Date of Award
5-2026
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Department
Agricultural and Applied Economics
Committee Chair/Advisor
Dawoon Jeong
Committee Member
Anastasia Thayer
Committee Member
Felipe Silva
Committee Member
Michael Vassalos
Committee Member
Alba Collart
Abstract
Irrigation adoption has shifted eastward, with the Southeastern U.S. experiencing pronounced increases in irrigated acreage over the last two decades. Although rising adoption suggests farmers perceive irrigation as valuable, empirical evidence quantifying its economic impact in the Southeast remains limited. We estimate the effect of irrigation on farmland values in South Carolina—a state where irrigated acreage increased by 43% between 2012 and 2022—using a hedonic land value framework. This approach allows us to assess how irrigation influences land values through two channels: (i) direct productivity gains, such as yield protection against heat stress, and (ii) capitalization of potential future groundwater scarcity due to resource competition, reflecting farmers' perception of groundwater as a common-pool resource. Using a parcel-level dataset, we find that irrigated land is valued at roughly $250 per acre more than non-irrigated land. However, this premium does not decline with anticipated groundwater competition from nearby wells, suggesting a limited relationship between land values and potential groundwater scarcity. Our findings show that irrigation is economically valued, yet sustainable groundwater management policies remain necessary for long-term water planning, as resource competition is not fully reflected in land values.
Stormwater management practices capture stormwater runoff to use for agriculture irrigation, in addition to providing environmental benefits such as flood mitigation. Although previous literature has evaluated retail consumers’ willingness to pay (WTP) for sustainably produced edible agriculture products, there is a lack of studies on restaurants’ WTP for sustainably produced products. Using a payment card to elicit restaurant WTP for stormwater runoff-grown tomatoes, survey data was collected using the in-person and phone surveys from restaurants in Athens, Georgia, Clemson, South Carolina, and Charleston, South Carolina. Survey data shows that restaurants are willing to purchase stormwater-grown tomatoes and often report a WTP at their baseline price or a price greater than their self-reported baseline price. However, providing information on stormwater production and environmental benefits of stormwater does not influence WTP, and lowers WTP relative to the baseline in some cases. We also show that greater stormwater awareness and education could increase WTP. Further research incorporating a greater sample size may provide results with statistical inference.
Overall, this thesis finds that irrigation is reflected in the economic value of farmlands, whereas the competition for groundwater amongst neighboring users is not reflected in the economic value of farmlands. Additionally, while end supply chain users demonstrate an interest in potentially adopting tomatoes produced with more sustainable water sources, the valuation is sensitive to information framing. Together, these findings emphasize that water is recognized as a critical and valuable input across the agriculture supply chain. However, the broader sustainability and resource scarcity implications of water resources are not fully internalized by decision-makers.
Recommended Citation
Eberhart, Sarah J., "Economic Value of Water in Agriculture: Evidence From Agricultural Producers and Restaurant Procurement Decisions" (2026). All Theses. 4743.
https://open.clemson.edu/all_theses/4743
Comments
I am not sure why the typed abstract font is so large for the middle paragraph. I tried to re-format it, but it did not work.