Sustaining Open Space Benefits in the Northeast: An Evaluation of the Conservation Reserve Program

A conceptual model is developed to analyze agricultural landownersʹ decisions to continue agricultural use, participate in conservation programs, or sell land. The model serves as the framework for an econometric study of participation in the Conservation Reserve Program by Northeastern landowners. Results identify significant differences in enrollment between metropolitan and nonmetropolitan counties in the region, and indicate that the Conservation Reserve Program is relatively unimportant to agricultural landowners in metropolitan counties. Also, the results indicate that if open space benefits are desired in metropolitan counties, alternative policies (e.g., purchase of development rights, zoning legislation) may be required.