Life Sciences Commons^™

Selected Costs And Benefits Of Protecting Vital Wildlife Habitats While Producing Biofuel, Benjamin Lewis Totty

Masters Theses

The objective of this study is to estimate selected costs and benefits of meeting the 2022 biofuel production mandates using switchgrass as the feedstock. This study involves the simulation of three scenarios to evaluate the cost of protecting and promoting biodiversity while producing switchgrass for biofuel. Two models are used in this study. The first, the Biofuels Facility Location Analysis Modeling Endeavor (BioFLAME), was developed at the University of Tennessee to study biorefinery location, feed stock source areas and costs associated with biofuel production. The second model was developed by the Nature Conservancy as part of Tennessee’s State Wildlife Action …

The Influence Of Organically Managed High Tunnel And Open Field Production Systems On Strawberry (Fragaria X Ananassa) Quality And Yield, Tomato (Solanum Lycopersicum) Yield, And Evaluation Of Plastic Mulch Alternatives, Jeffrey Thomas Martin

Masters Theses

High tunnels extend the production season, and increase fruit quality, yield and crop marketability of high-value crops, but have been underutilized in the Southeast. In this study, organically managed variety trials of two high-value crops, strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa) and tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), were conducted in high tunnel (HT) and open field (OF) production systems to compare yield and quality. Furthermore, specialty crops are commonly grown on black plastic mulch to increase earliness of harvest, fruit quality and yield. However, plastic disposal is time consuming and costly. Degradable mulches reduce removal costs, lessen environmental impacts, and …

Determinants Of Liberian Farmgate Cocoa Prices, Alicia English

Masters Theses

In an effort to increase growth, employment and diversify farmer portfolios and exports in Liberia, the government is currently focused on opportunities in smallholder tree crops. Smallholder cocoa has the potential to benefit a wide population of farmers by increasing income opportunities and adding to overall household food security. However, the government must contend with a chaotic buyer driven marketplace with limited access to financial and physical capital and relatively little incentive to enhance production capacity and ensure quality. This research describes the characteristics of Liberian cocoa producing and marketing households in order to give context to smallholder marketing decisions …

Potential Impacts Of Meeting Renewable Portfolio And Fuel Standards On The Economy Of Tennessee, Kateryna Goychuk

Masters Theses

The primary objective of this study was to estimate how adopting a Renewable Portfolio (RPS) and Renewable Fuel Standards (RFS) would impact the economy of the State of Tennessee. This was accomplished by 1) developing representative state level RPS and RFS scenarios, 2) projecting Tennessee’s renewable energy capacity requirements under these scenarios, 3) identifying representative technologies and associated costs for renewable energy generation, and 4) evaluating decreases in economic activity in non-renewable technologies, such as coal or petroleum, in the state. The economic (output, employment, value-added) impacts were obtained using the IMPLAN, input-output model. Results showed that under the assumptions …

Evaluation Of Socioeconomic Characteristics Of Farmers Who Choose To Adopt A New Type Of Cropand Factors That Influence The Decision To Adopt Switchgrass For Energy Production, Pamela C. Ellis

Masters Theses

Evaluating farmers’ perceptions and obtaining feedback about the adoption of a new crop is necessary for improving the efficiency of research, technology exchange, and information flow to policymakers. New technology has created new uses for non- traditional crops (such as switchgrass) as a sustainable source of energy. With new technology utilizing non-traditional crop uses, it is important to discern and understand the determinants of farmers’ behavior and attitudes toward new crop adoption rather than new technology adoption. Farmers must analyze financial and social costs and benefits of new crops, farming practices, and economic activities. Better understanding of the factors farmers …

Tennessee's Kenaf Market Potential As A Feedstock In The Production Of Paper, Gerry Solano Avila

Masters Theses

The goal of this study was to assess the production feasibility and market potential of using kenaf as a feedstock for paper production in Tennessee. This thesis 1) evaluates the potential for growing this crop in Tennessee by comparing the cost and return and the break-even price for kenaf with soybean, corn, cotton and wheat, 2) identifies potential suitable production areas in the state of Tennessee, 3) analyzes the marketing opportunities that could have developed for kenaf at a price that growers would be willing to produce it, 4) identifies potential kenaf marketing structure and marketing channels, and 5) identifies …

