Drivers and Effects of Recreation Displacement in Southern California National Forests

Alyssa Thomas is a social scientist with a diverse international background in natural resources management. She completed a Ph.D. on the human dimensions of a New Zealand recreational fishery before working as a consultant for NGOs for four years. She researched protected area compliance in Belize, small-scale fisheries and cyclone impacts in Fiji, and people’s attitudes towards sharks and shark meat consumption in Central America. Since moving to California and starting at PSW in 2020, she has primarily researched wildfire and public lands recreation. She is interested in understanding pro-environmental behavior, the social impacts of natural disasters, and sustainable recreation.

The intent of the presentation is to provide forest managers with knowledge about: 

• Drivers of recreation displacement 
• How to more sustainably manage forest recreation opportunities to meet preferences, demands, and provide access across diverse communities 
• Determine the extent recreationists have complied with past forest closures 
• Characterize the socio-economic facets of visitors 
• Create more targeted outreach

Some additional issues in Alyssa’s presentation will be: 

• Increased visitation during COVID 
  • Overall increase of 18 million visits from 2019-2020 
• How increased fire, fire risk, and drought have affected visitor experiences 
  • In combination, they have had negative effects on the environment & the public's recreation experience 
  • Crowding, site, & forest closures, & displacement