scholarly journals Willingness to Pay for a Specialty Blend Compost Product Developed from Brown Seaweed Harvested from Coastal Regions in Texas

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 337-345
Author(s):  
Tina M. Waliczek ◽  
Nicole C. Wagner ◽  
Selin Guney
Keyword(s):  
Willingness To Pay ◽  
Brown Seaweed ◽  
Local Economy ◽  
South Texas ◽  
Soil Productivity ◽  
Coastal Regions ◽  
Biological Decomposition ◽  
Market Test ◽  
Water Holding ◽  
Demographic Responses

Composting is the biological decomposition of organic materials, such as plant tissue, food scraps, paper, animal fodder, and wood chips. The end-product, compost, is a beneficial soil amendment because it can contain a diversity of beneficial microorganisms, has high nutrient and water-holding capacities, can increase total soil porosity, and contains essential plant nutrients that improve soil productivity. Coastal regions of the Gulf of Mexico, as well as the Atlantic and European shorelines, have witnessed a proliferation of brown seaweed (Sargassum sp.). When piled on beaches, tourism appeal is reduced, threatening the local economy. When amassed offshore, thick brown seaweed mats can hinder fishing. Excessive decomposition rates can lead to eutrophication, which threatens coastal areas economically and environmentally. Despite these problems, seaweed may be considered a valuable compost ingredient. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to conduct a market test to determine the potential value of a seaweed-incorporated compost to consumers in Texas and to identify attributes of likely consumers. A marketing survey was developed and distributed to gardeners in the central and south Texas regions. Contingent valuation questions measured participants’ willingness to pay for the seaweed compost products. Participants were able to see, smell, and touch a sample of the compost while completing the survey. Despite 92% of respondents ranking themselves as inexperienced in compost behavior, results indicated a potential for a specialty, competitively priced seaweed-incorporated compost to be introduced to the market. Respondents were most willing to pay $4.00/ft3 to $5.00/ft3 for seaweed-incorporated compost. Additionally, participants who responded positively to buying local, buying compost in the past, having positive environmental attitudes, and buying American were more likely to pay more for the seaweed-incorporated compost. There was not an obvious pattern between willingness to pay for seaweed-incorporated compost and demographic responses.

Modelling perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) persistence and productivity for the Upper North Island under current and future climate

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre Beukes ◽  
Andrea Babylon ◽  
Wendy Griffiths ◽  
Simon Woodward ◽  
Electra Kalaugher ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Perennial Ryegrass ◽  
Ground Cover ◽  
Climate Data ◽  
Coastal Regions ◽  
Far North ◽  
Future Performance ◽  
Soil Water Holding Capacity ◽  
The Town ◽  
Water Holding

The objective of this study was to predict the future performance of perennial ryegrass in the Upper North Island, New Zealand. The Basic Grassland model, BASGRA, was used with historic, current and future daily climate data as input, and soil water holding capacity, to predict changes in perennial ryegrass performance in space and time. The study focussed on land of ≤7° slope north of the town of Tokoroa and considered two potential warming pathways to the end of the 21st century. Persistence was defined as the time in years for the ryegrass sward to decline to 50% ground cover. The results for the two climate pathways were largely consistent with each other. Persistence should remain in the medium category (2.5-3.4 years, 10-12 t DM/ha) for the rest of this century for Bay of Islands, Whangarei, South Waikato/Tokoroa, and Rotorua. Persistence is predicted to change from medium to predominantly low (0-2.4 years, <10 t DM/ha) for Far North, Dargaville, DairyFlat/Rodney, Waiuku/Pukekohe and northern and central parts of Waikato. Coastal regions of Bay of Plenty were predicted to be poorly suited to perennial ryegrass and to remain so into the rest of the century. Large parts of the Upper North Island that are currently borderline for perennial ryegrass are predicted to become unsuitable for the species.

Living by the Sea: Farming and Fishing in Sweden from the Late Eighteenth to the Early Twentieth Century

1993 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 369-393 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Rogers ◽  
Lars-Göran Tedebrand
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Family Structure ◽  
Household Size ◽  
Local Economy ◽  
Property Management ◽  
Coastal Regions ◽  
Family Structures ◽  
Family Pattern ◽  
Late Eighteenth ◽  
Key Factor

Using the northwestern European household and family pattern as a backdrop, household and family structures were studied in four coastal regions in Sweden during the nineteenth century. Each area represented a variant of a maritime ecotype. Mean household size and a simple family structure were found in three areas, although economic circumstances differed significantly. True fishermen lived in Gullholmen, fishermen-farmers in Hasslö, and farmer-fishermen in Tynderö. In Hållnäs average household size was relatively small, although complex family structures were common. A diversified local economy of which fishing was only one component gave rise to this pattern. The involvement of the state in restricting access to resources and/ or restricting property management was found to be a key factor in explaining why some areas developed similar patterns despite varying economies.

scholarly journals Morpho-physical Properties of Soils of Kanamadi South Sub-watershed of Karnataka

