A survey on attitudes of landholders to native forest on farmland

Abstract

Results of a survey on attitudes of landholders to remnants of native forest on private land will be presented in this study. The Catlins District, an isolated forest area in the south-east of the South Island of New Zealand, was chosen as the research area. The basis for analysis was provided through an extensive questionnaire survey which included tangible attitudinal variables such as frequency of use of private and surrounding forests, past and future clearing behaviour and subscription to conservation organizations, and less tangible variables such as mental images about forests, opinion on attitudinal change over time and the importance of private native forests for their aesthetic value. Spatial attitudinal differences within the research will be mentioned, and particular attention will be given to variables such as age, education, amount of native forest on the farm and time spent on the farm by the family. The findings will be compared with similar surveys carried out in other agricultural landscapes with remnant natural ecosystems.