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Grant money used to study drought practices of AR farmers

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Wednesday, March 26, 2025   

Students and professors at the University of Arkansas-Little Rock are studying farmer's reactions to drought conditions.

The university received a national grant to study how farmers' risk preferences affect water use during droughts.

Kent Kovacs, associate professor of accounting, economics and finance at the university, said they want to determine if farmers will take a more conservative approach or be influenced by economic factors.

"You can have a string of generally very dry years or you could have a string of very wet years," Kovacs pointed out. "How they respond depends upon what their preference is for taking risks in their farming business."

The three-year study will determine if risk preferences change with drought conditions and climate change. Farmers in rural Arkansas, the Lower Mississippi River Basin, Louisiana and part of Missouri are included in the research.

As part of the study, farmers are surveyed and their risk preferences entered into economic and hydrologic models. If the models show the water supply is declining quickly, policy changes could be suggested.

Kovacs noted the findings will be shared with policymakers.

"We have three meetings with stakeholders so this will be groups in government, (and) farmers as well," Kovacs explained. "But the focus will be everyone that stands to be affected through water use in this region and agriculture related to crop production."

Agriculture is one of the largest consumers of water, and droughts can severely affect crop production.


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