Thesis--Wisconsin. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 103-107).

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Thesis (doctoral)--Delft University of Technology, 2007. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. [99]-110).

Thesis (doctoral)--Delft University of Technology, 2007. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. [99]-110).

The study's purpose was to determine the job satisfaction level of Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) employees during fiscal year 2007-2008. Employee characteristics were identified; three measures of job satisfaction were attained (intrinsic, extrinsic, general satisfaction); and satisfaction levels on 12 specific job aspects were determined. The relationship between job satisfaction and four independent variables (age, gender, education level, primary job responsibility) was assessed. The instrument consisted of an employee characteristics survey, the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ) 1977 Short-Form, derived from the MSQ 1967 Long-Form (Weiss, Dawis, England, & Lofquist, 1967), and a modified 2002 Virginia Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts (VASWCD) survey. Descriptive research statistics were utilized. A total of 185 employees participated, which was an 80% response rate. The majority of employees were characterized as: non-Hispanic, white, female, average age 41 years, married with no children 18 and under living in the home, bachelor's degree, average tenure of 6.52 years, full-time, permanent position, average hourly wage of $14.45 and annual salary of $36,373.54, primary job responsibility "technical." The MSQ found respondents generally and intrinsically satisfied. Greater satisfaction was expressed for variety and social services. Overall respondents were undecided about extrinsic job aspects. Advancement was an area of dissatisfaction. The modified VASWCD survey found respondents satisfied overall. Respondents were "very satisfied" with work schedule, type of work, and board relationships. Employees were less satisfied with health insurance benefits, new employee orientation, and compensation. They were "dissatisfied" with career advancement opportunities and life insurance. Differences in total intrinsic, extrinsic, and general job satisfaction, as measured by the MSQ, based on the independent variables were determined. A one-way ANOVA and Tukey's post-hoc test were utilized. Since the population of this study violated Levene's Test of Homogeneity, the ANOVA could not be performed for age and intrinsic and general job satisfaction. The ANOVA was performed for all other variables. There was not a significant difference in extrinsic satisfaction among respondents of the various age groups. There were no significant differences in intrinsic, extrinsic, or general job satisfaction for the variables of gender, education level, or primary job responsibility. / Ph. D.

Taitung County is mountainous. Its geological structure is weak. Typhoon and heavy rain is frequent. Land erosion, landslide, and silt deposit in rivers is serious. In recent years, hilly areas are over-developed and conservation problem worsens. In typhoon and heavy rain, soil and other resources would be washed away and causes serious damage. The resources that people are relying on are vanishing. The purpose of this paper is to study the conservation of hilly areas, the management of river catchment areas, and the investigation and planning of the conservation of resources. This paper may help our people better understand the importance of conservation and t hey will be willing to work for a better Taitung Countye. This paper also studies the government conservation policies over the years and the their results, the farmers¡¦ understanding of the land, and conflict between the government and the farmers in land use in hilly areas. The study finds out that in managing the river catchment areas, government executive system is too complicated. Farmers do not appreciate the way the laws are implemented. They do not admit that their development cause water pollution or soil erosion. Rather, they believe that landslide and government policies in garbage dumping and road opening are to be blamed. Farmers are against most of the government policies especially in returning their land to government. There is a gap between government and farmer recognition. It is suggested that from now on, related personnel should investigate more and communicate more with people before preparing a policy. And since farmers are more willing to accept policies in subsidizing afforestation and soil protection, government should work on these issues.

Diss. (sammanfattning). Uppsala : Sveriges lantbruksuniv., 2003. / Härtill 4 uppsatser.

