Three essays on energy inputs, technology, and conservation policy in irrigated agricultural production

Abstract

This dissertation explores the role of energy inputs, irrigation technology, and conservation policy in irrigated agricultural production. In the first chapter, I utilize empirical and simulation modeling to understand the impact of non-linear energy pricing on groundwater use decisions in the Republican River Basin of Colorado. The second chapter empirically investigates how peer effects and resource availability influence a producer's choice to adopt a resource-conserving irrigation technology using data from the Trifa Plain of Morocco. The third chapter develops a hydroeconomic model which pairs groundwater demand with a physical model of resource dynamics to quantify how a groundwater conservation policy implemented within a subsection of the Republican River Basin of Colorado creates resource and input market spillovers.