Forest extraction is an important livelihood activity for millions of low-income households in rural areas of developing countries. Understanding the choices households make to extract forest products can help formulate strategies for preventing livelihood strains associated with forest degradation. This article evaluates the nature, extent and determinants of forest extraction among rural households in western Kenya. Data were obtained from a survey of 924 randomly selected households in the Mt. Elgon area in western Kenya.

Payment for ecosystem service (PES) programs are increasingly being promoted as suitable mechanisms for addressing degradation of forest resources in developing countries. While interest in PES has grown over the last decade, empirical research on factors influencing household involvement in PES remains limited. This paper analyses factors influencing household participation in a forestry PES scheme in Kenya.

Effective sustainable natural resource management asks for an integrated approach to allow the involvement of actors in the management process. This paper intends to measure willingness to pay (WTP) and its determinants for watershed conservation, and then link it to the calculated costs of conservation.

A cross-sectional data from 200 households residing in Igunga town are analysed using the probit model. The key findings show that, on average, households are willing to pay TZS4,920 per month, which approximately equals TZS260m per year, for the entire number of