PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Kaplan, Abram
AU  - Steinhart, John
TI  - Spatial dimensions of farm input intensity: A pilot study
DP  - 1990 Jan 01
TA  - Journal of Soil and Water Conservation
PG  - 128--132
VI  - 45
IP  - 1
4099  - http://www.jswconline.org/content/45/1/128.short
4100  - http://www.jswconline.org/content/45/1/128.full
AB  - County-level agricultural input and demographic data from the Census of Agriculture were normalized and investigated through statistical and spatial analyses. State borders and state-level data were found to be poor guides for policy. Mapping of input criteria suggest strong regions of high- and low-input farm management practices, demonstrating that an empirical knowledge of where input-intensive farms exist will enhance one's ability to design and implement policies for low-input agriculture. Cluster analysis results reinforce the notion that conventional regions of agriculture that rely strictly on climate, geomorphology, and crop production are insufficient for assessing appropriate policy targets toward improved farm management. Four-state results offer encouragement for expanding an integrated, data-based perspective to the entire United States.