National Woodland Owner Survey of the U.S. Virgin Islands, 2021
| Authors: | Emmalyn Terracciano, Kathleen McGinley, Jesse Caputo, Brett J. Butler |
| Year: | 2026 |
| Type: | General Technical Report |
| Station: | International Institute of Tropical Forestry |
| DOI: | https://doi.org/10.2737/IITF-GTR-57 |
| Source: | USDA Forest Service |
Abstract
This report summarizes the results of the National Woodland Owner Survey (NWOS) for the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI). The charge of the NWOS includes gathering and reporting information on private forest ownerships from across all U.S. States, protectorates, and territories. The survey was conducted in the USVI for the first time in 2021. This report focuses on families, individuals, trusts, estates, and family partnerships, collectively referred to as family forest ownerships, that own at least 1 acre of forest land in the USVI. The summary results include information about their forest land, their reasons for owning it, what they have done with it in the past and plan to do with it in the future, their concerns, and information about the landowners themselves. Key results include: 1) most owners in the USVI take a hands-off or passive approach to managing their forest land, 2) most people own their forest land for aesthetic, privacy, or family legacy purposes, 3) while most ownerships indicate that they are unlikely to sell or transfer their land in the next 5 years, ownerships holding almost half of family forest acres in the USVI would sell their forest land if offered a reasonable price, and 4) family forest ownerships in the USVI share some characteristics with those in the United States mainland, including some reasons for owning and concerns about their forests, but differ in many regards, most prominently in terms of size of forest holdings and harvesting activities.