Incentives for Biodiversity Conservation on Non-Industrial Private Forests: An Analysis of Landowners’ Participation

Although non-industrial private forests (NIPF) provide significant habitat for a variety of species, limited information is available on how landowners would respond to the adoption of practices that promote biodiversity conservation on their lands. We examined NIPF landowner preferences for adopting four such practices-extending timber rotation age, extending riparian buffer strips, periodic prescribed burning, and invasive species control-through a survey of forestland owners in Florida. Employing an attributebased choice experiment technique, we analyzed how landowners’ willingness to enroll in various incentive programs are influenced by their socio-economic characteristics and by the program attributes. Results of the multinomial logit model indicate that landowners with higher income, education, and more years of forestland ownership are more willing to adopt the suggested forest practices. Besides providing valuable insights in designing optimum incentives to further wildlife habitat on NIPF lands, the results of this study also underline the need for enhanced education and outreach efforts on these practices for increasing landowner participation. Post-doctoral Associate, School of Forest Resources and Conservation, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611. Email: [email protected] 2 Associate Professor, Forest Policy and Economics, School of Forest Resources and Conservation, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611. Email: [email protected] 3 Research Economist, US Forest Service, Southern Research Station, PO Box 12254, RTP, NC, 27709. Email: [email protected]