Benefits of flood control on Indian lands in British Columbia
A series of dyking projects on Indian lands on the Similkameen River, B.C. has been recently subjected to an economic evaluation. The objective of this study is to evaluate the procedures of the Agriculture and Rural Development Subsidiary Agreement in assessing the benefits of these projects and to...
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| Language: | English |
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2010
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/2429/23926 |
| Summary: | A series of dyking projects on Indian lands on the Similkameen River, B.C. has been recently subjected to an economic evaluation. The objective of this study is to evaluate the procedures of the Agriculture and Rural Development Subsidiary Agreement in assessing the benefits of these projects and to re-evaluate the cost-benefit results. The original estimation of benefits made use of data for yields and costs of production that are unrealistic. These data are revised and new estimates of benefits are made. A more serious issue however is the imputation of indirect benefits. Farmer response is critical for the achievement of indirect benefits. In this study, direct and indirect benefits are identified and computed based upon the net value of the agricultural production. Different yield scenarios and alternative land uses are incorporated into the analysis consistent with different hypotheses explaining production characteristics and probable farmer response in the area. Results show that most of the benefits are in the form of indirect benefits and that the cost of the protection exceeds the direct benefits from the point of view of society. If indirect benefits could be obtained from a complete development program to overcome institutional problems, the flood control may be economically feasible. === Land and Food Systems, Faculty of === Graduate |
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