The objective of this project is to gather farm-level time-series data in Ouro Preto do Oeste, Rondonia, Brazil. These data will be used to investigate the land-use choices of small-scale farmers in the Brazilian Amazon and to assess how these choices impact tropical deforestation in the region. This project is designed to be the second stage of in situ data collection initiated in September 1996. During the first stage 196 farmers were interviewed. The survey questions were designed to assess past and current government policy concerning agricultural practices in the Amazon as well as to investigate individual land-use decisions in Rondonia and their implications on deforestation. Further, the survey sought to determine if sustainable farming techniques were adopted, which farmers adopted them, and the determinants of adoption. In the second stage of the project, a panel data set will be initiated through continuing interviews with these same Rondonia farmers. The project is designed to examine how deforestation is influenced by farmers who live in the region and the impact of choosing between sustainable and nonsustainable agricultural techniques.
It is necessary to collect time-series panel data to properly examine deforestation trends comprehensively and to evaluate current and future policy options. This research is important and unique because microeconomic time-series panel data are rarely found in the literature concerning developing countries, especially those data collected at individual households. The collection and analysis of these data will therefore make a considerable contribution to the economic and environmental literature on deforestation (and related environmental issues) that face developing nations and may serve to guide future policy adoption in these tropical environments.
The major source of deforestation in Rondonia, Brazil is the use of slash-and-burn agriculture by small-scale farmers. It is well documented that the adoption of sustainable methods of agriculture can reduce deforestation drastically if utilized by a majority of the farmers. Unfortunately, results from the first stage of the analysis found that only a few farmers used sustainable agriculture in 1996-1997 in Ouro Preto do Oeste (as well as many other settlements in the Brazilian Amazon). However, the first stage of the analysis also indicated that, it is expected that more farmers are likely to adopt sustainable agriculture as the benefits of the farming method are shown. Imperfect information appeared to be one of the main deterrents to the adoption of sustainable agriculture in Ouro Preto do Oeste. On the positive side, local farmer organizations and cooperatives were found to play an important role in the decision to adopt sustainable techniques. These results suggest that national and regional policies, that provide information about sustainable agriculture and support local farm organizations, can greatly increase the diffusion of sustainable agriculture in Ouro Preto do Oeste and similar settlements in the Amazon. To examine the continued adoption of sustainable agriculture and the relation between farming techniques and deforestation over time, further data are required. Time-series panel data will provide a framework to trace national and regional policies impacting farmers' land-use decisions and therefore offer insight into the rate of and reasons for deforestation in this region.
