Public Attitudes about Private Forest Management and Government Involvement in the Southeastern United States
Public Attitudes about Private Forest Management and Government Involvement in the Southeastern United States
复制标题
美国东南部公众对私人森林管理和政府参与的态度
作者：
M. Kreye;R. Rimšaitė;D. Adams
在美国南部这个国家最大的木材产区，代际土地转移和城市地区的人口溢出等因素导致林地转化，与森林系统(例如木材、清洁水供应、野生动物栖息地)相关的关键生态系统服务的产量减少。推动林地政策制定的公众态度也可能因人们体验和感知森林(例如，娱乐)的方式以及对政府在私人森林决策中的作用的思考而发生变化。这些变化对当地和全球的林地管理和以森林为基础的经济都有重大影响。我们介绍了对佛罗里达州、佐治亚州、密西西比州和南卡罗来纳州居民进行的一项地区性调查(n=1669)的结果，该调查评估了人们对木材采伐和政府对私人土地参与的态度。我们发现，与木材生产相比，公众对木材采伐的支持更多地集中在生态系统维护上，对赋予土地所有者(例如，援助计划)监管战略权力的政策也有强烈的支持。我们的结论是，现有的政府政策和计划未能帮助土地所有者满足公众对美国东南部私人林地生态系统服务提供的需求。公众的态度似乎有利于创新的政策战略，如基于市场的解决方案和推动。除了经济影响外，公众和土地所有者在评估政策替代方案的价值时，很可能将森林健康的看法作为衡量标准。公众对森林管理的无知和冷漠似乎也在增加。
In the southern United States the country’s top wood-producing region, factors such as intergenerational land transfer and population spillover from urban areas have resulted in forestland conversion and reduced production of critical ecosystem services associated with forest systems (e.g., timber, clean water supply, wildlife habitat). Public attitudes, which drive forestland policy prescriptions, may also be evolving due to the way people experience and perceive forests (e.g., recreation), and think about the role of government in private forest decisions. These changes have significant implications for forestland management and the forest-based economy, both locally and globally. We present the results of a regional survey (n = 1669) of residents in Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, and South Carolina, which assessed attitudes toward timber harvesting and government involvement on private lands. We found significant public support for timber harvesting with a somewhat stronger focus on ecosystem maintenance compared to timber production, and strong support for policies that empower landowners (e.g., assistance programs) over regulatory strategies. We conclude that existing government policies and programs are failing to help landowners meet public demand for ecosystem service provision on private forest lands in the southeastern US. Public attitudes appear conducive to innovative policy strategies such as market-based solutions and nudges. Perceptions of forest health will likely be the metric the public and landowners will use in assessing the value of policy alternatives, in addition to economic impact. Public ignorance and indifference towards forest management also appear to be growing.