SABIIA - Sistema Aberto e Integrado de Informação em Agricultura (Sabiia)

Cacho, Oscar J.; Lipper, Leslie.

Agroforestry projects have the potential to help mitigate global warming by acting as sinks for greenhouse gasses. However, participation in carbon-sink projects may be constrained by high costs. This problem may be particularly severe for projects involving smallholders in developing countries. Of particular concern are the transaction costs incurred in developing projects, measuring, certifying and selling the carbon-sequestration services generated by such projects. This paper addresses these issues by analysing the implications of transaction and abatement costs in carbon-sequestration projects. A model of project participation is developed, which accounts for the conditions under which both buyers and sellers would be willing to engage in a carbon...

A time to change? The supply of climate mitigation products from land-use change in northern NSW

Palavras-chave: Agroforestry; Climate Policy; Carbon Sequestration Costs; Environmental Economics and Policy; Q23; Q57; O1; O13.

Ano: 2007

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/9324

Moss, Jonathan; Cacho, Oscar J.; Mounter, Stuart W..

With the impending introduction of an Australian Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme, farmers and landholders in rural Australia have increased opportunities to participate in the market. This includes the adoption of land-use change to sequester additional carbon in exchange for carbon credits and the production of a renewable energy source (biofuels). However, these land-use changes compete with existing farm enterprises and may contain significant transaction costs. Therefore it is necessary for the institutional arrangements to provide adequate incentives for landholders to adopt these land-use changes. This paper examines the potential supply of these land-use changes for climate mitigation from landholders in a northern NSW catchment. These results...

A Dynamic Optimisation Model of Weed Control

Palavras-chave: Border Rivers-Gwydir; Carbon sequestration; Land-use change; Resource /Energy Economics and Policy.

Ano: 2010

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/59104

Cacho, Oscar J.; Jones, Randall E..

It is argued in this paper that static approaches to weed management, where the benefits and costs are only considered within a single season, are inappropriate for assessing the economic benefits of weed control technologies. There are carryover effects from weed management as weeds that escape control in one season may reproduce and replenish weed populations in following seasons. Consequently, it is appropriate to view weed control in the context of a resource management problem where the goal is to determine the optimal inter-temporal level of weed control that maximises economic benefits over some pre-determined period of time. A dynamic optimisation model for weed control is presented. Using the tools of comparative static analysis and Pontryagin's...

An economic analysis of farm forestry as a means of controlling dryland salinity

Palavras-chave: Weed control; Resource economics; Optimal control; Dynamic programming; Wild oats; Farm Management.

Ano: 2000

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/12902

Cacho, Oscar J.; Greiner, Romy; Fulloon, Lachlan.

Large areas of agricultural land under conventional crops and pastures are at risk of dryland salinisation in Australia. The salinisation problem can be controlled by strategic and large‐scale planting of trees; however, farm forestry enterprises evaluated with conventional discounting techniques do not generally rank as an attractive alternative to annual crops on productive land. In this article, an optimal control model that explicitly accounts for decline or improvement in land quality over a period of 40 years is presented. The optimal area planted to trees and the optimal groundwater‐table trajectory through time are determined under a variety of scenarios. Implications of the results for policy design are discussed.

Tipo: Journal Article

Palavras-chave: Resource /Energy Economics and Policy.

Ano: 2001

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/117391

Eradication of Exotic Weeds in Australia: Comparing Effort and Expenditure

Hester, Susan M.; Odom, Doreen I.S.; Cacho, Oscar J.; Sinden, Jack A..

Weeds have many adverse impacts on agriculture and the environment and therefore are often targets of eradication attempts. Eradication attempts involve large commitments of labour and financial resources over significant periods of time. Using data from 12 Australian weed eradication attempts the authors compare work hours and expenditure on each attempt for various initial-infestation sizes. Analysis of a limited data set shows: (1) that while the eradication effort increases with the initial area of infestation, the effort applied per hectare actually decreases; (2) that application of a greater work effort was not the reason why completed eradications were successful; and (3) that the larger the initial infestation size, the smaller the amount of...

Farm-level Economic Evaluation of Net Feed Efficiency in Australia’s Southern Beef Cattle Production System: A Multi-period Linear Programming Approach

Palavras-chave: Weeds; Eradication; Work effort; Expenditure; Infestation size; Environmental Economics and Policy; Resource /Energy Economics and Policy.

Ano: 2004

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/12921

Alford, Andrew R.; Griffith, Garry R.; Cacho, Oscar J..

Selection of beef cattle for increased net feed efficiency is a current major focus for research. At present the trait seems to be more apparent in Australia’s southern beef production system which is dominated by mixed farming enterprises. Farm-level evaluation of net feed efficiency should take account of the farming system for which it is proposed along with the dynamic nature of genetic selection. Gross margin, linear programming and multi-period linear programming approaches to evaluation of the trait at the farm-level using a representative farm are compared. Implications of the trait for researchers and beef producers are identified

Agricultural response analysis in a longer term framework

Palavras-chave: Farm-level evaluation; Genetic traits; Linear programming; Farm Management.

