Potential of the Conservation Reserve Program to control agricultural surface water pollution |
| |
Authors: | Christopher L Lant |
| |
Institution: | (1) Department of Geography, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, 62901-4514 Carbondale, Illinois, USA |
| |
Abstract: | The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), initiated by the Conservation Title of the Food Security Act of 1985, is the primary
federal program to control nonpointsource pollution in agricultural watersheds of the United States. However, the program
is designed primarily to reduce soil erosion rather than to retire croplands in a manner optimal for controlling runoff of
sediment and associated pollutants. This study estimates potential enrollment of streamside and floodplain croplands in this
ten-year retirement program in order to gauge the potential of the CRP as a water-quality improvement policy. A contingent
choice survey design was employed in Fayette County, Illinois, to demonstrate that there is substantial potential for retirement
of streamside and floodplain croplands in the CRP. Enrollments in each program climb from less than 6% to over 83% of eligible
croplands as the annual rental rate is increased from $20 to $200/acre. Potential retirement of streamside and floodplain
croplands declines, however, if tree planting, drainage removal, or a 20-year contract are required. The potential of a CRP-based
water-quality program to improve water quality and aquatic ecosystems in agricultural watersheds is thus substantial but constrained
by the economic trade-offs that farmers make between crop production and conservation incentives in determining the use of
their riparian lands. |
| |
Keywords: | Filter strips Greenbelts Wetlands Contingent valuation Agricultural policy |
本文献已被 SpringerLink 等数据库收录! |
|