Attitudes and preferences toward co-operative agreements for management ofprivate forestlands in the North-eastern United States

Forest fragmentation is increasing throughout much of the United States. Co -operative management agreements are a potential solution to this problem a nd this case study suggests that non-industrial private landowners in the N orth-eastern United Stales are as likely to undertake collaborative managem ent programs as they are to undertake the same management programs independ ently. However the probability of undertaking any of the management program s examined in this study was low, suggesting that incentives for co-operati ve management between landowners may be needed. And, regardless of whether management is co-operative or independent, the estimated probability of pro gram adoption is higher when management focuses on amenities, such as wildl ife habitat compared to timber harvests. (C) 1999 Academic Press.