MCDM Farm System Analysis for Public Management of Irrigated Agriculture

In this paper we present a methodology within the multi-criteria paradigm to assist policy decision-making on water management for irrigation. In order to predict farmers' response to policy changes a separate multi-attribute utility function for each homogeneous group, attained applying cluster analysis, is elicited. The results of several empirical applications of this methodology suggest an improvement of the ability to simulate farmers' decision-making process compared to other approaches. Once the utility functions are obtained the policy maker can evaluate the differential impacts on each cluster and the overall impacts in the area of study (i.e. a river basin) by aggregation. On the empirical side, the authors present some studies for different policy instruments including water pricing, water markets, modernization of irrigation systems and a combination of them.multi-attribute utility theory, water management, irrigation, policy analysis, Agricultural and Food Policy, Q25, Q15, C61,

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Evaluating the impacts of farmers’ behaviors on a hypothetical agricultural water market based on double auction

Agricultural water markets are considered effective instruments to mitigate the impacts of water scarcity and to increase crop production. However, previous studies have limited understanding of how farmers’ behaviors affect the performance of water markets. This study develops an agent-based model to explicitly incorporate farmers’ behaviors, namely irrigation behavior (represented by farmers’ sensitivity to soil water deficit k) and bidding behavior (represented by farmers’ rent seeking l and learning rate b), in a hypothetical water market based on a double auction. The model is applied to the Guadalupe River Basin in Texas to simulate a hypothetical agricultural water market under various hydrological conditions. It is found that the joint impacts of the behavioral parameters on the water market are strong and complex. In particular, among the three behavioral parameters, k affects the water market potential and its impacts on the performance of the water market are significant under most scenarios. The impacts of l or b on the performance of the water market depend on the other two parameters. The water market could significantly increase crop production only when the following conditions are satisfied: (1) k is small and (2) l is small and/or b is large. The first condition requires efficient irrigation scheduling, and the second requires well-developed water market institutions that provide incentives to bid true valuation of water permits

Concepts of Landscape Redesign - A Background Paper

A recent report prepared for the Australian Conservation Foundation and National Farmers Federation states that there is a need for the development of new production systems that are in tune with the needs of the natural environment. It is this need that has prompted the concept of landscape redesign, a challenge to develop profitable and environmentally sustainable land use options that help attain desired future landscapes. Natural resource managers are only starting to grapple with how Australian landscapes can be managed, or where appropriate redesigned, to achieve improved outcomes. There are many unanswered questions relating to landscape redesign. These represent the range of unknowns that need to be addressed to permit effective scientific research, policy formulation and on-ground change. These questions resurface throughout the remainder of this paper.Australia;landscape;natural resource management;agriculture

Simulating the Impact on the Local Economy of Alternative Management Scenarios for Natural Areas

This working paper estimates the impact on the local economy of the High Garda Natural Park of alternative management scenarios for the West Garda Regional Forest. The local economy is specialized in tourist services and strongly linked to the tourist presence and their level of expenditure. We wish to investigate the effects of the participative management strategy, which takes into account users preferences and the non-participative strategy, using the SAM multiplier analysis. The local SAM has been constructed considering three sectors: agriculture, tourism and a third aggregate sector including all the other activities. The resident population has been divided into two categories: residents employed in the tourist sector and the remaining resident population. The SAM analysis shows that the accounting representation of the local economy is meaningful and that the participative program, if chosen by the central regional management, would be the most desirable program also at the local level.Tourism, SAM, Multiplier analysis

The global dimension of water governance: Nine reasons for global arrangements in order to cope with local water problems

