ABSTRACT
One of the central problems for public land policy is economic change. Of particular interest at the present juncture are changes in the competition for land that are related to urbanization and industrialization. In the West, demands for land by urban-industrial development and by irrigated agriculture must be regarded for economic analysis as "rival" or "competitive" demands. The level alluvial valleys and plains are the only— and usually scarce—location for irrigated agriculture. Land policy can operate through the economic forces which determine private decision making. Such forces are, for example, the price system, credit, taxation, highway and water development, and the institutions governing the ownership, selling, and leasing of land. Purposeful modification of these forces will be called the "indirect tools" of land policy. The general objectives of all public policies are usually expressed as maximizing of some value or quantity such as national income, social net benefit, or public interest.
