Community and park manager's perceptions of protected area management: a southeast Queensland study

Abstract

Protected areas face a suite of impacts from anthropogenic climate change and land use change, and current management approaches may not conserve these areas adequately as these changes occur. Most protected areas require the cooperation and support of local communities and an understanding of stakeholder values and perspectives. Collaborative approaches to management are most likely when there are shared perspectives on key issues. A survey and series of interviews were conducted in the Scenic Rim region in southeast Queensland, Australia, to gain an understanding of the public's and natural resource managers' perceptions of climate change, likely impacts on the local natural environment and management of protected areas. The community, protected area neighbours and park managers in the Scenic Rim had a good understanding of climate change and its likely impacts and were concerned about the natural environment. Managers' perceptions were largely aligned with the perceptions of the local community, but with significant differences in views concerning management of recreation, feral species and fire. Where perceptions align, programs and conservation practices can be undertaken in a cooperative way that should minimise obstacles to successful implementation. Differences can pose challenges to park management.