HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Johnson, J. B. Articles by Buxton, B. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Johnson, J. B. Articles by Buxton, B.

An Economic Appraisal of Alternative Dairy Waste Management Systems Designed for Pollution Control

ABSTRACT

Introduction

Three important natural resources, water, land, and air, have been used for the dilution, deposit, and diffusion of waste outputs associated with the production and consumption activities of our society. Degradation of these resources is becoming more evident with an expanding population and increasing technological development. Controls external to the market system have been developed or are proposed to provide for a more socially desirable balance between environmental degradation and productive activities. The cost of producing milk will be affected by such nonmarket controls.

The economic impact of implementing legal environmental controls on dairy operations is dependent to a large extent upon presently used dairy production and manure handling systems and practices. Although some pollution problems are unique to each dairy farm, such factors as herd size, housing facilities with covered or uncovered lots, and waste disposal methods are important for estimating the magnitude of the dairy waste pollution problem and how individual producers will be affected by existing and proposed legal pollution controls (18, 23).

¹ J. B. Johnson and Boyd Buxton are Agricultural Economists, Farm Production Economics Division, Economic Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, at Michigan State University and University of Minnesota, respectively; C. Raymond Hoglund is Professor of Agricultural Economics, Michigan State University.