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on Agricultural Economics |
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Issue of 2005‒06‒14
thirteen papers chosen by |
| By: | Gylfason, Thorvaldur |
| Abstract: | This Paper reviews the relationship between natural resource dependence and economic growth, and stresses how natural capital intensity tends to crowd out foreign capital, social capital, human capital, physical capital, and financial capital, thereby impeding economic growth across countries. Specifically, the Paper presents empirical cross-country evidence to the effect that nations that depend heavily on their natural resources tend to have (a) less trade and foreign investment, (b) more corruption, (c) less equality, (d) less political liberty, (e) less education, (f) less domestic investment, and (g) less financial depth than other nations that are less well endowed with, or less dependent on, natural resources. This matters for long-run growth because empirical evidence also suggests that trade, honesty, equality, liberty, education, investment, and financial maturity are all positively and significantly related to economic growth across countries. Before concluding, the Paper briefly compares and contrasts the experience of the OPEC countries with that of Norway, a singularly successful oil producer. |
| Keywords: | economic growth; natural resources |
| JEL: | O11 |
| Date: | 2004–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:4804&r=agr |
| By: | James K. Boyce |
| Abstract: | Globalization – viewed as a process of economic integration that embraces governance as well as markets – could lead to worldwide convergence toward higher or lower environmental quality, or to environmental polarization in which the ‘greening’ of the global North is accompanied by the ‘browning’ of the global South. The outcome will not be dictated by an inexorable logic. Rather it will depend on how the opportunities created by globalization alter balances of power within countries and among them. |
| Date: | 2004 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:uma:periwp:wp78&r=agr |
| By: | James K. Boyce |
| Abstract: | Small farms play a crucial role in conserving the agricultural biodiversity that underpins long-term food security worldwide. Particularly in centers of crop genetic diversity – such as Mesoamerica in the case of maize (corn) and the Andean region in the case of potatoes – small farmers are the ‘keystone species’ in agricultural ecosystems of great value to humankind. Today, however, a formidable nexus of market forces and political forces threatens both small farmers and the biodiversity they sustain. Countervailing public policies are urgently needed. These should include the removal of existing policy biases against small farmers; social recognition of the contribution of in situ conservation to human well-being; development of markets for ‘traditional’ varieties of crops and livestock; the provision of local public goods in areas where farmers cultivate diversity; payments for the environmental service of on-farm conservation; and support for part-time farming as an element of diversified household livelihood strategies. |
| Date: | 2004 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:uma:periwp:wp86&r=agr |
| By: | Alessandro Ragazzoni (Alma Mater Studiorum-Università di Bologna); Maurizio Canavari (Alma Mater Studiorum-Università di Bologna) |
| Abstract: | This paper is concerned with analyzing the CAP policies involving environmental issues and simulating probable results at a farm level of the adoption of agri-environmental measures. |
| JEL: | P Q Z |
| Date: | 2005–06–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wpa:wuwpot:0506001&r=agr |
| By: | Guido M. Bazzani (CNR - Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Italy); Maurizio Canavari (Alma Mater Studiorum-Università di Bologna); Maurizio Grillenzoni (Alma Mater Studiorum-Università di Bologna); Alessandro Ragazzoni (Alma Mater Studiorum-Università di Bologna) |
| Abstract: | The present paper consists of two main parts. The first one gives a picture of the more recent development of the farmland market in selected EC countries since 1985/86. Two main indicators are used to make relatively comparable the observed trends concerning: i) land mobility, ii) farmland values. The second one tries to evaluate the effects of the CAP reform and the influence of national variables overtime, taking into account the following indicators: i) mobility (on land transfers; on tenancy), ii) income (for agricultural or forest use), iii) farmland values (in the plain; in the hill/mountain areas). Considerations on land market complexity and segmentation are finally included, with justification on the empirical approach adopted in the paper. |
| JEL: | P Q Z |
| Date: | 2005–06–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wpa:wuwpot:0506002&r=agr |
| By: | D. Appels (Productivity Commission); R. Douglas (Productivity Commission); G. Dwyer (Productivity Commission) |
| Abstract: | This working paper was released in August 2004. This research is part of a suite of research related to water reform, including the effects of expanding water trade and the management of environmental externalities associated with the supply and use of irrigation water. A foundation for this research is a detailed understanding of irrigated agriculture in the southern Murray-Darling Basin, including: the existing patterns of water use; the emerging trade in water property rights and the likely behavioural responses of individual irrigators to changing water prices. This paper explores the determinants of the elasticity of demand for irrigation water. It focuses on three main irrigated industries — rice, dairy and horticulture — to gain a greater understanding of the value that farmers place on water as an input. The paper provides detail relating to farm decision behaviour and biophysical production realities faced by irrigators in the southern Murray-Darling Basin. |
| Keywords: | southern murray-darling basin, irrigation, irrigation water, water; rice, dairy, horticulture, biophysical production, water reform, water trade |
| JEL: | R |
| Date: | 2005–06–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wpa:wuwpot:0506006&r=agr |
| By: | James Miller (Mississippi State Department of Agricultural Economics); Keith Coble (Mississippi State Department of Agricultural Economics) |
| Abstract: | The term “cheap food policy” has frequently been used as a descriptor for U.S. commodity programs by those who contend these payments to farmers ultimately result in lower food costs for consumers. More recently, farm policy has been criticized for contributing to the obesity problem in the U.S. by making large quantities of fattening foods widely available and relatively inexpensive. This paper econometrically evaluates the impact of direct government payments to farmers from 1960-1999 on the proportion of disposable income consumers spend on food. The model finds the payments do not significantly affect the affordability of food. |
