Adoption behavior of cleaner production techniques to control agricultural non-point source pollution: A case study in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area

To prevent severe agricultural non-point source pollution (NPSP) and ensure agricultural sustainability in China, the Chinese government has encouraged the use of cleaner production techniques (CPTs) in agricultural production. For CPTs to be effective, it is critical to increase their adoption by farmers. The aim of this study is to elucidate the adoption behavior of CPTs for controlling the agricultural NPSP in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area (TGRA), through the extension of a technology acceptance model. The multinomial probit modeling and the structural equation modeling techniques were thus used to evaluate the causal model. The empirical test results revealed that farmers' particular characteristics had positive effects on the adoption of agricultural CPTs, and that formulated fertilization through soil testing has been adopted by the majority of local farmers. The Farmers' perceived usefulness and their satisfaction with their technical adoption had a significantly positive impact on whether farmers would intend to adopt the CPTs over the long-term. Although most farmers had some awareness of the environmental pollution caused by the traditional agriculture, their adoption behaviors of the CPTs remain insufficient. In short term, the government should provide farmers with incentives for the application of CPTs to control NPSP. In long term, the government should place a priority on developing lower-cost, alternative CPTs that can offer the possibility of increasing both crop yields and household income. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.