
Agriculture has been criticized for its contribution to greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), but there has not been sufficient research investigating how agriculture can be beneficial in a future with climate change. One beneficial solution is biofuel cultivation, which according to the 2009 Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS2) would significantly reduce GHG emissions (White and Selfa, 2013). As one of the most productive agricultural states, Kansas was chosen by White and Selfa as a valuable case study to investigate factors that influence the farmer decision-making process regarding innovations. Prior to the case study, White and Selfa conducted a literature review on previous studies done nationally and internationally. From the data they developed a conceptual model of key elements involved in farmer decisions. With this model in mind White and Selfa conducted their own study in Kansas by interviewing 16 key informants with expertise in agriculture and environmental issues and 17 farmers. The study concluded that farmers were influential in adopting a new idea such as biofuel cultivation by local environmental conditions, communication through existing social relations, the assurance of farmers continual independence, a contribution to a greater societal good, and whether change was more economically advantageous than previous practices. –Caroline Vurlumis
White, S., Selfa, T., 2013. Shifting Lands: Exploring Kansas Farmers Decision-Making in an Era of Climate Change and Biofuels Production. Environmental Management 51.2, 379-391
In their analysis, White and Selva found many similarities with their existing conceptual model. When making a decision, farmers expressed concerns with the natural environment. They wanted to assure a continual healthy environmental but in general their perception of environment health was fairly positive. In addition, local influences and local conflict over federal policy, the information available to them, and whether a new practice was profitable and more advantageous than previous practices were very important components in their decision-making process. Any efforts to incentivize and subsidize new practices through policy would most likely clash with farmer values. In this study, the authors found out that climate change was not a salient concern amongst Kansas farmers. They were much more concerned with annual weather patterns rather than long term climate models. Weather is already so extreme in Kansas that farmers do not associate changing weather with climate change. There is ongoing research on this project in Kansas which will provide more data on the ideas in this study. The question of whether Kansas will be a beneficial biofuels generator is still unknown. Continued research is needed at the local, state and national level in order to seriously consider implementing biofuel cultivation