Outreach and the adoption of conservation practices by farmers

Abstract

I ncreased awareness of the contributions of nonpoint source runoff to the degradation of water quality in the Mississippi River and Gulf of Mexico emphasizes the need to implement conservation practices that effectively reduce nutrient export from agricultural lands. Reduction of nutrient loads to the Gulf of Mexico to levels that will significantly impact the hypoxic zone will require conservation actions targeted specifically within the Mississippi River Basin states. Because nonpoint source nutrient runoff from agricultural lands is not regulated, any adoption of conservation practices will necessarily be voluntary in nature. Thus, it is important to understand obstacles and incentives that influence conservation actions among farmers specific to the agricultural watersheds of the Midwest. Surveys have been conducted in Midwestern agricultural watersheds to better understand what factors influence farmers to voluntarily adopt conservation practices. Our approach is unique in that we used a multiyear survey to assess how varying intensity levels of outreach influenced farmers' perceptions and adoption of conservation practices. Specific goals of the study were to document (1) general farming methods used by area farmers, (2) changes in farm and conservation practices over four years, and (3) incentives and disincentives that influenced farmers' decisions to enroll in USDA cost-share…