VII NWOS Telephone Interview Guide

VII. NWOS Telephone Survey Guide
INTERVIEWER INTRODUCTION
Interviewer text:
Hello, this is calling on behalf of the Field Office of USDA's National Agricultural Statistics
Service. We are conducting the National Woodland Owner Survey for the U.S. Forest Service and you were
selected to participate. Several weeks ago you were mailed a copy of this survey. We have not received it
and were hoping to collect the data by telephone today. Your cooperation is extremely important to the
accuracy of the survey and your individual report will be kept confidential (under Title 7 of the U.S. Code and
CIPSEA (Public Law 107-347)). Response is voluntary.

The rest of the interview time is allotted to going through the survey and recording landowner’s answers. These
interviews will a subset of the National Woodland Owner Survey Short Form (below), with the interviewer
reading the questions and the landowner responding. Interviews will not go beyond the allotted time (15
minutes).
1. How many total acres of land do you currently own in ?
______acres
2. Wooded land covers XX% of the .
Wooded land includes:
 Timberland, forests, and woodlands
 Land at least 1 acre in size, 120 feet wide, and has at least 10% forest cover
 Land at least 1 acre in size, where trees were harvested and will grow again
Wooded land does not include:
 Christmas tree farms, orchards, or nurseries
 Land that is mowed for lawn

3.

4.
5.
6.

How many acres of wooded land do you currently own in ?
______acres
Which category below best describes your ownership?
Check only one.
__Individual
__Joint, with husband or wife,
__Joint, such as with other family members or friends
__Family partnership of family LLC or LLP
__Family trust or estate
__Corporation or business
__Other (please specify):____________
How many people are a part of this ownership, including you?
____owners
Do you currently own more than one separate, unconnected property with wooded land in Maine?
__Yes __No
Is your home (primary residence) on or within a mile of any of your wooded land in Maine?
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Not Applicable

Not Important

Of little importance

Moderately Important

Important

Very Important

__Yes __No __Not Applicable
7. Do you have a vacation home or cabin on or within a mile of any of your wooded land in Maine?
__Yes __No __Not Applicable
8. Do you own any land within a mile of any of your wooded land in Maine that is farmed or ranched? For
the purpose of this survey, a farm or ranch is a place where, in most years, $1,000 or more is earned
from the sale of crops (other than forest products) or animals.
__Yes __No __Not Applicable
9. How important are the following as reasons for why you currently own your wooded land in Maine?
If you own one property, check one box for each item.
If you own more than one property in Maine, consider them all and check one or more boxes for each item.

To enjoy beauty or scenery
To protect nature or biological
diversity
To protect water resources
To protect or improve wildlife
habitat
For land investment
For privacy
To raise my family
To pass land on to my children or
other heirs
For firewood
For timber products, such as logs or
pulpwood
For nontimber forest products,
such as berries or maple syrup
For hunting
For recreation, other than hunting
Other
(Please specify):
10. a. How did you get your wooded land in Maine?
Check all that apply.
__Purchased
__Inherited
__Received as gift
__Other (please specify):___________________
b. IN what year did you, personally, first take ownership of your wooded land in Maine?
______Year
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11. Have you ever sold or given away any of your wooded land in Maine?
__Yes __No
12. Who makes the management decisions, such as whether or not to harvest trees, for your wooded land
in Maine?
Check all that apply.
__Me
__My husband or wife
__My children
__My parents
__Another family member
__My business partner
__My land manager or forester
__Other (please specify):___________________
13. A management or stewardship plan may be written in order to help the landowner meet their goals for
their wooded land.
a. How familiar are you with these types of plans?
Extremely
Familiar
__

Moderately
Familiar
__

Somewhat
Familiar
__

Slightly
Familiar
__

Not at all
Familiar
__

b. Do you have a written management or stewardship plan for any of your wooded land in ?
__Yes
__ No __Don’t know
If yes, please answer c.
If no or don’t know, skip to question 14.
c.

Have you taken actions to implement it?
__Yes
__ No __ Don't know

14. Have trees ever been cut or removed from any of the wooded land that you own in since you
have owned it?
__Yes __No
If yes, please answer a, b and c.
If no, skip to question 15.
a. What types of products were harvested?
Check all that apply.
__Firewood
__Logs
__Wood chips or pulpwood
__Other (please specify):___________________
b. Why were the trees cut or removed?
Check all that apply.
__For sale __For personal use
__other
c. Was a professional forester used to plan, mark, contract, or oversee any of the cuts?
__Yes
__No __Don’t know __Not applicable

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15. Which of the following have occurred on your wooded land in in the past 5 years?
Check all that apply.
__Cut and/or removed trees for sale
__Cut and/or removed trees for own use
__Collected nontimber forest products, such as berries or ginseng
__Reduced fire hazard
__Controlled burn/prescribed fire
__Eliminated or reduced invasive plants
__Eliminated or reduced unwanted insects or diseases
__Road construction or maintenance
__Trail construction or maintenance
__Improved wildlife habitat
__Livestock grazing
__Other (please specify):______________________________
__None of the above
16. Which of the following will likely occur on your wooded land in in the next 5 years?
Check all that apply
__Cut and/or remove trees for sale
__Cut and/or remove trees for own use
__Collect nontimber forest products, such as berries and ginseng
__Reduce fire hazard
__Controlled burn/prescribed fire
__Eliminate or reduce invasive plants
__Eliminate or reduce unwanted insects or diseases
__Road construction or maintenance
__Trail construction or maintenance
__Improve wildlife habitat
__Livestock grazing
__Other (please specify):_________________________________
__None of the above
__Don't know
17. To encourage good woodland management, groups have created green certification programs to
ecognize landowners who comply with the groups’ standards. Examples include Tree Farm, Forest
Stewardship Council (FSC), and Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI).
a. How familiar are you with green certification?
Extremely
Moderately Somewhat
Slightly
Not at all
Familiar
Familiar
Familiar
Familiar
Familiar
__
__
__
__
__
b. Is any of your wooded land in currently green certified?
__Yes
__No __Don’t know

