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COVID-19-induced visitor boom reveals the importance of forests as critical
infrastructure
#MMPMID32834768
Derks J
; Giessen L
; Winkel G
For Policy Econ
2020[Sep]; 118
(?): 102253
PMID32834768
show ga
During the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, countries around the globe have implemented a
certain degree of lockdown, restricting citizens' freedom of movement and freedom
of assembly. This article aims to illustrate the impact that the measures against
the spread of COVID-19 have on forest recreation, building on a study in an urban
context around Bonn (Germany) that was conducted between April 2019 and February
2020. The quantitative and qualitative data on urban forest visits from that
study were supplemented with new census data supported by selected expert
interviews. We found that visitor numbers since the inception of COVID-19
measures in March 2020 have more than doubled. Visitor patterns have drastically
shifted, from an even distribution throughout the day with small peaks before and
after office hours to a culmination in the late afternoon. Lastly, the
interviewed forestry professionals have noted that a new set of visitors, i.e.
young people, families with children and non-locals, has arrived to the forest.
This influx of more and novice visitors poses challenges for forest managers and
urban forest policy. It is, however, also a unique opportunity for a substantial
engagement of forestry with society at large, that has implications for forest
policy, especially in urban areas, possibly beyond the COVID-19 pandemic era.
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