TY - JOUR T1 - Reduced tillage systems as economical dust mitigation strategies JF - Journal of Soil and Water Conservation SP - 61 LP - 69 DO - 10.2489/jswc.64.1.61 VL - 64 IS - 1 AU - A.M. Kennedy AU - P.N. Wilson Y1 - 2009/01/01 UR - http://www.jswconline.org/content/64/1/61.abstract N2 - Arizona is one of the first states in the nation to regulate agricultural practices in order to reduce dust emissions near urban areas. This best management practice program requires dust mitigation actions in some combination of tillage and harvest, cropland, and noncropland activities. Single pass multiple operation equipment represents a viable best management practice to reduce dust emissions from agricultural tillage operations. Partial budgeting and contingent valuation methods were used to estimate the potential profitability and willingness-to-adopt reduced tillage equipment, respectively. At $39 to $64 ha-1 ($16 to $26 ac-1) in long-term net benefits associated with single pass multiple operation equipment, we estimate that adoption will occur on approximately 10% to 35% of the cotton hectares. However, uncertainty over operating costs and yield variability associated with single pass multiple operation equipment may reduce this rate of adoption. As a result, most dust mitigation may occur through the reduction of the number of conventional tillage operations due to global competitive pressures and the urbanization of agricultural lands. ER -