Natural Resource Management: The Barriers and Opportunities for Collaboration

Abstract

As environmental degradation is being documented more and more, a common theme has emerged illustrating that the observed environmental degradation is anthropogenic and inextricably linked with human activities. Historically, much of the scientific literature has been aimed at the causes of this environmental degradation; yet emergent research seeks to understand the role of society in these problems (Brulle 2000). A proactive approach may be necessary to reverse the trend of environmental degradation. The objective of this study was to determine the barriers and opportunities for collaboration in three societies of Wisconsin: Northern Wisconsin landowners, government agents working in the Central Wisconsin Grassland conservation Area, and landowners of the Central Wisconsin Grassland Conservation Area. To better understand the landowner in northern Wisconsin the Northern Wisconsin Landowner Survey was sent to 404 landowners owning more than 60 acres in northern Wisconsin townships. The Northern Wisconsin Landowner Survey was sent in spring of 2012 and aimed to gain a better understanding of landowner’s sense of environmental stewardship and their trust in the agencies and organizations active in forested landscapes of northern Wisconsin. The 8-page Northern Wisconsin Landowner Survey yielded a response rate of 50.9% (n=188). Landowners were differentiated by self-identifying their reasons for owning land. Respondents were grouped into landowner typologies resulting in a near split between Woodland Retreat Owners (n=86, 47.7%) and Working-the-land Owners (n=83, 46.1%), whereas the Supplemental-income Owners (n=8, 4.4%) and Less Involved Owners (n=3, 1.6%) were not prevalent responses. These landowner typologies were based on Butler’s (2007) research through the Forest Service’s ‘National Woodland Owner Survey’. Noteworthy analysis of the Northern Wisconsin Landowner Survey provides information from the least trusted (U.S. Forest Service) to the most trusted (University Extension) agencies and organizations active in the forested landscape. Using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (ver. 21) significant differences between the two main owner types were found in their sense of environmental stewardship, the age of owners, the employment of owners (retired or employed), their trust in land trusts, owners’ level of education, and the owner’s income received from the land owned. To better understand the government agents working in the Central Wisconsin Grassland Conservation area a research project was initiated that utilized both qualitative and quantitative methods. Semi-structured interviews were conducted at the 2012 Greater Prairie Chicken Festival (n=12). All persons interviewed were asked about their experiences and attitudes toward the collaboration in the CWGCA. Analysis used grounded theory to yield results which indicated the primary barriers and opportunities surrounding collaboration in the CWGCA being four-fold: a lack of mutual trust, differences in values between agriculture and wildlife, lacking communication between landowners and government agents, and the constraints that a governmental agency faces. In order to triangulate results, quantitative research was initiated through a survey that was sent electronically to governmental agents working in the CWGCA. 47.3% responded to the survey (n=54) revealing that agents that one-in- five agents regularly experience negative interactions with landowners, nearly half of the respondents agree that landowners are hesitant to work with government agencies and government agents feel that they are not perceived as a member of the community while representing their community. To better understand the landowners in the Central Wisconsin Grassland Conservation Area a geospatial analysis using ArcGIS was conducted to identify landowners who live in proximity to core grassland habitat that have previously indicated their interest in promoting grassland conservation initiatives on their land. A telephone survey was conducted to understand the perspectives of landowners (n=14) in central Wisconsin. Results provide insight into the experience and attitudes landowners. Results indicate that none of the respondents have been involved in a decision-making process for the future of the CWGCA. A majority of the respondents have never been to the CWGCA, do not believe that government agents understand their priorities, and frequently have negative interactions with government agents (on average 30% of the time). Spatial analysis results illustrate likely locations for core grassland expansions, alternative strategies which do not over-emphasize connectivity, and an inspection of grassland fragmentation in the CWGCA.