Ano: 2003

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/57826

Farquharson, Robert J.; Cacho, Oscar J.; Turpin, J.E..

Issues of long term soil fertility decline and sustainability are becoming more important for cropping industries in Australia. Helping to manage the level of soil fertility in this context is an aim of economic response analysis. This paper reviews the theory and methods used by economists to derive the optimal level of an input to be used in a production process. In particular, response functions generated by a crop simulation model are used as a basis for the analysis. The use of such models is becoming widespread in the research and extension community. A variety of methods are presented, in increasing order of complexity, to account for the real world characteristics of the production environment in this context.

Tipo: Presentation

Palavras-chave: Crop Production/Industries.

Ano: 2000

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/123634

A Dynamic Optimisation Model of Weed Control

Jones, Randall E.; Cacho, Oscar J..

Tipo: Presentation

Palavras-chave: Crop Production/Industries.

Ano: 2000

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/123685

Temporary carbon storage and discount rates

Hean, Robyn L.; Cacho, Oscar J.; Menz, Kenneth M..

Several approaches have been proposed for accounting for temporary carbon sequestration in land-use change and forestry projects that are implemented to offset permanent emissions of carbon dioxide from the energy sector. In a previous paper, we evaluated the incentives provided by some of these approaches. In this paper, we investigate further what we call the “ideal” accounting system, where the forest owner would be paid for carbon sequestration as the service is provided and redeem payments when the forest is harvested and carbon is released back into the atmosphere. We demonstrate how discounting affects the net present value of the forest when carbon sequestration is taken into account under this ideal system. Not all carbon is released back into the...

Applying search theory to determine the feasibility of eradicating an invasive population in natural environments

Palavras-chave: Carbon accounting; Reforestation; Discounting; Bioeconomics; Environmental Economics and Policy; Land Economics/Use.

Ano: 2003

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/57888

Cacho, Oscar J.; Hester, Susan M.; Spring, Daniel.

The detectability of invasive organisms influences the feasibility of eradicating an infestation. Search theory offers a framework for defining and measuring detectability, taking account of searcher ability, biological factors and the search environment. In this paper, search theory concepts are incorporated into a population model, and the costs of search and control are calculated as functions of the amount of search effort (the decision variable). Simulations are performed on a set of weed scenarios in a natural environment, involving different combinations of plant longevity, seed longevity and plant fecundity. Results provide preliminary estimates of the cost and duration of eradication programs to assist in prioritising weeds for control. The...

Tipo: Article

Palavras-chave: Bioeconomics; Invasive species; Operations research; Population dynamics; Weed control; Resource /Energy Economics and Policy.

Ano: 2007

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/118522

Carbon-accounting methods and reforestation incentives

Cacho, Oscar J.; Hean, Robyn L.; Wise, Russell M..

The emission of greenhouse gases, particularly carbon dioxide, and the consequent potential for climate change are the focus of increasing international concern. Temporary land-use change and forestry projects (LUCF) can be implemented to offset permanent emissions of carbon dioxide from the energy sector. Several approaches to accounting for carbon sequestration in LUCF projects have been proposed. In the present paper, the economic implications of adopting four of these approaches are evaluated in a normative context. The analysis is based on simulation of Australian farm–forestry systems. Results are interpreted from the standpoint of both investors and landholders. The role of baselines and transaction costs are discussed.

Tipo: Journal Article

Palavras-chave: Resource /Energy Economics and Policy.

Ano: 2003

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/116186

Evaluating New Beef Production Technologies and Their Impact on the Sustainability of a Grazing System: A Stochastic Dynamic Model

Alford, Andrew R.; Cacho, Oscar J.; Griffith, Garry R..

Net feed efficiency (NFE) technology is expected to improve the productivity of grazing systems in Australia's southern beef producing regions. The extended time path required for implementation of this genetic technology into commercial herds and the influence of climatic variability on the pasture base are important issues to address in estimating the benefits of this technology at the farm level. NFE also has the potential to impact on the sustainability of the grazing systems in terms of maintaining adequate pasture cover. These issues are investigated by developing a stochastic dynamic simulation model. The bioeconomic model includes pasture, animal production, herd dynamics and economic sub-models. In this paper the model is presented and the...

Bioeconomic meta-modelling of Indonesian agroforests as carbon sinks

Palavras-chave: Farm level evaluation; Genetic trait; Stochastic dynamic model; Farm Management; Production Economics.

Ano: 2004

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/58358

Wise, Russell M.; Cacho, Oscar J..

In many areas of developing countries, economic and institutional factors often combine to give farmers incentives to clear forests and repeatedly plant food crops without sufficiently replenishing the soils. These activities lead to large-scale land degradation and contribute to global warming through the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. We investigate whether agroforestry systems might alleviate these trends when carbon-credit payments are available under the Clean Development Mechanism of the Kyoto Protocol. A meta-modelling framework is adopted, comprising an econometric-production model of a smallholding in Sumatra. The model is used within a dynamic-programming algorithm to determine optimal combinations of tree/crop area,...

