Payments for carbon sequestration to alleviate development pressure in a rapidly urbanizing region

Forest Science
By: , and 

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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine individuals' willingness to enroll in voluntary payments for carbon sequestration programs through the use of a discrete choice experiment delivered to forest owners living in the rapidly urbanizing region surrounding Charlotte, North Carolina. We examined forest owners' willingness to enroll in payments for carbon sequestration policies under different levels of financial incentives (annual revenue), different contract lengths, and different program administrators (e.g., private companies versus a state or federal agency). We also examined the influence forest owners' sense of place had on their willingness to enroll in hypothetical programs. Our results showed a high level of ambivalence toward participating in payments for carbon sequestration programs. However, both financial incentives and contract lengths significantly influenced forest owners' intent to enroll. Neither program administration nor forest owners' sense of place influenced intent to enroll. Although our analyses indicated that payments from carbon sequestration programs are not currently competitive with the monetary returns expected from timber harvest or property sales, certain forest owners might see payments for carbon sequestration programs as a viable option for offsetting increasing tax costs as development encroaches and property values rise.

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Publication type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Title Payments for carbon sequestration to alleviate development pressure in a rapidly urbanizing region
Series title Forest Science
DOI 10.5849/FS-2016-084R1
Volume 63
Issue 3
Year Published 2017
Language English
Publisher Society of American Foresters
Contributing office(s) Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center
Description 13 p
First page 270
Last page 282
Country United States
State Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, South Carolina
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