ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF GRAZING BUYOUTS: A RANCH AND REGIONAL LEVEL ANALYSIS

• Sponsoring Institution: State Agricultural Experiment Station
• Project Status: COMPLETE
• Funding Source: STATE
• Reporting Frequency: Annual
• Accession No.: 0204289
• Project Start Date: Jul 1, 2005
• Project End Date: Jun 30, 2008
• Program Code: [(N/A)]- (N/A)

Recipient Organization
UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA
(N/A)
RENO,NV 89557

Performing Department
RESOURCE ECONOMICS

Non Technical Summary
a. Grazing permit buyouts and imapcts on represented ranched in study area. b. Impacts at the regional level from alternative range buyout scenarios. a. The project examines the ranch level and regional level impacts of proposed grazing buyout. b. Impacts to county governement fiscal balances will also be estimated for alternative buyouys.

Animal Health Component

(N/A)

Research Effort Categories

Basic

100%

Applied

(N/A)

Developmental

(N/A)

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
605	0120	3010	100%

Knowledge Area
605 - Natural Resource and Environmental Economics;

Subject Of Investigation
0120 - Land;

Field Of Science
3010 - Economics;

Keywords

economic impact

grazing

ranches

ranching

equilibrium (economics)

econometric models

public lands

land management

regional analysis

stochastic processes

environmental economics

federal government

government programs

buying

simulation models

alternatives

counties

cattle

sectors (economics)

accounting

Goals / Objectives
The primary objective of this proposal is to complete a ranch level and regional level analysis of potential economic impacts of proposed federal grazing buyout programs in Eureka and White Pine Counties. Specific objectives are: (1) To validate and update the hole-ranch modle for Eureka and White Pine Counties; (2) To estimate impacts of the proposed federal buyout program on a representative ranch in Eureka nad White Pine Counties; (3) To develop a dynamic Computable General equilibrium Model of Eurek and White Pine Counties; and (4) To derive the economic and distributional impacts of proposed federal grazing buyout programs on the economy of Eureka and White Pine Counties.

Project Methods
To achieve objectives outlined above, the following procedures: (1) To achieve objective 1, a ranch level whole ranch level simulation modle for 350 and 700 head cattle operations will be developed; (2) To achieve objective 2, whole ranch level simulation models for 350 and 700 head range cattle operations will be run for alternative buyouts. Impacts on ranch level bankruptcy and financial survivability will be calculated; (3) To achieve objective 3, a Computable General equilibrium Model for Eureka and White Pine Counties will be develooped. Also labor and capital flows will be developed so a dynamic analysis can be completed; and (4) To achieve objective 4, regiobal CGE model will be run for alternative buyout policies to derive the welfare imapcts at the sub-county, county, and state level.

Progress 07/01/05 to 06/30/08

Outputs
OUTPUTS: A linear programming Social Accounting model was developed to derive the ranch level and regional impacts of a possible buyout of grazing allotments. PARTICIPANTS: Participants in this research were county extension educators and Bureau of Land Management personnel. Also a research graduate student worked on this project. TARGET AUDIENCES: The target audiences are researchers in public land management and regional economics. Also target audiences are federal public land managers and Nevada public interested in public land issues. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Not relevant to this project.

Impacts
This project provide to public land manangers a tool for estimating potential ranch level, regional level, and distributional impacts of alternative public land management policies such as a buy out.

Publications

• Harris, T. R. (2008). Development and Initial Application of an Integrated Linear Programming/Social Accounting Model: Rangeland Livestock Application (2nd ed., vol. 40, pp. 727-728). Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics.

Progress 01/01/07 to 12/31/07

Outputs
OUTPUTS: This research investigated the development of an integrated ranch level linear programming model with a County-Wide Social Accounting Matrix model. PARTICIPANTS: Thomas R. Harris was the principal investigator on this project. Jonathan Alevy developed GAMS programs for the analysis. TARGET AUDIENCES: Target audience for this analysis is regional economist, ranch economists, County Commissioners, and public land managers.

Impacts
This model was first to develop an integrated ranch level linear programming model and a county-wide Social accounting Matrix model.

Publications

• Alevy, J. E., E. Fadali, T. R. Harris, T. R. North American Regional Science Association Annual Meetings, "Analysis of Regional Impacts of Rangeland Fires in Elko County", Both Invited and Accepted, North American Regional Science Association, Savannah, Georgia. November 8, 2007.

Progress 01/01/06 to 12/31/06

Outputs
Collected data and revised input-output model to more accurately derive impacts of the range cattle sector for Elko County. Also developed procedures for taking output of a ranch level linear programming model into an input-output model to derive county-wide impacts. Currently developing a linear programming/Social Accounting Model to incorporate a ranch level linear programming model and regional social accounting model. Also adding the impacts of the proposed buy-out program to the ranch level and regional Social Accounting Model to derive ranch level and county level results.

Impacts
The Elko County ranch level linear programming model and Elko County input-output model have been used to derive for the Elko County Commissioners potential impacts of range cattle grazing on the Elko County economy. With the combined linear programming/Social Accounting Model, the impacts of the proposed buy-out program will be easily derived.

Publications

• Fadali, Elizabeth and Thomas R. Harris. Estimated Economic Impacts of the Cattle Ranching and Farming Sector on the Elko County Economy. University Center Technical Bulletin, University of Nevada, Reno, UCED 2005/06-26.
• Alevy, Jonathan, Fadali, Elizabeth, Harris, Thomas R. Analysis of Impacts of Public Land Grazing on the Elko County Economy and Mountain City Management Area: Economic Impacts of Federal Grazing in Elko County. University Center Technical Bulletin, University of Nevada, Reno, UCED 2006/07-03.

Progress 01/01/05 to 12/31/05

Outputs
Data has been collected for a 350 and 700 haed cattle operation in Eureka, Nevada. Also stochastic price and yield data has been collected for risk analysis. Alterbnative forms of the buyout program are being collected as input to the linear programming and simulation model.

Impacts
Results will provide informatipon as to the trade-offs between buy-outs and financial feasibility of ranches. It will also provide information as to the level of economic activity the local ranch sector will be before and after a proposed buy-out program.

Publications

• No publications reported this period