October 3, 2022 – The National Visitor Use Monitoring (NVUM) survey is being conducted on the National Forests and Grasslands in Texas beginning in October of 2022 and will go through September 30, 2023. The information gathered is useful for forest planning and local community tourism planning. For example, it provides National Forest managers with an estimate of how many people actually recreate on the National Forest, what activities they engage in while there and how satisfied people were with their visit.
The public will encounter contract employees working on the National Forest and Grasslands in Texas in developed and dispersed recreation sites and along forest service roads. They will be out in all weather conditions, wearing bright orange vests and near a sign that says, “Traffic Survey Ahead.”
The economic impact to the local economy is also captured in the survey. The survey gathers basic visitor information. Surveys are voluntary and all responses are confidential; names are not included. Interviews will last about 10 minutes.
Questions include: where you recreated in the forest, how many people traveled with you, how long you were on the forest, what other recreation sites you visited while on the forest, and how satisfied you are with the facilities and services provided.
In addition, about a third of the visitors will be asked to complete a confidential survey on recreation spending during their trip.
“Although the survey is entirely voluntary, participation is essential so we can assess visitor experiences on the Forest and strive to make it a better place to visit,” said Ben Richardson, NFGT Recreation Program Manager. “We would appreciate it if visitors would pull over and answer a few questions. In addition, interviewers need to talk with local people using the forest and out-of-area visitors, so all types of visitors are represented in the study.”
