Author
Jin Zhang (zj67c@163.com), Günther Manske, Pi Qi Zhou, Bernhard Tischbein, Mathias Becker and Zhao Hua Li
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Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, 2017, vol. 19, issue 3, 791-805
Abstract: Abstract Overuse of nitrogen (N) fertilizers in agriculture activities has caused severe water pollution in China. The lack of data at producer level hampers decision makers in the development and implementation of efficient policies to curb excessive N-fertilizer use. In a survey of 300 farm households in the Liangzihu Lake basin, we identified factors associated with farmers’ decisions on N-fertilizer use and application rate. Household survey and multiple linear regression models indicate that the average application rate in the study region is 229 kg N ha−1, which exceeds the recommended rate for maximum profit for cereal crops (maize, wheat, and rice) in China of 150–180 kg N ha−1. High N-application rates are associated with low farmland productivity (coefficient = −15.66, p = 0.02), a high share of off-farm income (coefficient = 27.14, p = 0.003), and a low education level of the household head (coefficient = −10.83, p = 0.039). Neither physical infrastructure nor access to input markets appears to be related to N-application rates. It may be concluded that excessive use of N in agriculture of Central China is mainly a problem of insufficient awareness and high share of off-farm income.
Keywords: Chemical fertilizer; Farmers’ behaviour; Fertilizer management; Nitrate pollution; Overuse (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
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Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development is currently edited by Luc Hens
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Jin Zhang (zj67c@163.com), Günther Manske, Pi Qi Zhou, Bernhard Tischbein, Mathias Becker and Zhao Hua Li
Additional contact information
Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, 2017, vol. 19, issue 3, 791-805
Abstract: Abstract Overuse of nitrogen (N) fertilizers in agriculture activities has caused severe water pollution in China. The lack of data at producer level hampers decision makers in the development and implementation of efficient policies to curb excessive N-fertilizer use. In a survey of 300 farm households in the Liangzihu Lake basin, we identified factors associated with farmers’ decisions on N-fertilizer use and application rate. Household survey and multiple linear regression models indicate that the average application rate in the study region is 229 kg N ha−1, which exceeds the recommended rate for maximum profit for cereal crops (maize, wheat, and rice) in China of 150–180 kg N ha−1. High N-application rates are associated with low farmland productivity (coefficient = −15.66, p = 0.02), a high share of off-farm income (coefficient = 27.14, p = 0.003), and a low education level of the household head (coefficient = −10.83, p = 0.039). Neither physical infrastructure nor access to input markets appears to be related to N-application rates. It may be concluded that excessive use of N in agriculture of Central China is mainly a problem of insufficient awareness and high share of off-farm income.
Keywords: Chemical fertilizer; Farmers’ behaviour; Fertilizer management; Nitrate pollution; Overuse (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations Track citations by RSS feed
Downloads: (external link)
http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10668-016-9765-z Abstract (text/html)
Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.
Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text
Persistent link: http://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:endesu:v:19:y:2017:i:3:d:10.1007_s10668-016-9765-z
Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.springer.com/economics/journal/10668
Access Statistics for this article
Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development is currently edited by Luc Hens
More articles in Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development from Springer
Series data maintained by Sonal Shukla (sonal.shukla@springer.com).
For further details log on website :
http://econpapers.repec.org/article/sprendesu/v_3a19_3ay_3a2017_3ai_3a3_3ad_3a10.1007_5fs10668-016-9765-z.htm
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