Conflict camouflaging in public administration – A case study in nature conservation policy in Lower Saxony

A balanced management of forest conflicts that considers both nature conservation and economic concerns requires the recognition and communication of these concerns within the decision‐making procedures of public administration. Thus, the visibility of conflicts is an important condition for balanced conflict resolutions. The analysis of public administration forms shows, theoretically and empirically, that different patterns support the visibility of conflicts in specific ways, mainly by offering the potential for the development of independent expertise and its integration into consideration procedures. Combining different organisation forms increases the potential for balanced conflict resolutions. The effect of this potential depends on its utilization by administrative resources. In the case of administrative reform in the German federal state of Lower Saxony, the utilization of this potential was neglected, reducing the visibility of nature conservation concerns. This had far‐reaching consequences for the resolution of forest conflicts. Economically‐biased resolutions become camouflaged by keeping conservation issues invisible, neglecting them within administrative procedures and within the operations of forest owners whilst making legal and political claims to their consideration, so as to be able to pretend that conflict resolutions are balanced in their approach.