FACTORS INFLUENCING SOIL CONSERVATION EFFORT AND ADOPTION ON COMMERCIAL FARMS IN KWAZULU-NATAL

Abstract

As an extension of the findings presented in a previous article, logistic and multiple regression are used to estimate models representing soil conservation adoption and soil conservation effort respectively. A single conservation adoption model is estimated based on results in the previous article.. The model shows sufficient financial resources, farm enterprise types, farmers' willingness to invest own capital in conservation activities, awareness of erosion's adverse implications for agricultural productivity and visible erosion impacts, significantly affect adoption. In addition, variables reflecting fanners' technical abilities to implement conservation measures are significantly correlated to those in the adoption model. Conservation effort is dependent on the following financial factors: farmers' willingness to invest own capital in conservation activities, debt repayment obligations, and on-farm financial benefits from implementing conservation activities. These findings illustrate the significance of financial characteristics necessary for extensive implementation of soil conservation measures once adoption has been initiated, and highlight the distinction between conservation adoption and conservation effort. The variable reflecting subsidy payments for implementing soil conservation practices is not significant in either model. This suggests the effectiveness of cWTent subsidy payment provisions provided for in Act 43/1983, in initiating incentives for implementing soil conservation measures, need to be clarified.