Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management, University of Haifa, Haifa 3498838, Israel.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023 Feb 25;20(5):4117. doi: 10.3390/ijerph20054117.
In many countries, the use of recreational off-highway vehicles (ROVs) occasionally spills over into agricultural lands. The conflict between ROV users and farmers is escalating due to the growing popularity of ROVs. Determined action of authorities for mitigating the phenomenon may necessitate an understanding of the nature and extent of the actual damage caused by ROVs. However, it is currently unknown how ROVs harm agriculture and what is their main deleterious effect on farmers. We tested our hypothesis that economic costs are the leading reason for farmer distress using in-depth interviews with 46 Israeli farmers that are affected by ROVs. We found that contrary to our hypothesis, economic costs were low and negligible, despite high levels of anger, distress, or hopelessness expressed by almost all farmers. The main reason for outrage and frustration was the emotional impact of ROV activity on the farmers. Therefore, measuring the effects of ROVs on agriculture in terms of economic losses will probably be ineffective in convincing policymakers to act against the reckless use of ROVs in agricultural lands. On the other hand, conveying the emotional implications for the farmers can potentially promote change if accompanied by explanations on the importance of caring for the mental health and well-being of a sector that already suffers from levels of stress and mental health problems that are among the highest of any other industry in the world.
在许多国家，休闲越野车（ROV）的使用偶尔会蔓延到农田。由于 ROV 的日益普及，ROV 用户和农民之间的冲突正在升级。当局为缓解这一现象而采取果断行动，可能需要了解 ROV 实际造成的损害的性质和程度。然而，目前尚不清楚 ROV 如何危害农业，以及它们对农民的主要有害影响是什么。我们使用对 46 名受 ROV 影响的以色列农民的深入访谈来检验我们的假设，即经济成本是农民痛苦的主要原因。我们发现，与我们的假设相反，尽管几乎所有农民都表达了高度的愤怒、痛苦或绝望，但经济成本很低且可以忽略不计。农民愤怒和沮丧的主要原因是 ROV 活动对他们的情绪影响。因此，用经济损失来衡量 ROV 对农业的影响，可能无法说服政策制定者采取行动，反对在农业用地上滥用 ROV。另一方面，如果能解释照顾一个已经承受着世界上任何其他行业中最高水平的压力和心理健康问题的行业的心理健康和福祉的重要性，那么传达 ROV 对农民的情绪影响可能会促进变革。