Where water problems extend beyond the borders of local communities, the catchment area or river basin is generally seen as the most appropriate unit for analysis, planning and institutional arrangements. In this paper it\ud is argued that addressing water problems at the river basin level is not always sufficient. It is shown that a substantial part of today’s water issues carries a (sub)continental or even global dimension, which urges for a governance approach that comprises coordination and institutional arrangements at a level above that of the river basin. This paper distinguishes and reviews nine developments that support this argument: • Local issues of water scarcity and flooding will be enhanced or weakened by human-induced global climate\ud change.\ud • Local problems of water pollution are often intrinsic to the structure of the global economy.\ud • There is a growing presence of multinationals in the drinking water sector.\ud • Several national governments are developing plans for large-scale inter-basin water transfers.\ud • An increasing number of water-short countries seek to preserve their domestic water resources through the\ud import of water in virtual form.\ud • Global trade in water-intensive commodities offers the opportunity of global water saving if this trade is\ud from countries with high to countries with low water productivity.\ud • The water footprints of individual people are increasingly externalised to other parts of the world, so that\ud many local water problems are strongly related to consumption elsewhere.\ud • Some people around the world have comparatively high water footprints, which raises the question of\ud whether this is fair and sustainable.\ud • Due to its increasing scarcity and uneven distribution across the globe, water is gradually becoming a geopolitical resource, influencing the power of nations.\ud The described developments raise the question of what kind of institutional arrangements could be developed to cope with the global dimension of water issues. A few possible directions are identified in an explorative analysis: an international protocol on full-cost water pricing, a water label for water-intensive products, a disposal tax on goods that will cause water pollution in their waste stage (to be used for pollution prevention and\ud control), international nutrient housekeeping, minimum water rights, maximum allowable water footprints, and tradable water footprint permits

Emissions Trading, CDM, JI, and More – The Climate Strategy of the EU

The objective of this paper is to assess the likely allocation effects of the current cli-mate protection strategy as it is laid out in the National Allocation Plans (NAPs) for the European Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). The multi-regional, multi-sectoral CGE-model DART is used to simulate the effects of the current policies in the year 2012 when the Kyoto targets need to be met. Different scenarios are simulated in order to highlight the effects of the grandfathering of permits to energy-intensive installations, the use of the project-based mechanisms (CDM and JI), and the restriction imposed by the supplementarity criterion.Kyoto targets, EU, EU emissions trading scheme, National allocation plans, CDM and JI, Computable general equilibrium model, DART

Trading schemes for greenhouse gas emissions from European agriculture: A comparative analysis based on different implementation options

A rational negotiation strategy for coming multilateral negotiations regarding climate change requires knowledge about possible social, economic and environmental effects of policy instruments for the abatement of greenhouse gas emissions. With this purpose, an agricultural sector model is expanded to cover greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural sources in Europe and policy instruments for their reduction. This modelling approach concentrates on the application of a permit trade scheme for emission abatement within the Kyoto Protocol ‘first commitment’ baseline. The effects derived of three alternative schemes are described in detail: the EU ‘burden sharing’ agreement option defined as regional emission standards, emission trading between regions inside each Member State, and finally, emission trading between all European regions. The analysis shows the importance of selecting an adequate combination of instruments of emission abatement for the design of efficient emission reduction policies.Kyoto Protocol, agricultural policy, economic modelling, tradable emission permits

The global dimension of water governance: why the river basin approach is no longer sufficient and why cooperative action at global level is needed

When water problems extend beyond the borders of local communities, the river basin is generally seen as the most appropriate unit for analysis, planning, and institutional arrangements. In this paper it is argued that addressing water problems at the river basin level is not always sufficient. Many of today’s seemingly local water issues carry a (sub)continental or even global dimension, which urges for a governance approach that comprises institutional arrangements at a level beyond that of the river basin. This paper examines a number of arguments for the thesis that good water governance requires a global approach complementary to the river basin approach. Subsequently, it identifies four major issues to be addressed at global scale: Efficiency, equity, sustainability and security of water supply in a globalised world. Finally, the paper raises the question of what kind of institutional arrangements could be developed to cope with the global dimension of water issues. A few possible directions are explored, ranging from an international protocol on full-cost water pricing and a water label for water-intensive products to the implementation of water footprint quotas and the water-neutral concept

Mixed Bag: Simulating Market-Based Instruments for Water Quality and Quantity in the Upper Waikato

We designed and implemented participatory computer simulations in three workshops in New Zealand's Upper Waikato catchment to learn how market-based instruments (MBIs) might improve freshwater outcomes when managing water and land resources within limits. An Excel-based platform was built to simulate, in stakeholder workshops, the use of transferable permits and user charges for both water quantity and water quality in the Upper Waikato catchment. Each participant managed a hypothetical property in a simplified catchment that included seven farms, a pulp mill, district council, and a hydro - electric company. Based on profit schedules and policy settings, participants made choices about production intensity, land use change and trading of water and/or nutrient allowances. The simulations highlighted the social and cultural context in which MBIs must operate, and how that context influences the outcomes that we can expect from MBIs. Participants found the simulations to be a valuable learning experience