The Viability Of The Economy Of Oromia: A Point Of Departure, Harwood David Schaffer

Masters Theses

The Oromo, an oppressed, colonized, ethno-national group within Ethiopia, are engaged in a struggle to achieve full political and economic participation within a national entity. Given an undernourishment rate approaching 50 percent and an agriculture which provides a means of livelihood for 80 percent of the labor force, any future leadership will have to address the interrelated issues of agriculture and economy. An examination of production numbers indicates that an independent Oromia would not be at an agricultural disadvantage when compared with remaining as a participating entity within the present boundaries of Ethiopia.

Policies directed toward overcoming undernutrition cannot be …

An Examination Of Relationships Between Direct Government Payments In Agriculture And Farm Vulnerability In Iowa And Tennessee, Brad Christopher Robbins

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study is to examine farms’ dependence on federal United States agricultural subsidies in Iowa and Tennessee. As subsidies and their distribution are continually debated, this research considers the effects on farm enterprises if subsidies had not been distributed in 1996, 2000, and 2003. This is achieved by first developing a classification system for farm enterprises in the two states. The classification system that is used segregates farms into modal groups based on land ownership arrangement and solvency class. Quartiles are used to differentiate land ownership arrangement (i.e. the percentage of operated land owned.) Four solvency classes …

Measuring Effects Of Housing Densities On Property Values Using Locally Weighted Regression, Alexander Webber Young

Masters Theses

The objective of this study is to determine spatial differences in the marginal values of housing density and their implications for housing development projects. In order to achieve this objective, the values households place on neighborhood density were measured using locally weighted regression in a hedonic housing-price framework. The neighborhood housing density coefficient in the global model confirms the positive and significant value of lower neighborhood density. The spatial distribution of the housing density marginal effects from the local model shows the variation of site-specific values of neighborhood housing density. The marginal effects of lower neighborhood density gradually increase closer …

Dietary Inequality Among The Elderly In The United States: Decomposing Inequality In The Healthy Eating Index, Yuling Lin

Masters Theses

This study uses the concentration index methodology to investigate the inequality in nutritional intake among American elderly. The concentration index provides a summary measure of socioeconomic inequality of the variables in question. Its decomposition enables comparisons across individuals with different characteristics such as gender, age, households income levels, and government program participation. Data are drawn from the 1994-96 Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals collected by the U.S Department of Agriculture. Analysis is carried out for the Health Eating Index and one of its components, namely intake of fruits. Results suggest that high education level, receiving the food stamps, …

Perceived Importance Of Precision Farming Technologies In Improving The Efficiency Of Phosphorus, Potassium, And Nitrogen In Southeastern Cotton Production, John Colby Torbett

Masters Theses

Understanding the factors that influence cotton farmers; perceptions about the importance of precision farming (PF) technologies in improving the efficiency of phosphorus (P), potassium (K), and nitrogen (N) fertilization is important because PF technologies have the potential to reduce costs, increase profit, and reduce negative environmental impacts. In the Southeastern United States, crops are generally produced in fields that have a high degree of variability in the availability of soil nutrients. The fertility level and amount removed by a crop at the end of the growing cycle are usually not uniform over an entire field. Because of high variability of …

Identifying And Analyzing Potential Watershed-Based Water Quality Trading Programs, David Carlos Roberts

Masters Theses

Over thirty years since the passage of the Clean Water Act, much of the nation’s rivers and streams fail to meet water quality standards. Pollution from nonpoint sources is increasingly responsible for these failures. Existing regulatory approaches may not be capable of meaningfully reducing water quality impairments due to their inability to control emissions from nonpoint sources. Water quality trading may provide a cost-effective solution to many of the persistent water quality impairments caused by nutrients and other oxygen demanding pollutants. However, trading will require the presences of market participants-both buyers and sellers of pollution reduction credits-in order to be …

Regional Analysis Of Trade Flows And Marketing Practice Trends In The United States Nursery Industry, Bryan Frank Combs

Masters Theses

The rapidly growing nursery and greenhouse industry comprises an important part of the agricultural sector of the United States with sales growing at nearly 8.0 percent annually from 1966 to 2004. Aggregate information about the U.S nursery industry is readily available, however little information is available on trade flows and marketing practices of the industry.

