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CECS, Survey of wildlands professionals and the general public in California, 2022

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Sep 08, 2023 version files 1.46 MB

Abstract

Natural resource managers are increasingly required to make tradeoffs between the economical, ecological, and social outcomes of different management actions, in many cases making the ability to ensure public acceptance an important part of the effective management of natural resources. However, in comparison to our knowledge of the drivers of the economic, and ecological aspects of natural-resource management, our understanding of the drivers of social acceptance remains limited.

Relying on survey data collected in California, we examine what factors drive a belief among the general public in the capacity of managers to limit the occurrence of natural-resource events related to wildfires, water shortages, and utility failures. These results are also compared with a sample consisting of natural-resource professionals. Our results show that the general public had a more positive view of management capacity than did the professionals sampled, also displaying greater levels of trust and belief in the efficiency of management, while being less concerned about potential future risks.

We also found structural differences in attitude formation between the public and the natural-resource professionals. Personal experience with natural-resource events and perceived future risk drove beliefs about management capacity in both samples, while level of trust and belief in the efficiency of management only had statistically significant effects in the public sample. These findings suggest that natural-resource management in California is likely to enjoy high levels of social acceptance among the public, as long as interventions continue to be perceived as effective. Findings also highlight structural differences in attitude formation between the public and natural-resource professionals in California.