Who knew afforestation was such a challenge? Motivations and impediments to afforestation policy in New Zealand

Tree planting is becoming a global panacea for offsetting greenhouse gas emissions and providing other ecosystem services. New Zealand is no exception. In New Zealand, it is estimated that up to 1.2 million ha. of marginal and non-productive land could be planted in trees. Despite a number of incentive schemes in recent years, the desired level of planting has not been achieved. While ‘barriers’ have often been offered up as explanations for this lack of success, we have determined that before barriers, impediments and opportunities are explored, landowners first must see a need to plant trees. Therefore, we examine the motivations for planting trees on (farm) land as a way to help understand the barriers landowners face in planting trees and participating in incentive schemes. Overall, our results show that farmers' intentions to plant trees are motivated by a desire to improve farm productivity and improve the environment. However, the translation of these intentions into actions is most strongly influenced by the desire to improve productivity. These findings help policy makers design and develop more appropriate incentive schemes.