The effect of information transfer related to soil biodiversity on Flemish citizens' preferences for forest management

Despite its essential role in the delivery of ecosystem services, forest soil biodiversity experiences pressures, especially of anthropogenic origin. Forest management can harm or support soil biodiversity, depending on the management decisions taken, but currently generally overlooks soils. Management decisions considerably depend on public opinion, that often conflicts with foresters' viewpoint and differs from what is ecologically optimal. Moreover, public opinion is mostly ignorant of soil biodiversity, creating opportunities for information to strengthen consideration of soil biodiversity amongst citizens. Therefore, this study assesses public preferences for forest management affecting soil biodiversity, and investigates the effect of an information treatment related to soil biodiversity on these preferences. For this purpose, we conducted a discrete choice experiment with a representative sample of 299 Flemish citizens, including an information treatment in a within subjects study design. Results showed that the information treatment significantly increased preferences for higher shares of old trees and dead wood, tree species mixing and tree logging through fixed logging roads, which support soil biodiversity. Heterogeneity in preferences was found but decreased after the information treatment. Specifically, 67% of the respondents focused on aesthetics and recreation before the information treatment, while their preferences for biodiversity components, tree logging and regulating ecosystem services considerably increased after the information treatment. Providing information is expected to increase preferences of these individuals most, who generally were less familiar with forests and soil biodiversity. On the other hand, familiar individuals more knowledgeable of soil biodiversity disclosed preferences that encouraged a wider set of forest management intensities. Policy makers can use this information to increase valuation of soil biodiversity by citizens regarding their forest management preferences. Eventually, this can help to achieve public acceptance of management choices that support soil biodiversity and foster adoption of such choices amongst foresters

The effect of information transfer related to soil biodiversity on Flemish citizens' preferences for forest management

Despite its essential role in the delivery of ecosystem services, forest soil biodiversity experiences pressures, especially of anthropogenic origin. Forest management can harm or support soil biodiversity, depending on the management decisions taken, but currently generally overlooks soils. Management decisions considerably depend on public opinion, that often conflicts with foresters' viewpoint and differs from what is ecologically optimal. Moreover, public opinion is mostly ignorant of soil biodiversity, creating opportunities for information to strengthen consideration of soil biodiversity amongst citizens. Therefore, this study assesses public preferences for forest management affecting soil biodiversity, and investigates the effect of an information treatment related to soil biodiversity on these preferences. For this purpose, we conducted a discrete choice experiment with a representative sample of 299 Flemish citizens, including an information treatment in a within subjects study design. Results showed that the information treatment significantly increased preferences for higher shares of old trees and dead wood, tree species mixing and tree logging through fixed logging roads, which support soil biodiversity. Heterogeneity in preferences was found but decreased after the information treatment. Specifically, 67% of the respondents focused on aesthetics and recreation before the information treatment, while their preferences for biodiversity components, tree logging and regulating ecosystem services considerably increased after the information treatment. Providing information is expected to increase preferences of these individuals most, who generally were less familiar with forests and soil biodiversity. On the other hand, familiar individuals more knowledgeable of soil biodiversity disclosed preferences that encouraged a wider set of forest management intensities. Policy makers can use this information to increase valuation of soil biodiversity by citizens regarding their forest management preferences. Eventually, this can help to achieve public acceptance of management choices that support soil biodiversity and foster adoption of such choices amongst foresters

What do scientists and managers know about soil biodiversity? Comparative knowledge mapping for sustainable forest management

status: publishe

What do scientists and managers know about soil biodiversity? : Comparative knowledge mapping for sustainable forest management

Soil biodiversity is crucial for maintaining forest health and safeguarding forest ecosystem services delivery, but it is under increasing human pressure. Forest management puts pressure on soil biodiversity, but has also the potential to support soil biodiversity recovery, depending on which decisions forest managers make. These decisions are highly influenced by managers' perception and understanding. Nevertheless, insights into forest managers' understanding of soils and their biodiversity are largely lacking. This paper addresses this gap by studying private and public forest managers' understanding of soil biodiversity and comparing their level of knowledge with scientists' knowledge. In addition, this paper assesses the effects of context on understanding by comparing between two regions (NW of Flanders, Belgium, and NE of Romania). Specifically, knowledge was elicited using semi-structured interviews based on an integrated framework. The interviews were coded and analyzed using a Fuzzy Cognitive Mapping approach. In total, 24 interviews were conducted after selecting respondents using a purposive sampling design. Our results indicate that forest managers are aware of the crucial role of soil biodiversity and possess practical and context-specific understanding, but lack in-depth knowledge related to ecosystem processes and functions and soil state variables, compared to scientists. In addition, managers did not seem to explicitly consider soil biodiversity in their management decisions, but instead seemed to treat soil more as a black box. While scientists had a more detailed understanding, their understanding also depended on their background as researchers and mostly overlooked practical, site-specific implications. Moreover, we found that local context influenced respondents' understanding, especially related to drivers and pressures that affect soil biodiversity. Hence, communication strategies oriented towards forest managers seem suitable to maximize adoption of adaptive management practices that support soil biodiversity. These strategies should go beyond awareness raising and specifically explain ecosystem processes and functions linked to forest soil biodiversity to improve managers' in-depth understanding, while taking their socio-economic and forestry context into account. Further, policy design should enhance conditions for knowledge exchange and discussion about soil biodiversity. The methodology presented in this study might help such knowledge integration of scientists and forest managers in order to combine in-depth understanding of soil biodiversity and applicability of management practices in specific forest contexts

The contribution of belowground processes to tree diversity effects on ecosystem functioning

Many studies found evidence for a positive relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in a large variety of systems. However, there is still debate about the mechanisms that drive these relationships. Insight in ecological linkages between above- and belowground components is critical to understand the functioning of terrestrial ecosystems. Recent observational and experimental research showed positive tree diversity effects on productivity and it has also been shown that tree diversity can improve the resistance of forests to pests. But whether the effects are driven by aboveground or belowground processes and through which mechanisms is largely unknown, especially at larger spatial scales. Moreover, it is known that the magnitude of effects and causal pathways might change along environmental gradients according to the ‘stress gradient hypothesis’. Changing climatic, biotic, and edaphic conditions and associated stress intensity at the continental scale, thus may distinctly affect biodiversity-functioning relationships and the driving mechanisms across forests. Furthermore, there is still much controversy regarding the potential role of diversity in reducing the vulnerability of forests to a changing climate. Here we explored the relative importance of above- and belowground mechanisms driving tree diversity effects on ecosystem functioning in European forests. The study was conducted across a network of permanent forest plots in Europe, established through the FunDivEUROPE project. The network was designed to test the effects of diversity on ecosystem functioning in mature European forests, spanning much of the continent’s bioclimatic gradient. To test whether the effect of tree diversity on ecosystem functioning is driven by above- or belowground processes, we modelled causal pathways using structural equation modelling. We explored the linkages for a set of ecosystem functions, for which diversity effects have been observed.status: publishe