Jacqueline (Jackie) Dias
Environmental Conservation
Advisor: Brett Butler
Assessment of the economic impact and ecosystem service contributions on Forest Service Landowner Assistance program properties throughout the United States
Forests are really important ecosystems! They provide not only ecosystem services, like clean air and water, but also economic contributions for the landowner and surrounding community. By modelling timber harvesting reports and recreation data, I can quantify the economic impact two specific Landowner Assistance program properties have on the community in which they sit. Similarly, using carbon sequestration and storage data, I can model the social cost of carbon being removed from the atmosphere on that program property. The two specific programs I will be assessing are the Forest Stewardship Program and Forest Legacy Program. These two have their similarities and also differences. The Forest Stewardship Program predominately deals with private forest ownership, whereas the Forest Legacy Program deals with both public (through conservation easements) and private (through fee purchases). They both conserve land from development, therefore protecting the benefits I’m assessing.