2021 ◽  
pp. 12-25
Author(s):  
Ashay D. Souza ◽  
P. L. Patil
Keyword(s):  
Physical Properties ◽  
Bulk Density ◽  
Water Conservation ◽  
Clay Content ◽  
Field Capacity ◽  
Soil Survey ◽  
Soil Productivity ◽  
Maximum Water ◽  
Irs P6 Liss Iv ◽  
Water Holding

An investigation was carried out to determine the morpho-physical status of soils of Kanamadi South sub- watershed in Karnataka state of India. A detailed soil survey of Kanamadi South sub watershed was carried out using IRS P6 LISS-IV image and a total of ten pedon location  which were well distributed in Kanamadi South sub-watershed was selected. The soils were shallow to deep. Colour of pedons varied from 10 YR 2/1 (black) to 10 YR 4/3 (brown). Soil texture varied from clay to clay loam, having loose to moderately subangular to angular blocky in structure with few fine roots distributed in surface horizons. Generally, the clay content increased with depth. Consistency of soil pedons ranged from slightly hard to hard when dry, friable to firm when moist, slightly sticky to very sticky and slightly plastic to very plastic when wet. The maximum water holding capacity of soil horizons ranged from 59.65 to 79.15 per cent and generally increased down the depth. The bulk density of pedons varied from 1.17 to 1.37 Mg m-3. In general, bulk density varied with depth with lowest bulk density at surface and highest recorded in sub surface depths. The field capacity varied from 28.21% to 41.32 %.The morphological and physical properties study in area helps for resource inventorization for successful watershed planning for soil and water conservation to enhance the potential of fertility of soils and major fertility enhancement to increase the soil productivity.

scholarly journals Branding Awareness and Willingness-to-pay Associated with the Texas Superstar™ and Earth-Kind™ Brands in Texas

HortScience ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 45 (8) ◽  
pp. 1226-1231 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alba J. Collart ◽  
Marco A. Palma ◽  
Charles R. Hall
Keyword(s):  
Willingness To Pay ◽  
Ornamental Plants ◽  
Discrete Choice Models ◽  
South Texas ◽  
Annual Growth ◽  
Brand Awareness ◽  
Green Industry ◽  
Economic Output ◽  
Price Premiums ◽  
Level Of Satisfaction

The environmental horticulture industry, also known as the Green Industry, is the second most important sector in the U.S. agricultural economy in terms of economic output and one of the fastest growing segments of agriculture; however, it has shifted from an average annual growth of 13.6% in the 1970s to an annual growth of less than 3% in the 2000s, which suggests the industry is facing a maturing marketplace. As an effort to help the industry stimulate demand, Texas A&M AgriLife developed the Texas Superstar™ and Earth-Kind™ brands. The aims of these plant promotion programs are to increase the demand for selected horticultural products, raise awareness among consumers of Texas-grown plant material, promote environmental responsibility, and increase producers' profitability by providing branding price premiums. Despite the considerable investments on research and marketing done thus far, no research has investigated the effectiveness of these branding efforts in terms of consumer behavior. This article evaluates brand awareness and willingness-to-pay for these two brands in Texas. The discrete choice models used were the Logit and Probit models on brand awareness and the Tobit model on the conditional willingness-to-pay. Results from this study show that consumer awareness of Texas Superstar™ and Earth-Kind™ in Texas is low, but the level of satisfaction among consumers is high. Furthermore, profiles of the consumers' behavioral and demographic characteristics that are more likely to influence brand awareness and willingness-to-pay were identified. The findings suggest that consumers who shop weekly or monthly for ornamental plants are more likely to be aware of programs such as Texas Superstar™ and Earth-Kind™. Also, those who live in South Texas were more likely to exhibit awareness of Earth-Kind™. Consumers who shopped for self-consumption purposes were willing to pay a discounted price for Texas Superstar™ and Earth-Kind™ plants compared with unbranded plants and those who were previously aware of the brands were willing to pay more. The two brands were effective in differentiating their products and thus creating price premiums. It was estimated that the willingness-to-pay for Earth-Kind™ and Texas Superstar™ for the average respondent was 10% higher than the willingness-to-pay for an unbranded plant.

Subjective Time Preference and Willingness to Pay for an Energy-Saving Durable Good

2001 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 133-141 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerrit Antonides ◽  
Sophia R. Wunderink
Keyword(s):  
Willingness To Pay ◽  
Energy Saving ◽  
Subjective Time ◽  
Durable Good ◽  
Discount Function ◽  
Hyperbolic Discount ◽  
The One ◽  
Two Parameter ◽  
Difference Effect ◽  
Better Than

Summary: Different shapes of individual subjective discount functions were compared using real measures of willingness to accept future monetary outcomes in an experiment. The two-parameter hyperbolic discount function described the data better than three alternative one-parameter discount functions. However, the hyperbolic discount functions did not explain the common difference effect better than the classical discount function. Discount functions were also estimated from survey data of Dutch households who reported their willingness to postpone positive and negative amounts. Future positive amounts were discounted more than future negative amounts and smaller amounts were discounted more than larger amounts. Furthermore, younger people discounted more than older people. Finally, discount functions were used in explaining consumers' willingness to pay for an energy-saving durable good. In this case, the two-parameter discount model could not be estimated and the one-parameter models did not differ significantly in explaining the data.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document