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compared to the base model results, the total acreage allocated to irrigated crops alfalfa, wheat,
sugar beets, and corn silage decrease, while the lands under corn, dry edible beans and barley
increase. The changes in cropping and rotation practices lead to these changes in the land
allocations among crops.
Implications of Land Retirement Programs
Table 4 presents the implications of alternative land-retirement policies for the gross
social welfare, farm income, and water use in the ESPA. The total gross social welfare in the
region decreases by 1.36% under the uniform strategy and the least-cost land retirement policy
with the acreage goal, and 4.8% under the least-cost policy with the water-use reduction goal.
The optimal policy attains the water quantity goal achieved under the land restriction model with
the costs of about 0.66% of the baseline gross social welfare in the region. The cost of achieving
the water quantity goal with the least-cost land retirement policy with the acreage goal is about
$8.1 million, which is about two times higher than the cost of the optimal policy.
The total farm income from agricultural production plus the rental payments received in
the region increases by $5.5 million, which is about 0.9% of the base farm income under the
uniform strategy. With the least-cost land retirement policy with the acreage goal, the total farm
income with the rental payments included does not change as compared to the baseline. The farm
income under the optimal policy decreases by 0.66% of the baseline farm income.
These results suggest that the cost-effectiveness of land retirement programs could be
improved with targeting the farmers with the highest benefit to cost ratios. The water reduction
goal of the land retirement programs can also be achieved without idling croplands through
changing cropping and rotation practices. This indicates that conservation programs that focus on
on-farm conservation of water could be considered as an alternative policy to the land retirement
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