Impact of household land endowment and environmental cognition on the willingness to implement straw incorporation in China

Abstract

The resource utilization of crop straw is related to the green development of agriculture and the development of the rural ecological environment. Given a background of tightening agricultural environmental constraints, realizing the effective utilization of straw resources has become a real-world problem in China urgently requiring a solution. Straw incorporation is an effective way to effectively utilize straw resources. This paper quantitatively analyzed the impact of household land endowment and environmental cognition on farmers’ willingness to implement straw incorporation (FWSI) by using household survey data from Jiangsu Province in China and an ordered logit model. The results reveal that straw incorporation not only needs to be considered at the technical level but also needs to start with household land endowment and environmental cognition. There is a close relationship between household environmental cognition and FWSI, and thus improving environmental cognitive ability can promote FWSI. In contrast to farm size, plot area is an important factor influencing FWSI, and scale farmers are also more concerned about straw incorporation cost than other farmers. The government should provide relevant training to clarify the positive effect of farmers’ environmental cognition on straw incorporation and enhance farmers’ cognition of the value of straw incorporation in China. Considering the plot area and cost, the government should also vigorously encourage the transfer and integration of adjacent plots, expand the plot area, reduce the cost of straw incorporation for a single plot, and guide social funds toward research on straw purchasing and storage technology. Attention should also be paid to the demonstration role of scale farmers in straw incorporation.