Productivity and Efficiency

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, water efficiency is the smart use of our water resources through water-saving technologies and simple steps. Using water efficiently will help ensure reliable water supplies today and for future generations. Topics addressed in this theme provide insights, lessons, and guidance on how diverse stakeholders are working to improve water management and reduce water use.

Productivity and Efficiency Resources

Estimating Water Quality Benefits: Theoretical and Methodological Issues

Published: 
September 1, 1992
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Knowledge of the benefits and costs to water users is required for a complete assessment of policies to create incentives for water quality improving changes in agricultural production. A number of benefit estimation methods are required to handle the varying nature of water quality effects. This...Read more

Improving Air and Water Quality Can Be Two Sides of the Same Coin

Published: 
September 1, 2005
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Air quality policies have traditionally focused on urban areas and industrial emissions. Extending these laws to cover agriculture would require an understanding of how farmers respond to different policy incentives. Farmers have many choices in deciding on what to produce and the production...Read more

Agricultural Adaptation to a Changing Climate: Economic and Environmental Implications Vary by U.S. Region

Published: 
July 1, 2012
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Agricultural production has always been affected by variability in weather, and U.S. farmers have adopted production practices and strategies appropriate to their local climate. Adaptive behaviors will allow producers to mitigate costs of climate change and even to capitalize on new opportunities...Read more

Agricultural Resource Management Survey - Phase III

Published: 
November 1, 2012
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Data collected in the Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS) is the U.S. Department of Agriculture's primary source of information on agricultural resource use and costs, farm sector financial conditions, and farm household finances. The ARMS is the only source of information available...Read more
Regional focus: 
United States

Conservation-Compatible Practices and Programs

Published: 
February 1, 2006
U.S. Department of Agriculture
In recent years, the Federal Government has increased its emphasis on conservation programs that reward good stewardship on working farmland. This report examines the business, operator, and household characteristics of farms that have adopted certain conservation-compatible practices, with and...Read more

Water Use and Pricing in Agriculture

Published: 
July 1, 2006
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Irrigated agriculture remains the dominant use of freshwater in the United States, although the share of water consumed by irrigation is declining. National irrigated cropland area has expanded by one-third since 1969, while irrigation water application rates have declined by about 15 percent...Read more

Managing Manure To Improve Air and Water Quality

Published: 
September 1, 2005
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Animal waste from confined animal feeding operations is a potential source of air and water quality degradation from evaporation of gases, runoff to surface water, and leaching to ground water. This report assesses the potential economic and environmental tradeoffs between water quality policies...Read more

Irrigation and Water Use - Briefing Room

Published: 
November 22, 2004
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Agriculture is a major user of ground and surface water in the United States, accounting for 80 percent of the Nation's consumptive water use and over 90 percent in many Western States. This ERS research program investigates water allocation, water conservation, and water management issues...Read more

Agricultural Resources and Environmental Indicators

Published: 
July 1, 2006
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Agricultural Resources and Environmental Indicators, 2006 describes trends in resources used in and affected by agricultural production (including natural, produced, and management resources), as well as the economic conditions and policies that influence agricultural resource use and its...Read more

Water Quality Impacts of Agriculture

Published: 
July 21, 2006
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Agricultural production releases residuals, like sediment and pesticides, that may degrade the quality of water resources and impose costs on water users. Agriculture is the leading source of impairments in the Nation's rivers and lakes and a major source of impairments to estuaries. However,...Read more
Regional focus: 
United States

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