Abstract
Territorialized agri-environmental measures (MAEt) were introduced in France for the 2007- 2013 Common Agricultural Policy program. The forthcoming CAP reform is an opportunity to improve the design of existing agri-environmental schemes. The first part of this thesis assesses this scheme (MAEt), with special attention paid to water pollution issues. In the first chapter we analyse the advantages and limits of the partial decentralization of decision-making in the setting-up of agrienvironmental projects and of improved targeting through the identification of eligible priority areas. This analysis is illustrated by the results of a national survey conducted with eligible farmers and agents in charge of the implementation of the scheme and by two case studies conducted in Eure et Loir and Languedoc-Roussillon. These surveys help us to identify the reasons for the too low adoption rates of pesticides reduction measures by farmers. In the second chapter, we estimate the impact of herbicide reduction measures adopted by winegrowers in the Languedoc-Roussillon region using a treatment effects approach. The second part of the thesis proposes two innovative designs aiming at increasing the acceptability of agri-environmental measures by farmers. In chapter 3 we study the introduction of a collective dimension in the contracts. This collective dimension relies on a monetary ‘bonus’ paid to each farmer who has signed a contract, provided that the proportion of land collectively enrolled in the agri-environmental scheme reaches a predefined threshold. We finally analyse in chapter 4 the possible use of reverse auctions for the allocation of agri-environmental contracts, on the basis of the pilot experiment implemented by the Water Agency in Artois-Picardie. This mechanism enables farmers to adapt the practices they commit to and the payment that they receive to their own willingness to accept.