| Keywords: | Agricultural policy, obesity, food policy, technology |
| JEL: | Q18 |
| Date: | 2005–06–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wpa:wuwpot:0506008&r=agr |
| By: | Keith Coble (Mississippi State Department of Agricultural Economics); Robert Dismukes (U.S. Department of Agriculture); Joseph Glauber (U.S. Department of Agriculture) |
| Abstract: | This research investigates the strategic behavior of private crop insurance firms reinsured by the USDA through the Standard Reinsurance Agreement. This arrangement allows the private firm to strategically allocate individual policies into different risk sharing arrangements. Thus, firm earnings are conditioned upon accurately forecasting policy loss experience. Our analysis begins with models investigating the characteristics explaining the placement of policies into the assigned risk fund. Then a simulation model of the SRA is used to compare the post-SRA returns of actual firm allocations to two alternative allocation strategies based on aggregate models and a policy-level econometric forecasting model. |
| Keywords: | Risk, insurance, reinsurance, logit, policy |
| JEL: | Q18 |
| Date: | 2005–06–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wpa:wuwpri:0506003&r=agr |
| By: | Kathryn Anderson (UNDP); Diana Weinhold (London School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | While theory strongly suggests that restricting development rights should reduce land prices, empirical evidence of this effect has been notoriously hard to obtain. Indeed, largely based on this difficulty a Congressional committee has recently recommended that tax benefits for such restrictions be severely curtailed. We collect data on 131 land transactions in South Central Wisconsin, including 19 cases of development-restricted parcels. When we use the whole sample to estimate the impact of conservation easements we replicate the results of Nickerson and Lynch (2001), finding a negative but statistically insignificant effect. However we then show that when the sample is appropriately restricted to a more homogenous group of land parcels, our ability to detect an effect increases dramatically. In particular, for vacant agricultural land we find a statistically significant negative impact of conservation easements that ranges up to 50% of land values |
| Keywords: | land use, valuation of development rights, conservation easements, hedonic regression |
| JEL: | Q24 R52 |
| Date: | 2005–06–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wpa:wuwpur:0506001&r=agr |
| By: | Deepak Kumar (ICFAI University Press) |
| Abstract: | The share of private sector in capital formation in Indian agriculture is approximately three times more than the public sector. This shows the active involvement of the private agencies in the Indian agriculture sector. |
| Keywords: | Indian Agriculture , Private Participation |
| JEL: | R |
| Date: | 2005–06–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wpa:wuwpur:0506006&r=agr |
| By: | D. Peterson (Productivity Commission); G. Dwyer (Productivity Commission); D. Appels (Productivity Commission); J. Fry (Productivity Commission) |
| Abstract: | Released in November 2004, the paper uses TERM-Water, a bottoms-up regional CGE model of the Australian economy, to examine the regional effects of expanding trade of irrigation water in the southern Murray- Darling Basin. The study finds that water trading dampens the impact of water allocation cuts on gross regional product (GRP). The benefits of introducing trading within irrigation districts are greater than the further benefits of expanding trade to between these regions. Permitting trade of seasonal allocations allows irrigators to reallocate water in reaction to climatic conditions and water availability - and it is this flexibility that enables GRP reductions to be minimised. |
| Keywords: | southern murray-darling basin, CGE model, irrigation water, water allocation, water trade, |
| JEL: | R |
| Date: | 2005–06–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wpa:wuwpur:0506007&r=agr |
| By: | Eduardo L. Gimenez Fernandez (Departamento de Fundamentos de Analisis Economico e Historia Economica. Universidad de Vigo.); Manuel Gonzalez-Gomez (Departamento de Fundamentos de Analisis Economico e Historia Economica. Universidad de Vigo.) |
| Abstract: | In this paper the efficient allocation of natural recreational areas is anal- ysed. Natural recreational areas have the features of public goods. We present the efficient allocation of this non-excludable public good in a rational general equilibrium model with heterogeneous agents. This allows us to deal with the free-rider problem in the provision of the public good. This framework could be considered as a microfoundation of the Lopez, Shah and Altobello (1994) model. In addition we study both the "existence" value and the "use" value of the recreational area in the same setting. A methodological critique is also made of previous empirical literature. It is suggested that our theoretical framework is a suitable starting point for further empirical research. Finally an empirical application for the Galician case is presented. Our results sug- gest that current allocations of land to natural recreational areas in Galiza are not efficient. |
| Keywords: | Land Allocation, Efficient Allocation, Natural Recreational Areas, Public Good, Social Planner Problem, Voluntary Contribution Competitive Equilibrium, Use Value, Existence Value |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:edg:anecon:0015&r=agr |
| By: | John C. Whitehead (Appalachian State University) |
| Abstract: | This paper estimates the value of king mackerel bag limit changes with both stated and revealed preference methods. The 1997 Marine Recreational Fishery Statistical Survey allows estimation of the value of avoiding bag limit reductions with the random utility model and the contingent valuation method. Using the contingent valuation method, the willingness to pay to avoid a one fish reduction in the bag limit is $2.45 per year. Using the random utility model, the willingness to pay to avoid a one fish reduction in the bag limit for a two-month time period is $10.83. Considering several methodological issues, the difference in willingness to pay between the stated and revealed preference methods is in the expected direction. |
| JEL: | Q51 |
| Date: | 2005 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:apl:wpaper:05-08&r=agr |