Economics of soil conservation: The Upper Mahaweli Watershed of Sir Lanka

This paper estimates the benefits and costs of soil conservation in the Upp er Mahaweli Watershed of Sir Lanka. The costs of soil erosion control inclu de the implementation costs of control measures, while the benefits are red uctions in the costs of soil erosion. In contrast to many studies in develo ped countries, the on-site benefit of soil erosion control in Sri Lanka is estimated to be greater than the off-site benefit. While a social benefit-c ost analysis demonstrates that it is socially desirable to implement conser vation measures, the private financial analyses indicate that it is feasibl e for individual farmers to adopt the conservation measures. Despite privat e economic feasibility, programs addressing farmers' reluctance to adopt so il conservation measures may be preferable to public intervention in soil c onservation activities when the on-site benefits are greater than the offsi te benefits.