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18. Some state and local governments have programs that defer, reduce, or eliminate property taxes for
wooded land. In , there are the Tree Growth Tax Law and Open Space Tax Law programs.
a. How familiar are you with these programs?
Extremely
Moderately Somewhat
Slightly
Not at all
Familiar
Familiar
Familiar
Familiar
Familiar
__
__
__
__
__
b. Is any of your wooded land in currently enrolled in one of these programs or a similar one?
__Yes
__No __Don’t know
19. Development rights for land can be sold or voluntarily given away. This is usually in the form of a
conservation easement.
a. How familiar are you with this concept?
Extremely
Moderately Somewhat
Slightly
Not at all
Familiar
Familiar
Familiar
Familiar
Familiar
__
__
__
__
__
b. Have development rights been sold or voluntarily given away on any of your wooded land in
by either you or a previous owner?
__Yes
__No __Don’t know
c. If No or Don’t know, how likely are you to do so in the next 5 years?
Extremely
Extremely
Not
Likely
Likely
Undecided
Unlikely
Unlikely Applicable
__
__
__
__
__
__
20. Cost-share programs provide landowners with money to help them establish or otherwise manage
their wooded land. Examples include the Conservation Reserve Program, the Environmental Quality
Incentives Program, the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program, and various state funded programs.
a. How familiar are you with this cost-share programs?
Extremely
Moderately Somewhat
Slightly
Not at all
Familiar
Familiar
Familiar
Familiar
Familiar
__
__
__
__
__
b. In the past 5 years, have you used a cost-share program to help you establish or manage your
wooded land in ?
__Yes
__No __Don’t know
21. Have you leased your wooded land in Maine (other than for logging)?
__Yes __No
If yes, please answer a and b.
If no, skip to question 22.
a. What leasing activities did they use it for?
Check all that apply.
__Hunting
__Recreation (other than hunting)
__To graze/pasture livestock
__Other (please specify):_________________
b. Have any of these leasing activities occurred on your land in the last 5 years?
__Yes
__No

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22. In efforts to reduce the impacts of climate change, public programs and private markets have been
created that pay owners of wooded land for capturing or sequestering carbon.
a. How familiar are you with this cost-share programs?
Extremely
Moderately Somewhat
Slightly
Not at all
Familiar
Familiar
Familiar
Familiar
Familiar
__
__
__
__
__
b. Is any of your wooded land in currently enrolled in one of these carbon capture programs or
markets?
__Yes
__No __Don’t know
23. a. Who, with your permission, has hunted, hiked, or otherwise recreated on your wooded land in Maine
in the past 5 years?
Check all that apply.
__Me and/or my husband or wife
__My children
__Other family members
__Friends
__Neighbors
__The general public for free
__The general public for a fee
__Other (please specify):__________________________
__Nobody -> If nobody, skip to question 24.
b. How did you/they recreate?
Check all that apply.
__Hunting
__Fishing
__Hiking/walking
__Bicycling
__Camping
__Horseback riding
__Skiing or snowshoeing
__Off-road vehicles, such as ATVs or snowmobiles

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__Other (please specify):_________________________
24. Is any of your wooded land in posted to restrict access and/or use by the general public?
__Yes __No

Not Applicable

No concern

Of little concern

Moderate concern

Concern

Great concern

25. Please indicate your level of concern about each of the following topics for your wooded land in
.
If you own one property, check one box for each item.
If you own more than one property in Maine, consider them all and check one or more boxes for each item.

Air pollution
Climate change
Damage from animals
Development of nearby lands
Drought or lack of water
Damage or noise from off-road vehicles
Government regulation
High property taxes
Invasive plants
Keeping land intact for future generations
Misuse of forested land, such as vandalism or dumping
Trespassing or poaching
Unwanted insects or diseases
Water pollution
Wildfire
Wind or ice storms
Other
(please specify):
26. How likely is it that you will sell or give away any of your wooded land in Maine in the next 5 years?
Extremely
Extremely
Not
Likely
Likely Undecided
Unlikely
Unlikely Applicable
__
__
__
__
__
__

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Strongly disagree

Disagree

Neither agree nor
disagree

Agree

Strongly agree

27. Please indicate your level of agreement with the following statements.
Check one box for each item.

I want my wooded land to stay wooded
I would sell my land if I was offered a reasonable price
I know my wooded land very well
I want to know more about my wooded land
I have a strong emotional attachment to my wooded
land
I believe my wooded land provides benefits to my
community
Please answer for the owner who makes most of the decisions for this property.
28. Are you retired?
__Yes
__No
29. What is or was your main occupation?
_____________
30. What is your age:
______
31. What is your gender?
__Male
__Female
32. What is the highest degree or level of education you have completed?
__Less than 12th grade
__High school/GED
__Some college
__Associate degree
__Bachelor’s degree
__Advanced degree
33. Are you of Hispanic or Latino origin?
__Yes
__No
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34. What is your race?
Select one or more.
__American Indian or Alaska Native
__Asian
__Black or African-America
__Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
__White
35. What is your household’s annual income?
__Less than $25,000
__$25,000 to $49,999
__$50,000 to $99,999
__$100,000 to $199,999
__$200,000 or more

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