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Dissertation_Pranay Ranjan.pdf (2.87 MB)

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Institutions, Property Rights, and Innovations in Agricultural Drainage: Insights from the Western Lake Erie Basin of Ohio

Ranjan, Pranay, Ranjan
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1471221739

Abstract Details

2016, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, Environment and Natural Resources.
Agricultural drainage is an important practice in the Western Lake Erie Basin of Ohio. Both scholars and practitioners recognize the importance of drainage, and acknowledge its implications beyond merely increasing agricultural productivity, but also as a vital instrument in adapting to climate change and achieving sustainable development. Paradoxically, drainage seems to have become a `forgotten factor’ in water discourse, with scholars arguing that institutions for managing agricultural drainage are lacking. The agricultural landscape in Ohio, however, presents over 150 years of drainage management institutions, providing a good opportunity to examine them in light of theory and practice. My investigation of agricultural drainage draws upon two primary bodies of theory: collective action and diffusion of innovations. First, I employ a case study approach to examine drainage management institutions from the perspective of a public-goods dilemma, through the analytical lens of four variables important for collective action: group size, capability to choose to enter or exit from a group, heterogeneity in benefits and costs, and security of contributions. Analysis indicates that the theoretically expected effects of these variables on collective action are influenced by interactive effects both from the drainage management institution and from other factors. Second, using a case study approach, I examine drainage management institutions from the perspective of resource asymmetry and property rights in collective action, through the analytical lens of property rights of access, withdrawal, management, exclusion and alienation. Document analysis and interviews with 16 government agents leads to the proposition of a property-rights analytical scheme to suit the asymmetry of incentives in agricultural drainage systems. Analysis of interviews and landowner surveys indicates that property rights in the two different institutional mechanisms (mutual agreement and county petition) provide different incentives to cooperate, and that components of the property rights interact to encourage or discourage collective action. Third, I employ a mixed methods research approach to examine change agents’ perceptions of the attributes of two-stage drainage ditches, an innovative agricultural drainage ditch design, and examine what affects their willingness to promote it. Analysis of interviews with change agents in 17 counties indicates that their perceptions of environmental benefits drives their willingness to promote two-stage ditches. Analysis of landowner surveys indicates that landowners’ perceptions of environmental benefits does not drive their willingness to adopt two-stage ditches. Based on the findings in my dissertation, I believe that agricultural drainage institutions in Western Lake Erie Basin of Ohio provide a theoretically rich, but theoretically untested ground for scholars not only studying common-pool resource institutions, but more broadly in advancing understanding of social dilemmas, which are pervasive in our daily lives. Theoretically, this study suggests that a key government role may be to supply an alternative institution for stakeholders to generate collective action. Moreover, the finding that change agents’ perceptions of environmental benefits drives their willingness to promote a conservation practice is an encouraging sign, however, there is still a long way to go if we are to understand how to best encourage change agents to promote adoption of agricultural conservation practices.
Tomas Koontz, Dr. (Advisor)
Jeremy Brooks, Dr. (Advisor)
Jeremy Bruskotter, Dr. (Committee Member)
277 p.
Agriculture; Environmental Studies; Water Resource Management

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Ranjan, Ranjan, P. (2016). Institutions, Property Rights, and Innovations in Agricultural Drainage: Insights from the Western Lake Erie Basin of Ohio [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1471221739

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Ranjan, Ranjan, Pranay. Institutions, Property Rights, and Innovations in Agricultural Drainage: Insights from the Western Lake Erie Basin of Ohio. 2016. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1471221739.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Ranjan, Ranjan, Pranay. "Institutions, Property Rights, and Innovations in Agricultural Drainage: Insights from the Western Lake Erie Basin of Ohio." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1471221739

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1471221739
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This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.