Routes Determine Results? Comparing the Performance of Differentiated Farmland Conservation Policies in China Based on Farmers’ Perceptions

Abstract

Revealing the performance of farmland conservation policies that use different types of policy instruments can provide a basis for optimizing such policies. Based on farmers’ perceptions of farmland conservation policies, this paper conducted an empirical analysis using data on 986 rural households which were collected from seven towns/districts in three provinces of China. More specifically, this paper first uses propensity score matching to analyze the impact of the comprehensive application of economic incentive and command-and-control policy instruments on farmland conservation. Then, it explores the differences between the effects of local economic incentive farmland conservation policies (FCP-LE) that employed different policy instruments. Finally, the factors affecting farmers’ perceptions of FCP-LE performance were identified. The results show that the combination of economic incentives and command-and-control policy instruments significantly improved the performance of farmland conservation policies. Furthermore, after comparing FCP-LE with payments to rural communities in the form of monetary compensation only, it is evident that a combination of FCP-LE with payments to farmers and integrated monetary compensation and social security subsidies yields better farmland conservation. Additionally, there are differences between the factors affecting farmers’ perceptions of FCP-LE performance in different areas. Our findings aim to help encourage more areas to develop diversified local incentive policies in order to conserve farmland.