The goal of this study was to identify structural adjustments in the nursery industry as indicated by regional trade-flow trends, production practices, and marketing practices in the nursery and greenhouse industry from 1988 to 2003. This was accomplished through a comparison of responses to two …

Tennessee Hay Supply And Demand Response To Prices And Other Factors, Jon Edwin Travis

Masters Theses

The hay industry in Tennessee closely resembles a perfectly competitive market. There are no substantial barriers to market entry and farmers can freely exit if they so choose. A large number of firms and consumers (livestock producers and equine operators) exist. Hay is a fairly homogeneous product; although hay varieties are not identical, in many livestock production situations they are close substitutes. Producers are price takers in the market.

Currently, more information is needed regarding Tennessee hay supply and price response. The objectives of this study were: 1) to determine the factors that influence Tennessee hay acreage and yield, 2) …

Targeted Economic Development In Tennessee: An Industrial Cluster Analysis Of A Multi-County Upper-Cumberland Region, Benjamin Paul Sanders

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to identify and rank industrial clusters in a rural, multi-county region in Tennessee. Counties in the study region include Clay, Fentress, Jackson, Overton, Pickett, and Putnam. Industrial clusters were identified at the 3-digit level of the North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS).

Five industrial clusters were identified in this region: food manufacturing, primary metal manufacturing, fabricated metal manufacturing, transportation equipment manufacturing, and truck transportation.

These clusters were also analyzed for industrial characteristics, including average establishment size, employment growth, industrial multipliers, average worker wages and income, and revenue generated per worker. The differences in …

Feasibility Of Production And Marketing Blueberries In Tennessee, Alejandro Enrique Dellachiesa

Masters Theses

The primary objective of this research was to develop a detailed feasibility analysis for blueberry production in Tennessee. The focus of the study was to provide blueberry producers with estimates of the typical costs and returns associated with commercial production and marketing of blueberries. Secondary objectives were to provide pertinent financial information for entrepreneurs to consider when using their available resources to produce what could be a potential opportunity in Tennessee. Another secondary objective was to evaluate options for marketing fresh blueberries.

The objectives of this study were accomplished by constructing cost and return budgets to determine the cost of …

An Analysis Of Consumer’S Willingness To Pay For Environmental Certified Hardwood Products, Meng Li

Masters Theses

This study examines Tennessee and Pennsylvania consumers’ market participation for environmentally certified hardwood products (oak table, oak shelving board, oak chair), obtains potential premiums paid for selected hardwood products, determines the effects of scope of certification and demographics on premium amounts, and builds profiles of consumers who are willingness to pay the premium for certified hardwood products.

A pretest survey taken in Tennessee was used to construct premium ranges for the main field survey. Analysis of the main field survey conducted in rural and urban areas of Tennessee and Pennsylvania is based on the results of the logistic model, descriptive …

An Analysis Of Consumer Support For Environmental Certification Of Hardwood Products, Pornpat Wiwattarangkul

Masters Theses

Environmental wood certification programs could play an important role in conserving forests across countries such that several studies on the feasibility of certification programs have been conducted. The main focus areas of this study are in the state of Pennsylvania and Tennessee. The first objective of this study is to assess consumers’ support and willingness to pay a premium for certified hardwood products. The second objective is to examine how income, demographics and attitudes about the environment, and scope of certification may influence support and willingness to pay a premium for certified hardwood products. Next, the study wants to examine …

The Development Of Smallholder Tea Production In Tanzania: An Economic Analysis Of Factors Influencing Green Leaf Tea Output, Joseph Tarmo Nagu

Doctoral Dissertations

This study focused on smallholder tea production as one strategy for Tanzanian economic development. The central research question was the economic evaluation of the potential of this strategy for increasing peasant farmer income streams in an economy comprised of mostly subsistence farming.

