Newsletter on bioeconomic and social
research on
Sustainability and Economics in Agriculture
Issue 4, June 1999
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Newsletter on bioeconomic and social
research on |
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Editor:
Dave Pannell, University of Western Australia, email David.Pannell@uwa.edu.au SEA Project main funder: Grains Research and Development Corporation Address of the SEA News web site: http://www1.crcsalinity.com.au/newsletter/sea/ |
In This Issue
Editorial
In
Brief
New
AARES web page/forthcoming conference. Salinity projects at UWA. New salinity farm-management game.
Environmental economics symposium.
Articles:
Economics of Research to
Enhance Monitoring of Soil Acidity
A Review of Regional Economic
Studies of Dryland Salinity
Policy
Forum:
Perceptions of Alternative
Salinity Policies by Agency Staff
Ideas
and Lessons on Sustainability from Overseas:
Making Use of Salt Affected Lands of
Irrigated Farms in Pakistan
Research
Methodology
Sensitivity analysis.
Regular
Bits and Pieces
News and Coming Events -
Overview of the SEA Project - People in the SEA Team -
Publications available
Many of the items in this issue of SEA News deal with dryland salinity. This problem has had a very high profile in Australia recently, with front page stories on The West Australian newspaper, work continuing on revisions to the Salinity Action Plan in Western Australia, and a recent report released by the Prime Minister's Science, Engineering and Innovation Council on "Dryland Salinity and its Impact on Rural Industries and the Landscape". This report provides a good general background and preceeds a public statement by the Prime Minister, planned for November 1999. To obtain a copy, contact Margaret.Frisch@isr.gov.au.
We welcome three new members to the SEA team. Sally Marsh has joined us at the University of Western Australia on a full time basis, replacing Nicole Glenn. Martin van Bueren is spending most of this year working with us at UWA on a project called "Salt Scenarios 2020". Michael O'Connell is working with Andrew Bathgate at Agriculture Western Australia on soil acidity and salinity. Both Martin and Michael have articles in this issue.
For newcomers, SEA News is a newsletter canvassing issues related to sustainability and economics in agriculture. Our focus is on bioeconomic and social research results and their implications. Much of the research is from the SEA project, funded by Grains Research and Development Corporation. The main way to access SEA News is through email and the web site, but you can also elect to receive a hard copy of the newsletter by snail mail if you prefer.
New AARES Web Page. The Australian Agricultural
and Resource Economics Society has a new web page at http://come.to/aares. We remind those of you planning to come
to the AARES 2000 conference in January in Sydney that the
closing date for paper titles this year is June 30. Younger
economists in WA who have not presented at the AARES conference
before and who would like to win their air fare to Sydney,
contact WA secretary, Liz Petersen (epeterse@agric.uwa.edu.au) for details. You need to
submit a paper title in order to enter this contest.
Salinity Projects at UWA. We recently did an
inventory of all salinity-related research being conducted in the
Agricultural and Resource Economics group at the University of
WA. The result was a surprisingly long and diverse list, which we
include here: http://www.general.uwa.edu.au/u/dpannell/saltprojects.htm (31K)
New Salinity Farm Management
Game. We
have developed a version of the successful "Risky
Business" farm management game, incorporating an increasing
dryland salinity problem. Workshops based around the game are
currently being run with extension agents and researchers in
rural Western Australia to help them better appreciate salinity
from the farmer's perspective. See http://www.general.uwa.edu.au/u/dpannell/risksaltbus.htm (4K)
Environmental Economics
Symposium. A very successful symposium was conducted at the
University of Western Australian in May, under the title of Using
Economics to Value and Preserve the Environment. Copies of
overheads presented at the half-day symposium can be purchased
from Jan Taylor, Agricultural and Resource Economics, UWA,
Nedlands WA 6907, email: jtaylor@cyllene.uwa.edu.au.
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Economics
of Research to Enhance Monitoring of Soil Acidity by Michael
O’Connell, Andrew Bathgate and Nicole Glenn "the value of currently available information (from past research) aimed at improving management of soil acidity is high" |
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Of the many
sustainability indicators that have been proposed for
agricultural systems, monitoring of subsoil pH and Al appear to
be among the more practical for farm management. This study
estimates the economic benefits of past and present acidity
research designed to enhance the value of monitoring acidity, by
allowing better decision making based on the monitoring results.
