A Water Seminar by Ph.D. Student Zhuanlin Wang from China's Peking University.

Abstract:

Land fallowing policy is used for lowering the negative externalities on water resources. Previous studies of land fallowing policies identified different factors that explain the willingness of farmers to participate in these programs. However, less attention was placed on farm size as an important explanatory variable. We begin by developing a theoretical model to explain the role of farm size in decisions to participate in land fallowing programs. We then apply the theory to the Seasonal Land Fallowing Policy (SLFP), enacted to reduce agricultural groundwater use by fallowing the cultivated land with winter wheat in Hebei Province, China. Both small- and large-scale farmers participated in the program. Using survey data, we examined whether farm size matters in decisions to participate as part of a set of variables, including participation by neighboring farmers, and farm and farmer characteristics. Our results indicate that farm size significantly affects participation in the program— the larger the farm, the more likely it will participate. The results are robust to various specifications. We also found that farm neighbors’ participation plays an important role in decisions of small-scale farmers to participate. The findings have important implications for policy formulation and distinction among small- and large- scale farms.

Bio:

Zhuanlin Wang is a Ph.D. student at the China Center for Agricultural Policy (CCAP) and School of Advanced Agricultural Sciences at Peking University, China. She majors in agricultural economics. Her research focuses on agricultural water resource management and policy, and impact evaluation and economic behavior of irrigation investment. She is working on the participation, effectiveness, and optimal management of seasonal land fallowing policy dealing with groundwater overdraft in China. Zhuanlin is now on a one-year visiting study at the School of Public Policy, University of California, Riverside (UCR).

RSVP via https://water-wang.eventbrite.com.