Who is responsible for stewarding Vermont’s forests? We all play a part, but when the rubber meets the road (or leaf litter), it’s YOU, the individual forest landowners, who care for most of our state’s forested land. At NorthWoods, we’ve known this for years, and the results of our recent Forest Landowner Survey reinforced this. Keep reading to hear some of the insights and statistics from 27 landowners who responded to the survey. (if you would like to participate, the survey is still open! Click here to start!)
Landowners who participated in the survey all had previous connections with NorthWoods, through our forestry consulting services and/or other programs. We know that people are drawn to NorthWoods for many reasons, and although we can’t say for sure that our survey results are representative of everyone in the NEK, we think these results will ring true with many of you.
After asking for some background information about the forest ownership (acreage, involvement in various programs, etc), our survey dives into the heart of the matter: your interests, goals and motivations in managing your forest.
48% consider wildlife habitat as their most important management goal, and 78% rank it in their top-3 goals.
Wildlife Habitat
Wildlife habitat was a primary interest among landowners in our survey, with 48% considering it their most important management goal, and 78% ranking it in their top-three goals. Similar numbers valued forest health and biodiversity. This is no surprise, with national landowner surveys showing similar high levels of interest in wildlife and forest health. Reasons for this interest in wildlife varied, with some landowners describing the value of hunting and harvesting wild game to feed their families, while others found the greatest value in walking, watching, and filming wildlife.
Recreation
Recreation was another hot topic among landowners. Personal recreational use was a top-three priority for 67% of landowners, while relatively few landowners (15%) considered public recreational access to be one of their top-three goals. A few landowners cited issues with trespassers, but most simply described their forest as a place where they could find solitude and recreational opportunities shared mainly with their families. Popular activities included hiking, snowshoeing, mountain biking, wildlife viewing, and skiing.
Personal recreational use was a top-3 priority for 67% of landowners, while relatively few landowners (15%) considered public recreational access to be one of their top-3 goals.
7% of landowners ranked forest product income as one of their top-three priorities, and 96% said they did not feel it was necessary for their land to “pay” for itself.
Timber Management
Timber management and harvesting of forest products gathered varying responses. While only 7% of landowners ranked forest product income as one of their top-three priorities, and 96% said they did not feel it was necessary for their land to “pay” for itself, many landowners described the value of harvesting their own firewood, offsetting property taxes by selling timber, collecting maple sap, building with wood from their land, and other product-based activities. It was clear that most landowners didn’t consider profit to be the “bottom line” for land ownership, but the interest and level of activity in logging and other forest product harvesting was variable, and showed a diverse array of management approaches.
Why do you own land in Vermont?
A seemingly simple, open-ended question on the survey, “Why do you own land in Vermont?”, drew some of the most inspiring responses. Landowners wrote of the importance of the land to them, as well as the importance of sharing it with younger generations. Many landowners described their connection to the land through their own timber harvesting, trail building, hiking, hunting, snowshoeing, and other activities on their land.
“It’s a tradition to be able to own land. I worked hard to get here and I enjoy walking on and working on my own land” wrote one landowner.
Privacy and open space around homes was a common theme, although most landowners said they enjoy sharing their land with wildlife (“The best neighbors are animals, when they appear for a visit,” wrote another lifelong Vermonter).
Landowners recognized the value of their property as part of a larger forested landscape, as well: one landowner wrote, “I was originally inspired to invest all the money I had in land in the hopes of preventing subdivision”, and another shared, “We do not really consider ourselves as landowners as much as caretakers, with the reward of seeing the land and wildlife respond to our management efforts”. And many people simply wrote that they “love living here”.
NW Forestry Consulting Services
An important goal of this survey was for NorthWoods to find out what aspects of our forestry consulting services are most useful to you, as landowners, and where we can offer more. When asked about the process of having a forest management plan prepared by a forester, 73% of landowners said that the most useful part of the process was walking their land and/or talking with a forester. While many landowners found the management plan, maps, and other resources to be useful, this response reinforced what we have heard over the years of offering forestry consulting services, which is that landowners value the time spent in the woods with our forestry staff. And we value it, too. We try to make this a central part of our forestry consulting in every project.
We hope you will continue to share your motivations and interests in owning forestland, and we look forward to walking the woods and working with you!