NDSU Economists to Study Effects of Conservation Reserve Program

The broad effects of the Conservation Reserve Program in rural North Dakota will be evaluated in a new study by the North Dakota State University Department of Agribusiness and Applied Economics.

"We’ve heard a lot about the effects of the program on agriculture-related businesses and the ag economy," says research scientist Dean Bangsund. "But we haven’t looked at the effect of the CRP on other sectors of local economies." Bangsund and Larry Leistritz, professor of agribusiness and applied economics will cooperate on the study.

The goals of the study are to determine:

• the current agricultural implications of the CRP on local economies;
• the recreational/tourism effects of the CRP on local economies;
• how the program has helped individual farmers and contract holders; and
• how the costs and benefits of the program have affected local communities and economies.

"With this study, we hope to develop a better overall picture of what the program means for rural North Dakota in terms of the agricultural, recreational and community effects," Bangsund says. The CRP has been in existence for more than 13 years and North Dakota is ranked third behind only Texas and Montana in total acres enrolled. Several areas of North Dakota are at or near the program limitations for enrollment with nearly 25 percent of the tillable crop land in the CRP.

He notes that previous studies of the effects of the CRP focused on expenditures that would have occurred if the land had remained in production. "The basic assumption of those studies was that the difference between crop revenues and CRP payments represents the amount of economic loss absorbed by local economies," Bangsund says. "However, the full effects of the program on individual operators and other sectors of the economy are less understood."

He notes that the CRP has been a valuable mechanism for wildlife habitat and soil and water conservation. The economic benefits of increased outdoor recreation have not been well documented. Similarly, the program has provided a stable source of income to producers, and some anecdotal reports indicate producers and related businesses are more financially secure as a result.

NDSU researchers will conduct interviews with community leaders in selected counties throughout the state. Another key source of information will be a mail survey of contract holders in several counties. "That survey is designed to give us information on the program’s effects on individual operators and to give farmers and contract holders an opportunity to voice their opinions," Bangsund says. The survey will be conducted in January and February.

The study is sponsored by the USDA and will provide input for policymakers when CRP legislation is reviewed in future sessions of Congress. A public report will be available later this year.

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Sources: Dean Bangsund, (701) 231-7471, bangsund@ndsuext.nodak.edu, and Larry Leistritz, (701) 231-7455, lleistri@ndsuext.nodak.edu
Editor: Tom Jirik, (701) 231-9629, tjirik@ndsuext.nodak.edu