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Abstract
A farm level mathematical programming model and its application to the analysis of conservation alternatives are introduced. Farm level data bases are being developed for representative situations in each of the eleven most erosive areas of the United States. Incentive schemes included in the model are those that may be used in implementing provisions of the Agriculture and Food Act of 1981 and in programs designed out of the Resources Conservation Act studies and report. These incentives involve tax credits, cross-compliance proposals, and others. The methodology has been applied to a Nebraska farm with the results of preliminary analyses described in this report. These results demonstrate the potential of this modeling approach for dealing with policy issues in the conservation and commodity program areas. The approach appears particularly useful since it allows comparative analyses of representative farm situations across a variety of geographic areas operating under a diversity of erosion conditions.