Eric C. Schuck

The role of land tenure and extension education in the adoption of slash and burn agriculture

Abstract Extension education can play a critical role in moving farmers in developing countries away from environmentally harmful slash and burn agriculture by making farmers more aware of the ecological costs of slash and burn. Land tenure issues may limit the effectiveness of extension education. The present research examines the extent to which extension education can promote adoption of cropping systems other than slash and burn, and whether or not land tenure issues reduce the effectiveness of extension education. This issue is addressed using survey data from the West African nation of Cameroon. The choice of cropping system by farmers in Cameroon, whether slash and burn, multiple crops, or mono-cropping, is modeled as a function of farm size, visits by extension personnel, cultivated acres, and the level of land ownership. Results indicate that higher visitation rates by extension personnel reduce the likelihood of farmers choosing slash and burn agriculture, but farmers with lower levels of land ownership are less likely to adopt alternatives than those with higher levels of land ownership. This suggests land tenure issues limit the effectiveness of extension education aimed at reducing slash and burn agriculture, and that extension programs should work in conjunction with land reform programs.

Adoption of More Technically Efficient Irrigation Systems as a Drought Response

Adoption of technically efficient irrigation systems can mitigate the effects of drought by allowing irrigators to maintain water consumption with reduced applications. This paper uses survey data from the worst drought in Colorados history to examine how drought conditions affect the choice of irrigation system by irrigators. Results indicate that drought conditions did significantly increase the percentage of farms using more efficient sprinkler systems relative to gravity systems. The key factors affecting the decision were land tenure, farm scale and available water supply, suggesting that those enterprises with the most owned land, the highest number of acres and the most reliable water supplies are most likely to invest in more efficient irrigation systems during severe droughts.

Supply-based water pricing in a conjunctive use system: implications for resource and energy use

Irrigation water prices which vary with surface water supplies and aquifer levels are developed and applied to a conjunctive-use irrigation district in Kern County, CA. Results suggest moderate inter-seasonal variations in price can conserve both water and energy. Additionally, conjunctive use reduces price variability and limits the impacts of groundwater overdraft.

Conserving One Water Source at the Expense of Another: The Role of Surface Water Price in Adoption of Wells in a Conjunctive Use System

One potential side-effect of irrigation water rate reform is groundwater substitution. As surface water prices rise, irrigators may find it cheaper to rely on on-farm wells than a regional irrigation district. The impact of surface water price on well adoption is examined in a conjunctive use system where both surface water and groundwater are used to meet irrigator demand. Results indicate that as the price of surface water approaches 62% of the marginal cost of pumping groundwater, irrigators are more likely to have on-farm pumping capabilities. This result suggests that proposed water rate reforms by the United States Bureau of Reclamation may result in irrigators substituting groundwater for surface water by adopting on-farm wells.

Economic Instruments for Water Management in the Middle East and North Africa

Many of the developing economies in the Middle East and North Africa face serious constraints due to limited access to freshwater. Prescriptions for overcoming these constraints have tended to concentrate on increasing supply. An increasingly important alternative is to dampen demand and alter the allocation of freshwater by pricing water at levels that more accurately reflect its scarcity. This paper discusses the role of economic instruments in achieving these ends, including: how the instruments might be structured; what types of outcomes could be produced; what limitations will need to be faced, and what institutional resources will be required.

Irrigation technology decisions in the presence of waterlogging and soil salinity

Waterlogging and salinisation have contributed to the demise of ancient civilisations and continue to threaten the sustainability of irrigated agriculture today. This paper evaluates the adoption of higher efficiency irrigation systems as an alternative for reducing the impact of waterlogging and salinisation within a region of Colorados Lower Arkansas River Valley. This is accomplished by linking a detailed hydrologic model, which has been calibrated from extensive field data, to an economic optimisation model in order to estimate the productivity and profitability of agriculture under the current irrigation system and a set of proposed irrigation systems. Although the results of the study indicate that increasing irrigation efficiency across the study area will reduce the negative impacts of waterlogging and soil salinisation, the costs associated with achieving these higher efficiency irrigation systems are estimated to exceed the benefits to crop productivity.