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The Conservation Reserve Program: Economic Implications for Rural America

Author Info

Listed author(s):
  • Sullivan, Patrick
  • Hellerstein, Daniel
  • Hansen, LeRoy T.
  • Johansson, Robert C.
  • Koenig, Steven R.
  • Lubowski, Ruben N.
  • McBride, William D.
  • McGranahan, David A.
  • Roberts, Michael J.
  • Vogel, Stephen J.
  • Bucholtz, Shawn

Abstract

This report estimates the impact that high levels of enrollment in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) have had on economic trends in rural counties since the program's inception in 1985 until today. The results of a growth model and quasi-experimental control group analysis indicate no discernible impact by the CRP on aggregate county population trends. Aggregate employment growth may have slowed in some high-CRP counties, but only temporarily. High levels of CRP enrollment appear to have affected farm-related businesses over the long run, but growth in the number of other nonfarm businesses moderated CRP's impact on total employment. If CRP contracts had ended in 2001, simulation models suggest that roughly 51 percent of CRP land would have returned to crop production, and that spending on outdoor recreation would decrease by as much as $300 million per year in rural areas. The resulting impacts on employment and income vary widely among regions having similar CRP enrollments, depending upon local economic conditions.

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File URL: http://purl.umn.edu/33987
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Paper provided by United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service in its series Agricultural Economics Reports with number 33987.

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Date of creation: 2004
Handle: RePEc:ags:uerser:33987
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Keywords: Community/Rural/Urban Development; Land Economics/Use;

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  1. Stephan J. Goetz & David L. Debertin, 1996. "Rural Population Decline in the 1980s: Impacts of Farm Structure and Federal Farm Programs," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 78(3), pages 517-529.
  2. Parks, Peter J. & Schorr, James P., 1997. "Sustaining Open Space Benefits in the Northeast: An Evaluation of the Conservation Reserve Program," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 32(1), pages 85-94, January.
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  7. Hodur, Nancy M. & Leistritz, F. Larry & Bangsund, Dean A., 2002. "Local Socioeconomic Impacts Of The Conservation Reserve Program," Agribusiness & Applied Economics Report 23551, North Dakota State University, Department of Agribusiness and Applied Economics.
  8. Reed, W. Robert & Rogers, Cynthia L., 2003. "A study of quasi-experimental control group methods for estimating policy impacts," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 3-25, January.
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  13. Bucholtz, Shawn & Roberts, Michael J., 2002. "Slippage Or Spurious Correlation: An Analysis Of The Conservation Reserve Program," 2002 Annual meeting, July 28-31, Long Beach, CA 19714, American Agricultural Economics Association (New Name 2008: Agricultural and Applied Economics Association).
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  15. Feather, Peter & Hellerstein, Daniel & Hansen, LeRoy T., 1999. "Economic Valuation of Environmental Benefits and the Targeting of Conservation Programs: The Case of the CRP," Agricultural Economics Reports 34027, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
  16. Bangsund, Dean A. & Leistritz, F. Larry & Hodur, Nancy M., 2002. "Rural Economic Effects Of The Conservation Reserve Program In North Dakota," Agribusiness & Applied Economics Report 23564, North Dakota State University, Department of Agribusiness and Applied Economics.
  17. McGranahan, David A., 1999. "Natural Amenities Drive Rural Population Change," Agricultural Economics Reports 33955, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
  18. Martin, Michael V. & Radtke, Hans & Eleveld, Bart & Nofziger, S. Dianne, 1988. "The Impacts Of The Conservation Reserve Program On Rural Communities: The Case Of Three Oregon Counties," Western Journal of Agricultural Economics, Western Agricultural Economics Association, vol. 13(02), December.
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