FORESTS ON THE EDGE - USDA Forest Service

12USDA Forest ServiceFigure 5—Private forest landowners in Georgia’s metropolitan counties are less likely to participate in government incentiveprograms for protecting soils and tree planting than are landowners in more rural counties (Harris and DeForest 1993).g Increases in fire risk because increased housingdensities in forested landscapes generate morepotential for ignitions; make firefighting andfire preparedness in such areas more difficult,dangerous, and expensive; and restrict availablemanagement options for mitigating threats toforest lands (Grace and Wade 2000, Podur et al.2002, Russel and McBride 2003).USDA Forest ServiceFigure 6—In western Virginia, increasing human populationdensities have affected long-term timber managementcapabilities by reducing area of timberland and commercialvolume of growing stock by some 40 percent from their measuredvalues. Researchers found that the probability of forestmanagement approaches zero at population densities ofabout 150 people per square mile (Wear et al. 1999).g Greater loss of life and property owing towildfire because houses located in forestedlandscapes are more likely to experiencethreats from wildfire (Beringer 2000).g Changes in scenic quality and recreationalopportunities owing to loss of open space, decreasedparcel size, and fragmentation, all ofwhich can degrade the recreational experiencefor hikers, campers, and mountain bikers andlead to increased likelihood of land use conflicts(Gobster and Rickenbach 2004, Patterson et al.2003).