responses to 15 statements capturing environmental, social and governance issues related to agriculture practices and perceptions. This analysis revealed three dimensions: (1) issues related to animal welfare, greenhouse gas emissions and food safety; (2) issues related to farm input use; and (3) the use of socially valuable assets for private profits. Compared to farmers, the public were more concerned about the undersupply of public goods (e.g., farm animal welfare), and issues related to farm input use such as the use of synthetic fertilisers and chemicals. The public and farmers reported a similar level of concern regarding the use of socially valuable assets for private profit (e.g., irrigation water extraction). Regression analyses revealed associations between concerns and socio-demographic characteristics; environmental attitudes; sources of information; and farm characteristics. This study can act as a catalyst for developing practical strategies to analyse and overcome the issues, rather than symptoms, of concern affecting the agricultural industry and its sustainability.

Suggested Citation

  • Dumbrell, Nikki P. & Wheeler, Sarah Ann & Zuo, Alec & Adamson, David, 2024. "Comparing Australian public and farmer views on agricultural land use and management practices for sustainability," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 219(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:219:y:2024:i:c:s0921800924000466
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2024.108149
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0921800924000466
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2024.108149?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:219:y:2024:i:c:s0921800924000466. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/ecolecon .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.