The results indicated that the value of currently available
information (from past research) aimed at improving management of
soil acidity is high. However, the value of additional
information generated by current research aimed at improving the
certainty regarding yield response is lower. While moderately
high in the low rainfall zone, the information is of less value
to farmers in the medium and high rainfall zones. This may have
implications for the future focus of acidity research and for
defining a set of indicators for monitoring sustainability.
For the full article, see this web page: http://www.general.uwa.edu.au/u/dpannell/dpap9906f.htm (120K)
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A Review
of Regional Economic Studies of Dryland Salinity by Martin van
Bueren and Dave Pannell "There appears to be an undue emphasis on assessing the costs of salinity." |
There is a large
and growing body of literature that deals with the economics of
dryland salinity. This review confines its scope principally to
economic studies that have dealt with salinity at a regional
level. On examining the existing literature, we conclude that (a)
There appears to be an undue emphasis on assessing the costs of
salinity. More work needs to focus on estimating benefits and
costs at the margin for different scales of remedial action. (b)
Very few studies extend their analysis of salinity policies to
include multiple stakeholders. Further research is required to
develop frameworks for assessing the full range of benefits and
costs in an integrated fashion. (c) Too many researchers fail to
explicitly identify the benchmark against which they are
comparing alternative "salinity scenarios". This leads
to confusion among non-experts and decision makers because
different benchmarks lead to distinctly different questions and,
hence, cost (and/or) benefit estimates. (d) GIS technology
appears to be a promising tool for assisting with the economic
evaluation of salinity policies. However, it requires a great
deal of spatial information about land use and capability.
For the full article, see this web page: http://www.general.uwa.edu.au/u/dpannell/dpap9905f.htm (87K)
Policy Forum
We welcome reactions to articles in SEA News, or on topical relevant issues.
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Perceptions
of Alternative Salinity Policies by Agency Staff by Laura McCann
"A requirement for 30% tree cover on affected areas was seen as being effective but unfair and costly to farmers." |
Economics has
looked at the decision process of politicians but the decision
process of agency staff has primarily been examined by
sociologists. Agencies affect the final form of regulations, they
may enforce or ignore regulations that exist, and they provide
information to the political process. Policies recommended by
economists for non-point source pollution control are seldom
implemented by agencies. In order for economists to design
policies that are both economically efficient and implementable,
we need to better understand the decision-making process of
agency staff. This study examined the relation between
preferences for a particular policy and the perceived farmer
cost, farmer resistance, efficacy in salinity reduction, and
administrative costs. The latter were included to find whether
costs of implementing policies, such as design of regulations,
monitoring of compliance, etc., affect the desirability of
policies from the agency's point of view. A survey of agency
personnel working on the salinity issue in Western Australia was
conducted. Surprisingly, perceptions of farmer cost and
perceptions of farmer resistance were not highly correlated. The
specific policies that were highly rated on a variety of criteria
were subsidies or tax breaks for farmers who plant trees in
affected areas. Funding research on areas such as new perennials
and productive uses for saline land were also highly rated in
several areas. A requirement for 30% tree cover on affected areas
was seen as being effective but unfair and costly to farmers. The
administrative costs of that policy were also expected to be
high. This type of survey can be a useful screening tool to
decide which policies to examine in more depth.
For
the full article, see this web page: http://www.general.uwa.edu.au/u/dpannell/forum4.htm (101K)
Ideas and Lessons on Sustainability from Overseas
To help us think laterally about the problems we face in Australia, we include an example from overseas in each issue of SEA News. This article is from Amir Abadi, Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of Western Australia.
