CHAMPAIGN, Ill., 1/25/24: A recent Prairie Research Institute (PRI) study of attitudes about land conservation found that Illinois farmers view themselves as stewards of their land, balancing conservation with earning a profit. Nearly half of farmers surveyed said they would use conservation practices even without financial compensation from federal land conservation programs.

With this attitude about sustainable land management, farmers support the efforts of conservationists and managers striving to reduce the adverse effects of fertilizer runoff into streams and rivers, said Craig Miller, principal investigator of the two studies at the Illinois Natural History Survey, a unit of PRI. 

Miller and colleagues surveyed more than 900 Illinois private landowners. The survey questions were based on the concept that land ownership is a moral issue and doing the right thing to keep the land healthy is as important as earning money from land use. This study, published in Society & Natural Resources, is part of a larger investigation on farmers’ attitudes about Gulf hypoxia caused partly by nitrate and phosphorus runoff from crop fields.

Respondents who believe farmers have dominion over the land were more likely to feel that the land is to be used solely for personal gain. However, a majority felt that landowners had an obligation to manage the land in the best interests of the broader community. The study also looked at how farmers felt about their rights related to land use.

The researchers found that farmers, in general, are fully aware that they are responsible for conserving the land for the greater good.

“These results might be counter to the stereotypical view of intensive agriculture as being just profit-motivated,” Miller said. “Our findings showed that farmers are conscious of their role in providing food for the world and have the responsibility to keep the soil healthy and still maintain profits. That’s a very tough balancing act.”

It follows that farmers do not consider conservation as something they are paid to do. In another study of farmers enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program, published in Environmental Management, Miller, using questions based on Aldo Leopold’s "The Land Ethic,” found that 48% of survey respondents claimed they would continue conservation practices even if they weren’t receiving financial support to set aside erodible land. 

Costly government programs are difficult to sustain, and previous research has shown that financial incentives may detract from educating landowners about conservation and promoting a land ethic for responsible land stewardship. Conservation messaging and programs from various sources that encourage this land ethic may be especially effective when farmers feel a bond to their land.

“Working on a large-scale issue such as Gulf hypoxia will require the cooperation of the agriculture community,” Miller said. “We have found that there is a receptive audience out there.”

The studies were funded by the U.S. Field and Wildlife Service.

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Media Contact: Craig Miller, 217-244-0691, craigm@illinois.edu