Does Agricultural Mechanization Help Farmers to Strengthen Sustainability and Protect Cultivated Land? Evidence from 2118 Households in 10 Provinces of China
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsMechanization of agriculture can have both positive and negative effects on the sustainability of cultivated land. On the one hand, the use of modern agricultural machinery can increase the efficiency of soil tillage, fertilizer application and other agrotechnical measures, which can contribute to the preservation and even improvement of land fertility. However, improper or excessive use of heavy machinery can also lead to soil compaction and erosion, disturbance of soil structure. Therefore, it is important to apply mechanization in combination with other sustainable land management practices such as minimum tillage, use of cover crops, crop rotation, etc. Only an integrated approach will enhance the protection and sustainability of cultivated land in the long term.
Yes, agricultural mechanization tends to help farmers in several key ways:
1) Increased productivity - the use of modern machinery and equipment allows farmers to perform various farming activities faster and more efficiently, increasing production.
2) Facilitation of physical labor - mechanization replaces manual labor, reducing the burden on farmers and increasing the comfort of work.
3) Saving time - machinery allows work to be done faster, which is especially important during seasonal field work.
4) Improved quality - some types of machinery allow for more precise and better execution of agricultural operations.
5) Increased efficiency - mechanization helps to optimize the use of resources such as seeds, fertilizers, water, which leads to increased profitability.
In general, mechanization greatly facilitates the work of farmers and improves production efficiency.
Despite the numerous advantages of agricultural mechanization, this approach also has its significant disadvantages that require critical consideration:
1) Environmental damage - the use of heavy machinery can lead to soil compaction and erosion, disturbing natural ecosystems.
2) Resource dependence - mechanization requires significant expenditures on fuel, spare parts and repairs, making farmers dependent on external resources.
3) Social consequences - introduction of machinery can reduce the need for manual labor, which negatively affects rural employment.
4) Inequality - the high cost of machinery and equipment makes them available mainly to large agribusinesses, exacerbating the gap with small farmers.
5) Narrow specialization - over-mechanization leads to a decrease in the diversity of agricultural practices and loss of traditional methods.
Thus, for all its benefits, agricultural mechanization also carries serious risks that require careful consideration and a balanced approach to its implementation.
Nevertheless, the research conducted is relevant as it focuses on agricultural mechanization. In general, existing studies not only pay attention to the economic benefits of agricultural mechanization, but also begin to pay attention to the environmental effects of agricultural mechanization, which provides rich theoretical and methodological support for the relevant research in this article. This article provides theoretical analysis and research hypotheses, analysis of the effect of agricultural mechanization on farmers' farmland sustainability protection, analysis of the mechanism of agricultural mechanization affecting farmers' farmland sustainability protection behavior, analysis of the heterogeneity of the effect of agricultural mechanization on farmers' farmland sustainability protection behavior.
The bibliography includes 34 sources; the literature synthesis reveals that protecting the sustainability of cultivated land is related to food security and sustainable agricultural development. It is also clear from the literature that China's national conditions with large population and small amount of land, as well as the existing land system, the utilization of cultivated land is characterized by small-scale and low efficiency, and serious problems such as overuse of agrochemicals, over-intensive use of cultivated land resources and over-utilization of cultivated land fertility hinder the qualitative transformation and development of agriculture.
The research conducted is relevant as it focuses on agricultural mechanization. In general, existing studies not only pay attention to the economic benefits of agricultural mechanization, but also begin to pay attention to the environmental effects of agricultural mechanization, which provides rich theoretical and methodological support for the related research in this paper. This paper highlights the natural conditions of the study site, discusses the main indicators of the soils under study, and highlights the objects and methods of the study.
This paper is written in good English, the reliability of the results obtained is not questionable, the analysis of materials and research methods and conclusions are quite correct. The scientific article is well illustrated.
It should be noted that the article is performed at the modern methodological level; the conclusions are well argued and have great scientific and practical value. This paper meets all the requirements.
Author Response
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Reviewer 2 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsMany thanks to the authors for a very useful study.
A large sample was processed, a large number of farmers in different locations and a very complex investigation was carried out. However, it deals with different types of mechanization among different farmers, different soil types with different potential fertility and history of use. Very often the subjective statements of individual farmers can be decisive, especially when you consider that some farmers are 100% in production and others are not. My impression is that the work can largely be accepted as professional, but not as original scientific paper.
Author Response
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Reviewer 3 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsAgricultural mechanization is an important technical means to promote the protection of cultivated land sustainability. Based on the survey data of 2118 households in 10 provinces of China, this paper uses Oprobit and IV-Oprobit models to analyze the impact and mechanism of agricultural mechanization on farmers' cultivated land sustainability protection behavior. In this paper, there are some issues that need to be addressed.
(1) Mechanized production of crops can generally be divided into several major stages, including cultivation, seedling cultivation, planting, fertilization, pest control, and harvesting. What is the principle of variable selection in this paper?
(2) In Fig.1, the name of the xy axis is missing.
(3) In 3.2, it is recommended to add an introduction to the research methods of full text .
(4) Do the numbers in Table 2 represent R2? Please explain the significance of 0.0914 as*** and 0.0993 as**.
(5) What are the different production sectors included in Table 3? What are the principles for selecting these production sectors?
Author Response
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Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
Round 2
Reviewer 2 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsThanks for your new and improve version. I am satisfied and I recommend paper for printing in Sustainability.
