Dr. Michael Smith

Associate Professor, Natural Resources Planning

Contact Information:

Office: Natural Resources (NR) Building, Rm. 216

Phone: (707) 826-4291

E-mail: mds7001@humboldt.edu

Personal Statement:

I currently teach courses on land-use planning, environmental impact assessment, and rural community planning. My research interests integrate all of these subjects. My most recent research work involved assessing the effectiveness of rural communities in the western United States to plan for protecting their quality-of-life in the face of rapid population growth, as well as several projects in the local area examining development capacity and open space preservation.

I love working at Humboldt State for both my teaching and research because I can't imagine a better living laboratory for engaging in these subjects. Only a few hours from campus (and, in some cases, right next to campus) are several national parks, national forests, wilderness areas, a variety of rural communities and small towns, and one of the most diverse collections of ecosystems you'll find anywhere. You'll see everything from rugged coastlines, to wetlands, to old-growth redwood forests, to glaciated high alpine basins and meadows.

I've lived and traveled throughout much of the Western United States. I truly believe that this is one of the most intellectually stimulating and breathtakingly beautiful places to work and live.

Specialty Area:

Natural Resources Planning

Education/degrees:

• Ph.D. Utah State University (Natural Resources/Environmental Sociology)
• M.A. University of Wyoming (Geography and Recreation)
• B.A. University of California, Santa Cruz (Environmental Studies)

Courses Taught:

• NRPI 425 – Environmental Impact Assessment
• NRPI 465 – Rural Community Planning
• NRPI 310 – Introduction to Natural Resources Planning
• NRPI 475 – Senior Planning Practicum
• NRPI 580 – Community and Place

Research Interest:

My specific research interests center around the fields of environmental and social impact assessment, land use and environmental planning, and natural resource management and policy. Some of my recent research projects include a social impact assessment for potential grazing reductions on Bureau of Land Management lands in Wyoming; preparing an environmental impact assessment for a redevelopment plan for a rural northern California county; serving as principal investigator on a project funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture – National Research Initiative evaluating the effectiveness of land-use planning techniques for preserving quality-of-life in rapidly-growing rural communities in the western United States; co-principal investigator for a project funded by the California State Water Resources Control Board involving the creation of a model watershed-based land-use planning process; principal investigator for a project funded by the Resources Legacy Fund Foundation analyzing the existing potential for infill development to preserve open space lands in a rural northern California county; principal investigator for a project funded by the California Coastal Conservancy involving surveying northern California residents about attitudes toward open space and recreational trail use; and principal investigator for a project funded by Humboldt State University examining the impacts of the loss of agricultural land to development in northern California.

In the recent past I’ve worked on numerous research projects in the western United States examining national forest, national park, and national monument planning and management, rural community public land management and land use planning attitudes, the social and environmental impacts of siting hazardous waste facilities, and water conservation planning.

Publications:

Smith, Michael and Lisa Spadoni. 2005. “Evaluating the Effectiveness of Land-Use Planning Policies in Rapidly-Growing High-Amenity Communities in the Rocky Mountain States.” Chapter 14 in Green, Gary Paul, Steven Deller, and David Marcouiller. Amenities and Rural Development: Theory, Methods and Public Policy. Northhampton, MA: Edward Elgar Publishing Company.

Smith, Michael D. and Lisa M. Spadoni. 2004. Are Land-Use Planning Policies Effective in Protecting Open Space and Quality-of-Life: A Case Study from the Rocky Mountain West. Paper presented at the Tenth International Symposium on Society and Resource Management. Keystone, Colorado, June 2-6.

Smith, Michael D, Ruth Blyther, and Jan Matthews. 2004. The Lindsay Creek project: A watershed based, community directed planning process.” Paper presented at the annual meeting of the National Association of Environmental Professionals, Portland, Oregon, April 25-28.

Burdge, Rabel J., Susan Charnley, Michael Downs, Kurt Finsterbusch, Bill Freudenburg, Peter Fricke, Bob Gramling, Michael Smith, Brenda Kragh, Richard Stoffle, James G. Thompson, Gary Williams (The Interorganizational Committee on Principles and Guidelines for Social Impact Assessment). 2003. “Principles and guidelines for social impact assessment in the USA.” Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal 21(3):231- 250.

Smith, Michael D., Richard S. Krannich, and Lori M. Hunter. 2001. “Growth, decline, stability, and disruption: A longitudinal analysis of social well-being in four western ruralcommunities.” Rural Sociology 66(3):425-450.

Smith, Michael D. and Richard S. Krannich. 2000. ‘Culture clash’ revisited: Newcomer and longer-term residents’ attitudes toward land-use, development, and environmental issues in rural communities in the Rocky Mountain West. Rural Sociology 65(3):396-421.

Smith, Michael D. and Richard S. Krannich. 1998. Tourism dependence and resident attitudes. Annals of Tourism Research 25(4):783-802.

Krannich, Richard S. and Michael D. Smith. 1998. Local perceptions of public lands natural resource management in the rural West: Toward an improved understanding of the 'revolt in the west.’ Society and Natural Resources 11:677-695.

Parker, Michael, James G. Thompson, Robert R. Reynolds, Jr., and Michael D. Smith. 1995. Use and misuse of complex models: Examples from water demand management. Water Resources Bulletin 31(2): 257-263.