Two objectives were: (1) the assessment of the extent to which selected production factors explain the variability in the annual output of green tea leaf (output) and (2) the estimation of the physical resource productivities and the computation of marginal value products (MVP's) of selected resources for a sample 150 smallholder tea farms in Njombe, Tanzania to determine …

Production Systems And Costs For Producing Flowering Dogwood (Cornus Florida) Cultivars From Budded Seedlings And From Rooted Cuttings In Tennessee, 1984, Thomas Edward Glasgow

Masters Theses

The objective of this study was to develop cost models for the production of flowering dogwood (Cornus florida) cultivars from budded seedlings and from rooted cuttings in Tennessee. Production data was gathered from Middle Tennessee nurserymen. Model production systems were synthesized, capital requirements identified and cost of production estimated.

Total cost of a four to six-foot flowering dogwood cultivar produced from a budded seedling was $5.47. Total cost of a four to six-foot flowering dogwood cultivar produced from a rooted cutting was $7.35. Major factors contributing to the higher cost of dogwoods grown from rooted cuttings were the …

Identification And Economic Analysis Of Alternative Soybean Production Systems, William Alan Miller

Masters Theses

The objectives of this study were to identify alternative soybean production systems used by Tennessee farmers in 1976 based on alternative combinations of cropping practices and planting methods and to develop estimates of the resource requirements and the costs and returns of each identified cropping-planting system.

A mail survey of randomly selected West Tennessee farm operators was used to identify the following six soybean cropping-planting systems: (1) single crop-row crop, (2) single crop-grain drill, (3) single crop-broadcast, (4) double crop-row crop, (5) double crop-grain drill, and (6) double crop-no till. Comparison of the six systems involved tabulation of survey data …

Problem A: Characteristics Of Knox County Beef Producers And Their Farms; Problem B: Management Practices Of Knox County Beef Producers; Problem C: Factors Influencing Beef Management Practice Adoption By Knox County Beef Producers, Clyde N. Taylor

Masters Theses

PROBLEM A: CHARACTERISTICS OF KNOX COUNTY BEEF PRODUCERS AND THEIR FARMS

This study was conducted in Knox County, Tennessee for the purpose of determining selected characteristics of beef producers and their farms. The study was based on a survey-type interview and reflects information for developing a county plan of action. The producers were interviewed and then classified in low, medium and high groups, depending on the number of pounds of beef sold per cow in 1970. Main comparisons were between high and low categories.

Major findings indicated that cattlemen interviewed in Knox County had the following characteristics: (1) 71 percent …

Problem A: Characteristics Of Marshall County Beef Producers And Their Farms; Problem B: Management Practices Of Marshall County Beef Producers; Problem C: Factors Influencing Beef Management Practice Adoption By Marshall County Beef Producers, Lester Ray Brewer

Masters Theses

PROBLEM A: CHARACTERISTICS OF MARSHALL COUNTY BEEF PRODUCERS AND THEIR FARMS

This study was made in Marshall County, Tennessee, to determine the characteristics of Marshall County Beef producers and their farms. The study was based on a survey-type interview and reflects information for developing a county plan of action. The producers were classified into low, medium, and high groups, depending on the number of pounds of beef sold per cow in 1970.

A close analysis indicates that cattlemen interviewed in Marshall County had the following characteristics: (1) 60 percent were considered friendly toward the survey; (2) 58 percent were full-time …

Migration Patterns Of Young Adults Reared In Jackson County, Tennessee, Charles Martin Farmer

Masters Theses

Most Tennessee counties have experienced a net outmigration of persons in recent decades. For example, net outmigration for Tennessee was over one-fourth of a million persons from 1950 to 1960 or half of the level of natural population increase during this period. During the 1950-60 decade, 86 of the 95 counties had a net outmigration of persons. In 59 counties outmigration was sufficient to result in an aggregate population decline. Counties experiencing greatest population declines are largely rural containing few urban centers.

The questions of who leaves and who stays in low income rural areas and the effects of leaving …