In this article, the consequences of soil erosion on agricultural land, together with the effects of the application of the erosion-prevention measures which can be carried out by individual farmers, are examined from the micro-economic point of view. Two differing assessment approaches are presented. In the first part of the article, the erosion-induced changes in production on agricultural land, and the possibility of their quantification, are discussed. For example, the benefits, from a micro-economic point of view, of the application of erosion-prevention measures are set against the costs which these incur. The long-term influences on productivity in the location, together with the return on the capital invested, are also considered. Estimates indicate that comparatively long periods of time are necessary in order to achieve a balance between benefits and costs. The greater significance, to the national economy, of land as the basis of food production and the necessity of maintaining the natural cycle of produce for the long-term safeguarding e.g. of the production of food stuffs are not considered in the above mentioned assessment, nor are the costs, where applicable, arising from erosion damage outside the productive land of individual farmers e.g. through sediment deposition and pollution of surface water. Finally, in a further model approach, the economic and business organizational consequences of the application of selected measures in the utilization of land within a cattle-fattening operation are demonstrated to be used when the limits of toleration to soil-loss have been reached.
