Soil and water conservation policy approaches in North America, Europe, and Australia

Abstract

Soil and water conservation policies and programs in developed countries in North America, Europe, and Australia are examined in the context of their effectiveness for addressing environmental degradation associated with technology-intensive agricultural systems. Conservation policies and programs in each geographical region of the world selected for examination are outlined and similarities highlighted. Research findings in each geographic region are used to formulate recommendations for the development of future soil and water conservation policies and programs. It is concluded that reliance on voluntary approaches to motivate land owner-operators to adopt and to use conservation production systems at the farm level will be inadequate to address environmental issues associated with nonpoint pollution.