| dc.description.abstract | The agricultural sector in Norway has to reduce greenhouse gasses, and there is established a political agreement between farmers organizations and the government. In relation to the greenhouse gas reduction goals in the agricultural sector, the study looks into the farmers perception of reducing greenhouse gasses for climate change problems and mitigation within their farm business. The research problem that is investigated is «What are the major obstacles for cutting emissions in the agricultural sector in South-Jæren, Norway?”. The farmer is a part of a larger agricultural structural system and the topic of climate change and greenhouse gasses within the agricultural sector is fairly complex and often expert knowledge, the farmers recognize the ongoing discussions, but do not necessarily have the time for investigating the complexity of the problem. Knowledge about climate change in general as well as within the agricultural sector, is often mediated by experts from the field of climate change. Therefor the strategy for communication of knowledge about climate change and greenhouse gasses is important for communicating knowledge that could create a common platform of knowledge for further sectoral development.
The purpose of the study is to do research and create knowledge within the agricultural sector in the South-Jæren area, within Rogaland county. The study investigates the farmers perceptions and attitudes in the case of greenhouse gas reduction and climate mitigation within the farm businesses. There is used a qualitative in-depth interview method as primary data collection, to be able to study and gather data in a semi-natural setting. Secondary data is collected by using the findings from a recently conducted national qualitative questionnaire. The primary data findings are analyzed by using thematic analysis to be able to find similarities and differences across all the studies interviews. The findings from the analysis is then used in the discussion part and is discussed with the case of the theory of climate change mitigation, as well as discussed within the lager context of the thesis.
The conclusion presents the studies extracted knowledge, that explains farmers experience of top-down pressure of needed investments that is expensive for the farm business. The farmers are used to having to do investments in the case of authority decisions. The political focus on large-scale efficient farming, as well as most small-and medium scale farms has closed down the business, a pressure occurs to investments (e.g. new effective technology solutions) needed for sustaining the farms income. Therefore, a pressure for investment in the case of greenhouse gas reduction in an already pressured industry, could may then have an influence for several agricultural businesses to closing down the farm business. Farmers are then locked into an agricultural system that already demands large investments, and there is no Kapital for climate investments. The problem of reducing greenhouse gasses within the agricultural sector is may not mainly the farmers responsibility, but a larger structural problem, with larger sectoral actors that will have to take larger amount of responsibility in the case of reducing greenhouse gasses from the agricultural sector. This study is focused on the farmer for the reason that farmers perceptions and attitude in the case of greenhouse gas reduction at farms, is knowledge that is necessary and needed for the future sectoral development. | en_US |
