Crop rotation selection versus wind erosion susceptibility

Implications of optimal crop rotation selection on wind erosion susceptibility and groundwater depletion on the Texas High Plains is presented. A multiyear/multicrop growth simulation model was used to estimate crop yield and wind erosion distributions under stochastic weather conditions. These distributions provided input into a multiple-period, recursive quadratic programming model to assess optimal crop mix, groundwater depletion, and wind erosion under different commodity program provisions. Results indicate that farm program participation, coupled with base acreage restrictions, encourage production of continuous cotton. Average annual wind erosion under continuous cotton is two to six times greater than that under other profitable cropping systems. Compliance with base acreage restrictions limits the adoption of multiyear/multicrop production systems. A policy option has been approved where a crop's base acreage may be rotated to other more soil-conserving crops if needed to meet the conservation compliance requirements of the 1985 Food Security Act. This may permit cropping systems, such as cotton-wheat and cotton-sorghum-wheat, to replace cotton monoculture and provide substantial wind erosion control.