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Making
Use of Salt Affected Lands of Irrigated Farms in Pakistan by Amir Abadi "Salinity in Punjab and the North West Frontier Province causes an annual economic loss of about US$300 million" |
In Pakistan, about
15 million acres of land are salt affected. Out of this, close to
7 million acres are in the irrigated areas. Severe salinity and
waterlogging have resulted in abandonment of about 5 million
acres of this area. It has been calculated that salinity in
Punjab and the North West Frontier Province causes an annual
economic loss of 4.3 billion rupees (about US$300 million). The
objectives of this study was to carry out a comparative economic
analysis of the role of eucalyptus trees, saltbush and crops on
salt affected soils in irrigated farming systems of Pakistan. Key
conclusions include the following. (1). Saltbush is the most
economical option where soil and water salinity is high and soil
texture is porous. However the viability of saltbush depends on
its nutritional value for livestock in a cut and carry system.
(2). In the irrigated farming systems of Punjab and NWFP, water
is more scarce than land. Where non-saline irrigation water is
available cropping is a more economical option on the salt
affected land than trees or saltbush unless the soil is highly
saline.(3). Eucalyptus trees are more economical than saltbush or
cropping where soil and irrigation water are both only slightly
to moderately saline, especially if the soil has a dense
structure with a water table close to the surface. (4). Lack of
credit and farmers' preferences for immediate income is more
likely to adversely affect adoption of trees than adoption of
saltbush.
For the full article, see this web page: http://www.general.uwa.edu.au/u/dpannell/seaos4.htm (104K)
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Sensitivity
Analysis of Economic Models by Dave Pannell "Even the simplest approaches to sensitivity analysis can be theoretically respectable." |
The parameter
values and assumptions of any economic model are subject to
change and error. Sensitivity analysis broadly defined, is the
investigation of these potential changes and errors and their
impacts on conclusions to be drawn from the model. Many different
approaches to SA are described, varying in the experimental
design used and in the way results are processed.
For the full article, see this web page: http://www.general.uwa.edu.au/u/dpannell/dpap971f.htm (100K)
Regular Bits and Pieces
Overview of the SEA
Project
This project has a strong integrative focus, bringing together several sustainability issues and considering their biological, physical and economic implications at the whole-farm level. The main issues being researched in the project are soil salinisation, soil acidification, management of herbicide-resistant weeds, farmer adoption of sustainable practices and the economics of monitoring sustainability indicators. Main funding: Grains Research & Development Corporation. Commencement: 01-Aug-97 Completion: 30-Jun-02
People in the SEA Team
Direct collaborators - Economists: Martin Chopping (Department of Environmental Protection), Gavin White (Campbell White and Associates), Simone Blennerhassett (Agriculture Western Australia), Amir Abadi, Anne Bennett (University of Western Australia), Vanessa Stewart (Agriculture Western Australia). Bio-physical scientists: Don McFarlane, Bill Porter, Chris Gazey, David Bowran, Dan Carter and Rob Hetherington (Agriculture Western Australia), Steve Powles + WAHRI team, David Jasper (University of Western Australia), Norm Campbell, Tom Hatton + team (CSIRO).
Publications
available
As
well as the articles summarised in this Newsletter, the SEA
Project has a range of publications which we invite you to read.
A list is shown at the following web page address. You can view
and print most of the papers directly in your browser.
Web page:
http://www.general.uwa.edu.au/u/dpannell/seapprs.htm
We also have a page with papers that focus on agricultural extension, and adoption and diffusion of innovations in agriculture: Web page: http://www.general.uwa.edu.au/u/dpannell/adoppprs.htm
Other issues of SEA News
Copyright note: Some articles in SEA news have subsequently been submitted for publication in journals or books. SEA News contains pre-publication versions of these articles. They have not been subject to peer review, and copyright rests with the authors. When an article is formally published, the version on the SEA News web site is not updated to the published version, as this would violate copyright. However, the citation shown on the web page is updated to allow readers to identify the published version. Readers are encouraged to make use of the material present on the web site, provided that its source is acknowledged. Readers who wish to make direct quotes from an article in SEA News should not attribute the quote to a more formal (e.g. journal) published version of the paper without checking the published version, since the quote may have been alterred or even omitted from the published version.
If you have any comments about SEA News or wish to make additions or deletions to our mailing list, contact David.Pannell@uwa.edu.au
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