Agricultural Land Consolidation in Iran: Advantages and Limitations (The Case of Villages in Dehgolan Township, Iran)

Document Type : Original Research

Authors
H. Ghadermazi 1
A. Ahmadi Dehrashid 2
M. Bijani 3
1 Department of Human Geography, College of Geography Science, Kharazmi University (KHU), Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran.
2 Department of Geography and Rural Planning, Kurdistan University, Sanandaj, Islamic Republic of Iran.
3 Department of Agricultural Extension and Education, College of Agriculture, Tarbiat Modares University (TMU), Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran.
Abstract
The purpose of this descriptive-analytical research was to analyze the advantages and limitations of agricultural land consolidation in the villages of Dehgolan Township, Iran. The statistical population of this study included 190 farmers in the villages of Dehrashid (where the adaptive consolidation plan was implemented between beneficiaries) and Telvar (in which the plan has not yet been implemented among farmers). The samples were selected from 140 people by using the Krejcie and Morgan sample size table and stratified random sampling method. The data gathering instrument was a researcher-made questionnaire, which was presented to the faculty members of the Department of Rural Geography at Kharazmi University to confirm the face and content validity. Further, the reliability of the tested items was confirmed by using the Cronbach's alpha (α= 0.81). To analyze the data obtained from the farmers' opinions, multi-criteria decision making FTOPSIS (Fuzzy TOPSIS) analysis methods and linear regression in SPSS24 were used. The results of regression analysis indicated that the main obstacles of implementing consolidation in the studied area were "economic" (β= 0.416) and "technical" (β= 0.304). Also, there was a significant difference between the two periods before and after consolidation of agricultural lands in terms of crop production and reduction of operating costs. In general, the effects of consolidation indicated a higher level of crops production per unit area, yield per unit area, income from agriculture and its sustainability, job diversification, and a decrease in immigration in the studied villages.

Keywords

Subjects

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Journal of Agricultural Science and Technology
Volume 22, Issue 2
March and April 2020
Pages 317-332