Landowner willingness to adopt active management practices in the Cross-Timbers forests in USA

Abstract

Cross-Timbers (CT) forests, located in a transition ecoregion between eastern forests and western grasslands of the southern Great Plains of the United States, provide numerous ecosystem services to the residents of Oklahoma, Texas, and Kansas. Growing climate variability, decades of fire suppression, woody plant encroachment, anthropogenic activities, and notable lack of active management have altered the original composition of these forests. As most CT forestlands are privately owned, understanding the factors influencing landowners' willingness to implement active forest management is very important. This study investigated landowner preferences regarding thinning and prescribed burning, which are two key forest management practices –– through a mixed-mode survey of forestland owners in the CT region. Results suggested that landowners' willingness to adopt thinning is significantly influenced by the age of forest landowners, forest land holding size, and status of encroachment by woody plants. Similarly, landowners' willingness to adopt prescribed burning is significantly influenced by forest land holding size, status of encroachment by woody plants, education level, and non-timber ownership objectives such as wildlife habitat management, recreational hunting and fishing, and land investment. These findings are useful to stakeholders in identifying likely or unlikely adaptors of these management practices, initiating or tailoring educational programs, Extension and outreach strategies to relevant audience, and adopting policies that can promote sustainable management of CT forests.