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Do farmers or governments make better land conservation choices? Evidence from China's Sloping Land Conversion Program

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  • Kelly, Peter
  • Huo, Xuexi

Abstract

In developing countries with small holdings, targeting payments-for-environmental-services prices to site-specific environmental benefits becomes administratively impractical. Instead, governments fix price and either dictate parcel enrollment or let farmers decide, which might be expected to maximize environmental benefits and minimize opportunity costs, respectively. No paper has actually tested such hypotheses in a developing-country setting. This paper examines China's Sloping Land Conversion Program, with 32 million planting forests, using a unique dataset on 3397 parcels, including farmer-choice and government-choice parcels. Farmers consider similar criteria to local governments but weight land characteristics within the farm (not the landscape) and household characteristics.

Suggested Citation

  • Kelly, Peter & Huo, Xuexi, 2013. "Do farmers or governments make better land conservation choices? Evidence from China's Sloping Land Conversion Program," Journal of Forest Economics, Elsevier, vol. 19(1), pages 32-60.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:foreco:v:19:y:2013:i:1:p:32-60
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jfe.2012.08.002
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    Cited by:

    1. Figueroa, Fernanda & Caro-Borrero, Ángela & Revollo-Fernández, Daniel & Merino, Leticia & Almeida-Leñero, Lucía & Paré, Luisa & Espinosa, Dulce & Mazari-Hiriart, Marisa, 2016. "“I like to conserve the forest, but I also like the cash”. Socioeconomic factors influencing the motivation to be engaged in the Mexican Payment for Environmental Services Programme," Journal of Forest Economics, Elsevier, vol. 22(C), pages 36-51.
    2. Zhang, Zhaohui & Paudel, Krishna P., 2019. "Policy improvements and farmers' willingness to participate: Insights from the new round of China's Sloping Land Conversion Program," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 162(C), pages 121-132.
    3. Campanhão, Ligia Maria Barrios & Ranieri, Victor Eduardo Lima, 2019. "Guideline framework for effective targeting of payments for watershed services," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 93-109.
    4. Xia, Min & Zhang, Yanyuan & Zhang, Zihong & Liu, Jingjie & Ou, Weixin & Zou, Wei, 2020. "Modeling agricultural land use change in a rapid urbanizing town: Linking the decisions of government, peasant households and enterprises," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    5. Raes, Leander & Loft, Lasse & Le Coq, Jean François & Van Huylenbroeck, Guido & Van Damme, Patrick, 2016. "Towards market- or command-based governance? The evolution of payments for environmental service schemes in Andean and Mesoamerican countries," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 18(C), pages 20-32.
    6. Jingjing Liu & Jing Wang & Zehui Li & Yingkun Du, 2021. "Exploring impacts of the Grain for Green program on Chinese economic growth," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(4), pages 5215-5232, April.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Reforestation; Payments for environmental services; Sloping Land Conversion Program; China;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O13 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Agriculture; Natural Resources; Environment; Other Primary Products
    • Q23 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Renewable Resources and Conservation - - - Forestry
    • R52 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Regional Government Analysis - - - Land Use and Other Regulations

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