Publication Date

1-1997

Series Number

2/97

Publisher

Agriculture Western Australia

City

Perth

ISSN

1326-4168

Abstract

The first section of this paper reviews some spreadsheets of land-use profitability by soil type which were developed in a previous study, "The economic land capability assessment, Waroona to Capel". The second section discusses how externalities can be accounted for by developing a range of complementary approaches which reinforce property rights.

The spreadsheets reviewed were developed as an aid to aggregate land-use planning, and were proposed as a basis for determining transfer payments to reflect the social costs of phosphorus pollution. The spreadsheets were found to lack the flexibility needed to compare alternative management options, and considered inappropriate for dealing with the question of externalities.

Property rights can be determined to internalise external costs and benefits through a range of complementary approaches at the community, catchment and farm levels which reinforce property rights, and therefore responsibility. At the community level these include community-based information collection supported by government infrastructure, loan/grant schemes with cross-compliance to the development of farm plans, and the removal of perverse incentives. At the catchment level, landcare groups can develop catchment plans which can be supported by covenants and can utilise landcare trusts to implement plans. These groups can also support bargaining within the catchment and trading of transferable pollution rights between subcatchments. At the farm level externalities, both on-site and off-site, can be accounted for within a farm plan, with effectiveness and economic impacts of options monitored by local landholders. Some options can generate ‘win-win’ situations, reducing phosphorus loads, while generating harvestable products, conservation values and improved property values.

Number of Pages

13

Keywords

land-use profitability, catchment management, Peel-Harvey

Disciplines

Natural Resources Management and Policy

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