THE IMPACT OF WATER PRICES ON FARMERS'IRRIGATION WATER INPUT-BASED ON THE PERSPECTIVE OF FOCTOR SUBSTUTION
This study aims to investigate the impact of water price on farmers'irrigation water application and how farmers save water by calculating the elasticity of substitution between irrigation water and different production factors.With a survey data set of 323 farmer plots collected in Xinjiang,we first examined the effects of water price on irrigation frequency and irrigation intensity,defined as water application per mu.We then analyzed how water price affect the application of other production factors.Based on the estimation results above,the elasticities of substitution between irrigation and two other inputs,i.e.,seed and capillary,were calculated respectively.The results were listed as follows.(1)When water price went up,farmers reduced irrigation intensity and irrigation frequency to save water.(2)They also increased the application of capillary in response to the price change.In contrast,we found little evidence of changes in their seeding behaviors,implying limited substitution between irrigation and seeds.The degree of substitution between irrigation and capillary also differed by crop:the relationship was stronger for cotton but weaker for corn.In summary,the results indicate that increasing water price helps to promote agricultural water saving and encourages farmers to invest in irrigation infrastructure.The application of other production factors also increases with water price,but the magnitude of the increase depends their substitutability with irrigation.
water priceirrigation waterelement price elasticityseedcapillary
NETL
NSTL
万方数据
