Cave Closure Study - Monongahela NF

[PYoungbaer]

A social science research paper on the social and economic impact of cave closures has just been released, with the case study focusing on the Monongahela National Forest. Here's the link to the study, which is posted on the NSS' WNS web page:

http://www.caves.org/WNS/Caves_and_WNS_social_economic_final.pdf

[iceclimb]

Interviews with nine key informants from the caving community were used to develop deeper understanding of the MNF caving stakeholder group in this case study.

9?? Why 9? I'm glad this type of research is being done, but 9? Seems like qualitative analysis of a small group. I also wonder about the selection process, as choosing people based on reference from the Forest Service would lead to selection bias.

Really interesting that the site small, but not insignificant financial impact though.