Covenants, cohesion, and community: The effects of neighborhood governance on lawn fertilization: Fid-Bau Portal

Covenants, cohesion, and community: The effects of neighborhood governance on lawn fertilization

Fraser, James Curtis / Bazuin, Joshua Theodore / Band, Lawrence E. / Grove, J. Morgan

Highlights • Neighborhood governance influences households’ lawn care decisions. • Members of homeowners associations apply more fertilizer to their lawns. • HOAs mediate effect of individual preferences and circumstances on fertilization. • Neighborhood associations have no impact on fertilization.

Abstract Lawn fertilization is increasingly recognized as an important contributor to non-point source pollution in watersheds, but relatively little is known about how and why homeowners fertilize. Lawns are a social expression of citizenship and belonging in many American cities, for a well-maintained yard reflects a homeowner's work ethic as well as the pride in his home. There are also neighborhood influences, as homeowners conform to the dominant neighborhood standard of lawn esthetics. Homeowners associations (HOAs) are one way in which neighborhood lawn standards are maintained, as they use written rules and unwritten expectations backed by legal means of enforcement to ensure compliance with neighborhood guidelines. This paper examines household nitrogen fertilizer application rates in Baltimore, Maryland. We find that households which place a high importance on lawn care and occupy more valuable homes fertilize at higher rates compared with neighbors who place lower importance on lawn care, and live in less expensive homes. We also examine the effects of different neighborhood governance regimes, specifically homeowners associations and neighborhood associations. Households who belong to an HOA apply more fertilizer than those who do not, but households belonging to a neighborhood association do not fertilize more than their counterparts who are not so affiliated. HOA membership also mediates the effect of lawn care importance and home value and moderates the effect of social cohesion on fertilization application rates. HOAs shape household lawn behaviors: by obliging people to maintain a high esthetic standard, they encourage higher usage of chemicals to attain those standards.