Social assessment for the Colville National Forest CROP program.

Abstract

A qualitative social assessment targeted salient issues connected to the Colville National Forest creating opportunities (CROP) research program that examines forest management alternatives for small-diameter stands in northeastern Washington. Research spanned various communities in three counties and investigated the diversity of fundamental values people attach to small-diameter stands, beliefs about appropriate forest management directions, and perceived impacts from the CROP program. To focus on people’s knowledge of and interest in small-diameter stand management, semistructured interviews (n=76) were conducted in person with local residents and other people associated with the Colville National Forest. Breadth and depth of interviewees’ value orientations and forest use were explored to develop a comprehensive inductive analysis of the social complexity surrounding the CROP program. Seven distinct groups were differentiated to develop a social typology that juxtaposed positions, perceptions, and preferred small-diameter stand-management alternatives. Several themes emerged. Practical implications of these themes are offered as guidelines to resource managers to improve public involvement as the decisionmaking process moves to public forums.

Citation

Findley, Angela J.; Carroll, Matthew S.; Blatner, Keith A. 2000. Social assessment for the Colville National Forest CROP program. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-499. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 106 p