Doctor of Philosophy / Environmental Design and Planning / Timothy D. Keane / Kenya has been adversely affected by soil erosion due to population growth, changes in land use and land cover, and unsustainable agricultural practices. Issues related to land degradation cost the Kenyan government approximately $390 million or 3 percent of the country’s GDP yearly (Government of Kenya, 2013). Despite extensive land degradation, many attempts to encourage the use of soil and water conservation (SWC) practices have been unsuccessful. The study focuses on Merigi Ward, Kenya. Merigi Ward lies within the Mara River Basin (MRB), an ecologically and economically important river basin that has experienced extensive erosion problems. Increased agricultural activities driven by population growth in the area and changes in land use and land cover have degraded the landscape. SWC practices are greatly needed to mitigate the effects of erosion and conserve the natural resources within the MRB. Past studies suggest that social capital may increase the adoption of SWC practices (Knowler & Bradshaw, 2007; Nyangena, 2008). This study defines social capital as the groups and networks, trust and reciprocity, formal and informal rules, and information that informs the interactions among persons that lead to collective action. Twenty-five smallholder farmers within Merigi Ward were interviewed and the relationship between the adoption of SWC practices and social capital was explored through a qualitative analysis. Additionally, the MRB is home to the Mau Mara Serengeti Sustainable Water Initiative (MaMaSe). The MaMaSe initiative is a public private partnership (P3) with the goal to promote sustainable water use, economic growth, and environmental conservation within the basin. The effect the MaMaSe initiative had on the level of social capital amongst the study participants was also investigated. Findings suggest that social capital is an important aspect of SWC adoption in Merigi Ward. Groups and networks provide farmers with implementation support and information. Particularly, the local farmers’ cooperative provides farmers with implementation assistance and links (bridging capital) to experts at the MaMaSe initiative and the Ministry of Agriculture. Strong bonding capital works in the favor of this community allowing for high levels of trust. Thus, farmers collaborate to help one another implement practices and exchange information, materials, and experiences. In general, social capital has helped facilitate better environmental conservation awareness and the use of SWC practices. The largest impact the MaMaSe initiative had on the community’s social capital was expanding networks (particularly bridging and linking capital) and providing in depth information and guidelines for SWC practice use. The P3 has also helped the farmers integrate environmental conservation into their daily lives and has helped promote a shared understanding of the importance of conservation. The findings of this study will help environmental conservation professionals understand how to use social capital to strengthen natural resource management.

Federal and state programs have encouraged farmers in the Mississippi Delta region to implement best management practices (BMPs) to promote soil and water conservation. An onarm water storage (OFWS) system is a structural BMP that has several potential benefits, namely, the ability to capture and reuse rainwater and tailwater runoff, provide supplemental water for irrigation, reduce groundwater withdrawals, and improve downstream water quality. However, research demonstrating these benefits and providing new insights for downstream water quality improvement and nutrient-rich runoff management is limited. This dissertation addresses these research gaps by examining the ability of OFWS systems to mitigate off-site nutrient movement, analyzing the impacts of rainfall characteristics on the ability of OFWS systems to reduce NO3-N, studying the hydrological and physical-chemical characteristics of the volume of water exiting an OFWS system, and using the AnnAGNPS model to simulate runoff, nutrient, and sediment loads entering a tailwater recovery ditch and identify the critical contributing areas of non-point source pollution. Significant seasonal water quality improvements were observed at different locations throughout the OFWS system, and more importantly, highlight downstream nutrient reduction, particularly during winter and spring. However, recurrent and high intensity rainfall events can minimize the system’s effectiveness in reducing downstream nutrient pollution. The NO3-N concentrations observed in the ditch were strongly dependent on antecedent hydrological conditions with characteristics of next-to-last rainfall events playing a more influential role. The nutrient load was greater in winter, as this season produced the highest effluent discharge. Agricultural fields draining to the outlet of the system produced 7.1 kg NO3-N ha-1yr-1 and 2.3 kg TP ha-1yr-1 that was discharged with outflow events. AnnAGNPS simulations showed that larger fields coupled with poorly drained soils resulted in higher runoff, and this condition mirrored the annual rainfall patterns. High nitrogen loss was due to fertilization of corn and winter wheat. TP and sediment loss patterns were similar and influenced by the hydrological condition. This study can be used by stakeholders and agencies to better identify where these systems can be implemented to improve water quality and offer a supplemental source of surface water.

