The Influence of Environmentalism on Support for Local Agriculture and Land Use Attitudes
Posted: 22 Feb 2011
Abstract
The relationship between environmentalism and land use is increasingly salient in many communities. In this paper we examine how attitudes toward the environment —- as measured by the New Ecological Paradigm (Duncan et al. 2007 —- and contact with farmers and agribusiness —- as measured by having family and friends who work in agriculture or by living near farms -— explain preferences over land use and support for local agriculture. We examine these questions using original survey data we collected in Santa Barbara County, California in early 2003 Santa Barbara is an excellent site for this study because of its urban-suburban-rural mix (about 40% of the land is in agriculture, but 90% of the population is urban or suburban), and because there have been many high profile conflicts over land use issues, which have often pitted urban/suburban residents against agricultural interests.
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