Engaging absentee landowners in conservation practice decisions: A descriptive study of an understudied group

Excerpt

Nonpoint source pollution is the primary pollution threat facing water quality in the Great Lakes Basin (Great Lakes Commission n.d.). Protection and preservation of water quality in the Basin, as well as elsewhere, hinges on the ability of local conservation agencies to effectively contact, assist, and convince landowners to personally undertake and participate in local, state, and federal sponsored conservation initiatives. However, nearly half (48%) of landowners in the Basin do not operate the agricultural land they own (Census of Agriculture 1999). In addition, it is unknown how many of these landowners are aware of or receiving any information about the conservation practices and resources available to them through public sponsored programs. Therefore, it is difficult to gauge the “average” level of knowledge these landowners have regarding educational, technical, and financial assistance for conservation implementation.

Agricultural census data comparing enrollment in the Conservation Reserve (CRP) and Wetland Reserve (WRP) programs suggest a need for specialized outreach to landowners not operating their land. Nationwide, these landowners lag owner-operator enrollment in both CRP and WRP by 64%. In the Great Lakes region, owner-operators are one and one-half times more likely to enroll land in these programs than their nonoperator landowner counterparts (Census…