VALUING AGROFORESTRY IN THE PRESENCE OF LAND DEGRADATION

Palavras-chave: Bio-economic meta-modelling; Indonesia; Agroforestry; Carbon credits; Dynamic programming; Environmental Economics and Policy; Resource /Energy Economics and Policy.

Ano: 2008

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/6772

Cacho, Oscar J..

Agroforestry can help prevent land degradation while allowing continuing use of land to produce crops and livestock. A problem with the evaluation of agroforestry using long-run static models and traditional discounting techniques is that the present value of the forestry enterprise is generally much lower than that of other production activities. This problem is common with Australian native species which tend to have a high environmental value but a low market value. This paper presents an economic analysis of an agroforestry operation in land prone to degradation and in the presence of positive externalities provided by trees. The value of the land is estimated based on the present value of expected returns in perpetuity under optimal management....

Weed Invasions: To Control or Not to Control?

Palavras-chave: Agroforestry; Land degradation; Externalities; Dryland salinity; Land Economics/Use.

Ano: 1999

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/12931

Cacho, Oscar J.; Wise, Russell M.; Hester, Susan M.; Sinden, Jack A..

When a weed invasion is discovered a decision has to be made as to whether to attempt to eradicate it, contain it or do nothing. Ideally, these decisions should be based on a complete benefit-cost analysis, but this is often not possible. A partial analysis, combining knowledge of the rate of spread, seedbank longevity and economic-analysis techniques, can assist in making the best decision. This paper presents a model to decide when immediate eradication of a weed should be attempted, or whether weed control should be attempted at all. The technique is based on identifying two 'switching points': the invasion size at which it is no longer optimal to attempt eradication, and the invasion size at which it becomes optimal not to apply any form of control. It...

Bioeconomic analysis of fertiliser input costs on pasture resource management under climatic uncertainty

Palavras-chave: Invasive species; Eradication; Containment; Economics; Weed control; Switching point; Farm Management.

Ano: 2004

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/12908

Behrendt, Karl; Cacho, Oscar J.; Scott, James M.; Jones, Randall E..

This paper has been withdrawn at the request of the authors.

Optimal Land-Use Decisions in the Presence of Carbon Payments and Fertilizer Subsidies: An Indonesian Case Study

Palavras-chave: Fertiliser input costs; Dynamic pasture resource model; Pasture persistence; Climatic uncertainty; Risk-efficient frontier; Crop Production/Industries.

Ano: 2009

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/47628

Wise, Russell M.; Cacho, Oscar J..

The Clean Development Mechanism of the Kyoto Protocol provides the opportunity for smallholders to receive financial rewards for adopting tree-based systems that are sustainable. In this paper a meta-model is developed to simulate interactions between trees, crops and soils under a range of management regimes for a smallholding in Sumatra. The model is used within a dynamic-programming algorithm to determine optimal tree/crop areas, tree-rotation lengths, firewood-harvest and fertilizer application rates for a landholder faced with deteriorating land quality and opportunities to receive carbon credits and fertiliser subsidies. It is found th at profit maximising management strategies depend on initial soil quality. For example, incentives to participate in...

Palavras-chave: Land Economics/Use.

Ano: 2006

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/25356

Book Reviews

Bennett, Jeffrey W.; Harris, Michael; Williams, Dick; Cacho, Oscar J.; Poole, Nigel D.; Pluske, Johanna M.; Lindner, Robert K..

Tipo: Journal Article

Palavras-chave: Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession.

Ano: 2002

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/118103

A Northern Tablelands Whole-Farm Linear Program for Economic Evaluation of New Technologies at the Farm-Level

Alford, Andrew R.; Griffith, Garry R.; Cacho, Oscar J..

The benefits of evaluating a new technology in a whole-farm context using a linear programming framework are well known. Linear programming allows the joint evaluation of concurrent farm activities, while considering the costs and returns of all enterprises and any resource adjustments imposed by adoption of the technology. This Report provides a rationale for and description of a whole-farm linear programming model that can be used for the economic evaluation of new technologies that are applicable to beef/sheep grazing farms typical of the Northern Tablelands of New South Wales. In this farming system, the whole-farm focus incorporates various aspects of the pasture base, resource constraints and sheep and cattle interactions. An overview of economic...

Tipo: Report

Palavras-chave: Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies.

Ano: 2003

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/28010

Tree-crop interactions and their environmental and economic implications in the presence of carbon-sequestration payments

Wise, Russell M.; Cacho, Oscar J..

Growing trees with crops has environmental and economic implications. Trees can help prevent land degradation and increase biodiversity while at the same time allow for the continued use of the land to produce agricultural crops. In fact, growing trees alongside crops is known to improve both the productivity and sustainability of the land. However, due to high labour-input requirements, high costs of establishment, and delayed revenue returns, trees are often not economically attractive to landholders. Because of the Kyoto Protocol, and the growing emphasis on market-based solutions to environmental problems, the ability of trees to sequester and store CO2 has altered the economic landscape of agroforestry systems. The economic and management implications...