Scott Barrett
· Associate ProfessorVerifiedVirginia Tech · Natural Resource Management
Active 1994–2026
About
Our faculty are engaged and dedicated educators, advisors, and mentors and have been honored with numerous university-wide and national teaching awards. Our classes emphasize the latest research coupled with cutting-edge technology and practices making our graduates among the most competitive candidates in the country for natural resource professions. Our curricula include everything from protected lands management and urban forestry, to industrial forestry operations and ecology.
Research topics
- Geography
- Environmental science
- Forestry
- Ecology
- Biology
- Medicine
- Nursing
- Geology
- Economic growth
- Economics
- Business
- Agronomy
- Environmental planning
- Finance
- Family medicine
- Socioeconomics
- Agroforestry
- Environmental health
- Engineering
Selected publications
International Journal of Forest Engineering · 2026-04-12
articleCorrespondingInternational Journal of Forest Engineering · 2026-04-14
articleCorrespondingJournal of Soil and Water Conservation · 2026-01-02
articleSenior authorLandowner Optimal Streamside Management Zone Width Decisions in Forest Harvesting
Journal of Forest Economics · 2025-07-24
articleWe examine a landowner’s problem of deciding on streamside management zone (SMZ) width under common regulatory constraints concerning water protection standards, assuming there is a prototypical landscape consisting of a productive planted forest and a stream buffer area of fixed starting width. We characterize an optimal width of these riparian buffer forests, and we determine how this decision depends on features such as expected erosion value, SMZ slope, and soil type. We also examine the intensity at which a landowner chooses to harvest within the SMZ, assuming they have the option to do so. The jointness of the decision on SMZ width and its harvesting intensity with other decisions such as rotation ages of the productive forest is analyzed theoretically and through a simulation for a prototypical pine forest in Virginia, United States. We show how several landscape and decision factors may influence SMZ decisions while still allowing the landowner to maximize land value. Given an acceptable rate of sediment delivery to the stream and tax incentives to set aside land as a buffer area, we find that (1) higher SMZ slopes, finer soil texture and higher harvest rates within the SMZ in general lead to a wider buffer area; (2) the impact of harvest intensity on sediment retention may change the optimal SMZ width, productive forest rotation age, and SMZ harvest intensity combination. We also find that not harvesting within the SMZ (even when allowed) might be optimal in the presence of a tax incentive depending on the effects of harvest intensity on soil retention and despite the value of timber in the buffer forest. Our model and results can be used to inform future policy aimed at reducing sediment runoff from harvesting operations into water bodies while simultaneously improving land value for the landowner and promoting sustainable water resource management.
SSRN Electronic Journal · 2025-01-01
preprintOpen accessSenior authorJournal of Cystic Fibrosis · 2025-10-01
articleJournal of Environmental Management · 2025-05-13 · 2 citations
articleSenior authorJournal of Forestry · 2024 · 1 citations
Senior authorCorresponding- Environmental science
- Forestry
- Agroforestry
Biomass and Bioenergy · 2024-06-08 · 20 citations
articleInternational Journal of Forest Engineering · 2023-11-09 · 11 citations
articleSenior authorThe wood supply chain in the United States (U.S.) is experiencing significant challenges related to truck transportation. Obstacles include truck driver recruitment and retention, increases in insurance and fuel costs, insufficient training, and truck or part shortages. This project sought to evaluate transportation inefficiencies in the Georgia, U.S. wood supply chain and to determine obstacles leading to a disconnection between logging business owners, foresters, and truck drivers. The survey targeted two populations: 1) logging business owners/foresters; and 2) log truck drivers. In addition, four case studies were conducted to evaluate innovative strategies that established businesses have enacted. Both groups indicated that a fair annual log truck driver salary should range from $60,000 to $79,000 (USD); however, owners/foresters indicated lower salaries to be more favorable (p = 0.009) and drivers indicated higher salaries to be more favorable (p = 0.029). Half of log truck drivers had been involved in timber transportation for 15 years or more, but 24% of respondents had been involved for less than 5 years, indicating that a new generation of log truck drivers are entering the workforce. Barriers to becoming a log truck driver include limited fringe benefits, lower wages relative to other trucking sectors, and lack of driver experience. Timber transportation capacity is impacted the most by insurance, driver availability, and fuel prices. This study confirmed that there are numerous obstacles facing timber transportation, but also found agreement between drivers and business owners, as well as innovative strategies that are being used throughout the region to improve efficiency.
Frequent coauthors
- 57 shared
M. Chad Bolding
University of Georgia
- 40 shared
W. Michael Aust
Virginia Tech
- 17 shared
John F. Munsell
Virginia Tech
- 10 shared
Erik Schilling
- 8 shared
Brent S. Hawks
Weyerhaeuser (United States)
- 7 shared
Jennifer L. Gagnon
Virginia Tech
- 7 shared
Yogini Jani
University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- 6 shared
Wasim Baqir
Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
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