Dynamically Optimal Phosphorus Management and Agricultural Water Protection

Antti Iho and Marita Laukkanen

No 54285, Discussion Papers from MTT Agrifood Research Finland

Abstract: This paper puts forward a model of the role of phosphorus in crop production, soil phosphorus dynamics and phosphorus loading that integrates the salient economic and ecological features of agricultural phosphorus management. The model accounts for the links between phosphorus fertilization, crop yield, accumulation of soil phosphorus reserves, and phosphorus loading. It can be used to guide precision phosphorus management and erosion control as means to mitigate agricultural loading. Using a parameterization for cereal production in southern Finland, the model is solved numerically to analyze the intertemporally optimal combination of fertilization and erosion control and the associated soil phosphorus development. The optimal fertilizer application rate changes markedly over time in response to changes in the soil phosphorus level. When, for instance, soil phosphorus is initially above the socially optimal steady state level, annually matching phosphorus application to the prevailing soil phosphorus stock produces significantly higher social welfare than using a fixed fertilizer application rate. Erosion control was found to increase welfare only on land that is highly susceptible to erosion.

Keywords: Agricultural and Food Policy; Crop Production/Industries; Environmental Economics and Policy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 30
Date: 2009-10
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-agr, nep-dge and nep-env
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Downloads: (external link)
https://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/54285/files/DP2009_4.pdf (application/pdf)

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: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:mttfdp:54285

DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.54285

Access Statistics for this paper

More papers in Discussion Papers from MTT Agrifood Research Finland Contact information at EDIRC.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by AgEcon Search ().