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Environmental Conservation In Agriculture: Land Retirement Versus Changing Practices On Working Land

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  • Feng, Hongli
  • Kurkalova, Lyubov A.
  • Kling, Catherine L.
  • Gassman, Philip W.

Abstract

The study develops a conceptual framework for analyzing the allocation of conservation funds via selectively offering incentive payments to farmers for enrolling in one of two mutually exclusive agricultural conservation programs: retiring land from production or changing farming practices on land that remains in production. We investigate how the existence of a pre-fixed budget allocation between the programs affects the amounts of environmental benefits obtainable under alternative policy implementation schemes. The framework is applied to a major agricultural production region using field-scale data in conjunction with empirical models of land retirement and conservation tillage adoption, and a biophysical process simulation model for the environmental benefits of carbon sequestration and reduction in soil erosion.

Suggested Citation

  • Feng, Hongli & Kurkalova, Lyubov A. & Kling, Catherine L. & Gassman, Philip W., 2004. "Environmental Conservation In Agriculture: Land Retirement Versus Changing Practices On Working Land," Hebrew University of Jerusalem Archive 18627, Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:hebarc:18627
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.18627
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    1. Katherine Reichelderfer & William G. Boggess, 1988. "Government Decision Making and Program Performance: The Case of the Conservation Reserve Program," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 70(1), pages 1-11.
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    6. Lyubov Kurkalova & Catherine Kling & Jinhua Zhao, 2006. "Green Subsidies in Agriculture: Estimating the Adoption Costs of Conservation Tillage from Observed Behavior," Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics/Revue canadienne d'agroeconomie, Canadian Agricultural Economics Society/Societe canadienne d'agroeconomie, vol. 54(2), pages 247-267, June.
    7. Lyubov A. Kurkalova & Catherine L. Kling & Jinhua Zhao, 2003. "Green Subsidies in Agriculture: Estimating the Adoption Costs of Conservation Tillage from Observed Behavior (Revised)," Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD) Publications 01-wp286, Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD) at Iowa State University.
    8. John M. Antle & Bruce A. McCarl, 2002. "The economics of carbon sequestration in agricultural soils," Chapters, in: Tom Tietenberg & Henk Folmer (ed.), The International Yearbook of Environmental and Resource Economics 2002/2003, chapter 6, pages 278-310, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    9. Lewandrowski, Jan & Jones, Carol Adaire, 2004. "Is Carbon Sequestration Economically Feasible?," Amber Waves:The Economics of Food, Farming, Natural Resources, and Rural America, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, pages 1-2, April.
    10. Antle, John & Capalbo, Susan & Mooney, Sian & Elliott, Edward & Paustian, Keith, 2003. "Spatial heterogeneity, contract design, and the efficiency of carbon sequestration policies for agriculture," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 46(2), pages 231-250, September.
    11. Kramer, L.A. & Gassman, Philip W. & Chung, S.W. & Williams, Jimmy R. & Gu, R., 1995. "Validation of EPIC for Two Watersheds in Southwest Iowa," Hebrew University of Jerusalem Archive 18399, Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
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    13. Lewandrowski, Jan & Peters, Mark & Jones, Carol Adaire & House, Robert M. & Sperow, Mark & Eve, Marlen & Paustian, Keith H., 2004. "Economics Of Sequestering Carbon In The U.S. Agricultural Sector," Technical Bulletins 33569, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    14. Claassen, Roger & Hansen, LeRoy T. & Peters, Mark & Breneman, Vincent E. & Weinberg, Marca & Cattaneo, Andrea & Feather, Peter & Gadsby, Dwight M. & Hellerstein, Daniel & Hopkins, Jeffrey W. & Johnsto, 2001. "Agri-Environmental Policy at the Crossroads: Guideposts on a Changing Landscape," Agricultural Economic Reports 33983, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
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    Cited by:

    1. Secchi, Silvia & Feng, Hongli & Kurkalova, Lyubov A. & Kling, Catherine L. & Gassman, Philip W. & Jha, Manoj, 2005. "Nonpoint Source Needs Assessment for Iowa Part II: the Cost of Improving Iowa’s Water Quality," ISU General Staff Papers 200501010800001068, Iowa State University, Department of Economics.
    2. Cattaneo, Andrea, 2005. "Prescriptive use of Environmental Indices: A "How To" Guide for Conservation Programs," 2005 International Congress, August 23-27, 2005, Copenhagen, Denmark 24764, European Association of Agricultural Economists.
    3. Hongli Feng & Catherine L. Kling & Lyubov A. Kurkalova & Silvia Secchi & Philip W. Gassman, 2005. "The Conservation Reserve Program in the Presence of a Working Land Alternative: Implications for Environmental Quality, Program Participation, and Income Transfer," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 87(5), pages 1231-1238.
    4. Feng, Hongli, 2005. "The dynamics of carbon sequestration and alternative carbon accounting, with an application to the upper Mississippi River Basin," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 54(1), pages 23-35, July.
    5. Philip W. Gassman & Jimmy R. Williams & Verel W. Benson & R. César Izaurralde & Larry M. Hauck & C. Allan Jones & Jay D. Atwood & James Kiniry & Joan D. Flowers, 2005. "Historical Development and Applications of the EPIC and APEX Models," Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD) Publications 05-wp397, Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD) at Iowa State University.
    6. Pendell, Dustin & Williams, Jeffery & Sweeney, Daniel & Nelson, Richard & Rice, Charles, 2006. "Economic Feasibility of Carbon Sequestration with Alternative Tillage Systems," Journal of the ASFMRA, American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers, vol. 2006, pages 1-10.
    7. Hongli Feng & Catherine L. Kling, 2005. "The Consequences of Cobenefits for the Efficient Design of Carbon Sequestration Programs," Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics/Revue canadienne d'agroeconomie, Canadian Agricultural Economics Society/Societe canadienne d'agroeconomie, vol. 53(4), pages 461-476, December.
    8. Sergey S. Rabotyagov, 2010. "Ecosystem Services under Benefit and Cost Uncertainty: An Application to Soil Carbon Sequestration," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 86(4), pages 668-686.
    9. Feng, Hongli & Kling, Catherine L. & Gassman, Philip W., 2004. "Carbon Sequestration, Co-Benefits, and Conservation Programs," Choices: The Magazine of Food, Farm, and Resource Issues, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 19(3), pages 1-6.
    10. Williams, Jeffery R. & Pendell, Dustin L. & Sweeney, Daniel & Rice, Charles W. & Nelson, Richard G., 2006. "A Risk Analysis of Carbon Sequestration in Claypan Soil with Conservation Tillage Systems and Nitrogen Fertilizers for Grain Sorghum and Soybean," 2006 Annual Meeting, February 5-8, 2006, Orlando, Florida 35327, Southern Agricultural Economics Association.
    11. Feng, Hongli & Kling, Catherine L., 2005. "Carbon Sequestration in Agriculture: an Offset Program versus Other Conservation Programs," 2005 Annual meeting, July 24-27, Providence, RI 19177, American Agricultural Economics Association (New Name 2008: Agricultural and Applied Economics Association).
    12. Silvia Secchi & Manoj Jha & Lyubov A. Kurkalova & Hongli Feng & Philip W. Gassman & Catherine L. Kling, 2005. "Designation of Co-benefits and Its Implication for Policy: Water Quality versus Carbon Sequestration in Agricultural Soils, The," Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD) Publications 05-wp389, Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD) at Iowa State University.

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