Social perception of forest management: the case of the peri-urban forest of Monte Morello (Florence, Italy)

Urban and peri-urban forests play a relevant role for the urban population providing recreational and relaxing opportunities, improving air and water quality, and maintaining local biodiversity. In the last century, anthropic pressure and social requests on urban and peri-urban forests was drastically increased. In this context, surveys aimed to investigate the opinions and preferences of residents and visitors about urban and peri-urban forests are relevant in order to supply useful information to the local managers. The aim of the present study is to investigate social preferences for aesthetic and functional characteristics of the Monte Morello peri-urban forest in Tuscany after two different silvicultural treatments (traditional thinning and selective thinning). In order to collect the social preferences a semi-structured questionnaire was administered in spring-summer 2016 to 201 visitors of the Monte Morello peri-urban forest. The results of the survey show that the respondents prefer mixed forests with a horizontal and vertical differentiated stand structure. The respondents prefer three benefits (ecosystem services) provided by the Monte Morello forest: recreational opportunities, carbon dioxide sequestration and biodiversity conservation. In addition, the results show that respondents prefer from the aesthetic point of view the peri-urban forest of Monte Morello after the selective thinning. Conversely, the scenario status quo is the least appreciated due to the high amount of deadwood. The results of the present study provide quali-quantitative information useful for the decision makers (forest planners and managers) in order to define forest management strategies to enhance a peri-urban forest from the recreational point of view and to increase the site attractiveness.