Interview: Researcher Thomas Kronholm
You recently conducted a survey study – what was it about?
- The study focused on the knowledge private forest owners in northern Sweden have about forest damage, to what extent they can identify damage in their own forests, and what they feel about different management options that have been proposed as possible measures to reduce the occurrence of forest damage.
Why did you want to investigate forest owners' knowledge and attitudes regarding forest damage?
- The occurrence of forest damage is a problem in large parts of the country, and since private forest owners own half of all forests, they have an important role to play in addressing and preventing damage issues. Therefore, it is important for stakeholders to understand what they know and what they think about forest management in order to provide the right support and services to those forest owners who need it.
Your study shows that 1 in 5 forest owners lack knowledge about the damage situation in their forest and how to recognise the most common types of damage. Why is that problematic?
- The fact that forest owners are unaware of the damage in their forest is problematic because it means that potential damage may not be addressed or that measures are taken too late. This affects them personally when forest values are lost, but it also risks impacting others if, for example, insect infestations are allowed to spread over larger areas. Encouraging more forest owners to visit their forest regularly would therefore be beneficial for damage control.
Which type of damage are forest owner generally best at recognising?
- In my study, the most common type of damage that forest owners said they could recognise was browsing damage caused by moose. This is related to the fact that it is a frequently occuring type of damage.
What else did you find in the study?
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The study showed that female forest owners generally rated their own knowledge level lower than the men did, but how much of this is due to actual differences in expertise and how much is linked to factors like self-confidence is unclear. Another interesting finding was that about half of the forest owners lacked an up-to-date forest management plan, and since previous studies have shown that those with a management plan are more likely to prevent damage, it would be beneficial if the proportion of owners with a plan could be increased.
