Forest carbon survey: Americans back restoration and wildfire risk reduction more than limiting forest conversion on public lands

New research from West Virginia University shows that public support for forest carbon management on U.S. public lands depends heavily on the strategy. Survey respondents favored restoration and wildfire risk reduction more than limiting forest conversion. Support was stronger among people who are aware of climate change, trust scientists and public agencies, and place ecological value on public lands. The findings, published in Frontiers in Forests and Global Change, come from a nonprobability Qualtrics panel, so the results describe associations rather than causal effects or nationally representative numbers. Still, the pattern is clear: agencies should link carbon objectives to concrete ecological and community benefits, communicate trade-offs, and use strategy-specific outreach rather than generic carbon messaging.