The influence of China’s protected areas policy on households’ risk perception, forest investment, and revenue

Protected areas are an essential policy tool for biodiversity conservation in China as elsewhere, yet the impact of protected area policies on the livelihood of local households in China remains unknown. We contend that the protected area policy achieves the two goals of ecological conservation and livelihood improvement simultaneously. In this study, we empirically investigated the influence of the protected area policy on local households’ risk perception, forest investment, and forest revenue. We analyzed a sample consisting of households located inside or adjacent to two protected areas, namely, Wuyishan National Park and Longqishan Nature Reserve, both in Fujian Province. A total of 211 valid questionnaires were collected in 2021, and the data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The results indicate that the establishment of protected areas has a positive impact on forest revenues, mediated by risk perception and forest investment, while the average levels of perceived damage increased and perceived security decreased due to the protected area policy. Our study has implications for policymakers seeking to improve biodiversity and household livelihood around protected areas.