Investments in Soil Conservation and Land Improvements: Factors Explaining Farmers' Decisions

Expected income and real interest rates are among economic factors that influence farmers' decisions to invest in land improvements, including soil conservation, drainage, and land clearing. Programs that remove land from production, higher farmland prices relative to land improvement costs. Government cost-sharing of conservation expenditures, and specific land characteristics (such as slope) also encourage investments in conservation and other improvements. This study is the first to use national data to examine the role of economic and related factors in explaining farmers' investments in conservation and other land improvement projects