Abstract

Since the 1985 Food Security Act (1985 FSA), increased concern for environmental and health risks associated with the use of chemicals in U.S. agriculture has changed the focus of legislative debate. One of the major responses to these concerns has been discussion of ways to give farmers greater flexibility in planting. Those proposing more flexibility promote it as a means of encouraging crop rotations and other alternatives to intensive chemical use. This study investigates the effectiveness of such provisions for (1) shifting rotations and (2) reducing applications of corn rootworm insecticide and nitrogen on a case-study Iowa farm. A specialized version of the Comprehensive Economic and Environmental Policy Evaluation System (CEEPES), developed at the Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD), was utilized for the empirical assessment.