In the Philippines, about 38 per cent of the total population resides in rural areas where poverty remains a significant problem, especially in remote upland communities. Soil erosion has been a well-recognised problem in these areas, resulting in a number of impacts on the livelihoods of the rural poor. The development and dissemination of soil and water resource conservation (SWC) techniques has been seen as essential to achieving improved and lasting outcomes for the livelihoods of upland communities, with benefits spilling over beyond the farm boundary. The participatory development of a cost-effective means of controlling soil erosion, natural vegetative strips (NVS), has increased the adoptability of SWC for many upland households, enabling them to incorporate agroforestry and other practices in their farming systems. The Landcare Program in the southern Philippines has facilitated the adoption of these practices over the past decade. However, the impacts of adoption on the livelihoods of farming households, and the externalities that adoption may deliver, have remained speculative. This thesis first explores whether the adoption of Landcare practices has resulted in improved livelihood outcomes for upland farming families. Second, it analyses the potential for the piecemeal adoption of these measures to deliver tangible benefits at the watershed scale. Finally, using a benefit-cost approach, these outcomes are compared to the costs of the research and extension projects that have helped achieve them. The analysis is carried out in two upland municipalities, San Isidro and Pilar, in the Province of Bohol. Landcare households in Bohol dedicate a large percentage of household resources to the production of rainfed rice, which is the primary source of subsistence for adopting households while upland plots play a secondary role. The adoption of NVS alone did not typically generate significant economic benefits, yet created the stable platform on which more commercial investments were being made, especially through NVS enrichment. In San Isidro, the average annual income of adopters generated from upland activities was estimated to be more than double that of non-adopters, with a difference of over PHP 7,500. In Pilar, the net impacts of adoption were estimated to be only around PHP 3,700, given that many households had not enriched their NVS at the time of the survey. At the household level, the benefits of adoption are therefore contingent on the ability of the household to make further investments in their farming system, stemming from improved soil stability. Several case studies were used to describe the process of and constraints to farm development. The average impacts on incomes were found to be significant at the household level, with the potential to lift a household above the poverty threshold. Yet the marginal nature of the upland farming systems limits the aggregate on-site benefits. The expansion of activities into Pilar and Alicia was estimated to increase the net annual benefits, reaching PHP 2,270,000 (around AUD 60,000) per year by 2009. In absolute terms, this impact is still quite modest, but needs to be considered together with the off-site impacts and the costs of the Landcare Program. In Pilar, one of the clearest impacts of erosion due (in part) to upland cropping has been the sedimentation of the Malinao Dam. The significance and distribution of forgone revenue from irrigated rice as a result of sedimentation is largely determined by factors including the timing of rainfall events, the allocation of water between users, and the value of alternative land uses. Furthermore, the upland agricultural landscapes of Bohol are diverse and complex, with numerous sources and filters of sediment. A terrain analysis model was used to model the impact of incremental adoption of Landcare practices within the landscape. The results show that the spatial distribution of adoption is likely to be as important as the extent of adoption when it comes to delivering off-site benefits. The aggregate level of losses avoided as a result of Landcare was estimated to be around PHP 1,023,000 (AUD 26,900) over a 20-year period at a discount rate of five per cent. The results of the livelihood analysis and watershed modelling were combined in a benefit-cost analysis (BCA) and compared to the costs of the projects and other investments that have helped bring about the impacts. The results showed a positive but small NPV of around PHP 3.5 million, equating to around AUD 91,000, for the 20 year period simulated, using a 5 per cent discount rate. The sunk costs of the early phases of theLandcare Program, however, continue to provide the basis for ongoing livelihood projects that utilise farmer groups as a means of extension. Furthermore, when the expansion of the Program into other nearby municipalities can draw on the original research or learning hub, rapid adoption can be achieved at relatively low cost and provide a significant return on investment. Overall, the evidence presented indicates that the net economic impacts of the Landcare Program in Bohol are positive, even when taking into account the prior investment in research and training. The major beneficiaries of the Program are the individual households who adopt the conservation farming practices, with these benefits largely generated by the farming opportunities stemming from improved soil stability. The diversification and commercialisation of the upland component of the farming system has mainly utilised land and labour at low opportunity cost, though limited access to these resources prevents some households from proceeding along the identified farm development pathway. The focus on livelihood development does not deny the seriousness of downstream watershed problems arising from upland agriculture. However, it is agued that given the relativity of on-site and off-site benefits, the focus and primary justification of the Landcare Program should remain on improving the productivity and livelihoods of upland farmers through facilitated, farmer-led, group-based research and extension, with these downstream impacts being seen as side benefits of what is essentially a livelihoods program.