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1. Introduction to Sustainability

David Cottle

Learning objectivesOn completion of this topic you should be able to: Understand the key concepts of sustainability Recognise different scales of sustainability Have an overview of agricultural sustainability issues, with particular reference to the sheep

industry Have a view on the likely success of various government policies in regard to sustainable

agriculture

Key terms and conceptsSustainable agriculture, ecologically sustainable development, environmental management systems (EMS), catchment management, environmental indicators, sustainable land management.

Introduction to the topicThis topic provides an introduction to this unit ‘Sustainable Agriculture and Catchment Management’. The purpose of this introductory topic is to introduce to you the concept of sustainability and the issues related to sustainability that are currently being faced by Australian farmers. It will also provide an introduction to key sustainability principles, and the important organisations and policies that assist Australians to move towards a more sustainable future.

1.1 Unit overview“Think globally, act locally” “It is hard to be green when you are in the red”.

Two simple statements involving complex issues. What is done at the farm level can have flow-on effects to larger ecosystems and the actions of many farmers can ultimately influence the biosphere. Young (2000) points out that improved farm practices are more likely to be achieved by providing profitable solutions than by raising awareness and seeking attitude change.

By the end of this unit you should have clearer views on answers to questions such as ”Can farm production be clean, green and profitable?” and “Is environmental policy better directed at rewarding positive behaviour than penalising negative actions?” You should have acquired an in-depth knowledge of the issues involved in sustainable agriculture from the local farm level through to the broader catchment scale. The focus of government policy in land management in Australia is increasingly away from farm, district or sub-catchment levels and towards integrated catchments and regional scales (Hawarth 1997). This unit will mainly focus on sustainability at the farm and catchment level, however regional and global issues are addressed in later topics and some broader aspects of sustainable development are raised in this introductory topic. Sustainability goals need to be scale-dependent if they are to be meaningfully applied to land management or land use planning (Stafford Smith 1994).

RSNR403/503 Sustainable Land Management - 1 - 1©2009 The Australian Wool Education Trust licensee for educational activities University of New England

A pressing issue in the world today is the ever increasing threat to the planet posed by human domination of the biosphere. Agriculture and the need to clothe and feed a burgeoning population is no exception with major environmental issues arising through erosion, pollution, salinity, loss of biodiversity, eutrophication of waterways and the greenhouse effect, which are contributed to by agricultural practices such as vegetation clearing, chemical use and poor livestock management. Sustainable farming is the farming of the future, incorporating not only practices that minimise environmental degradation but also maintain both the economic profitability of agricultural systems and the social wellbeing of rural communities. In the UK, Hindmarsh and Pienkowski (1997) argue for more labour intensive, low input production systems claiming that intensive agriculture has led to pollution, soil degradation, less choice of crop and animal varieties, less biodiversity and a reliance on subsidies.

This unit will investigate the major biophysical components of agricultural systems along with the nutrient flows occurring between these components and how these flows are affected by agricultural practices. Sustainability issues relating to agricultural economies and social wellbeing will also be studied in a number of contexts and scales from the perspective of the farming family to a global perspective.

The key sustainability issues throughout the major sheep production areas of Australia will be investigated in a number of case studies. Each study will focus on a particular sheep producing zone in Australia including high rainfall, southern WA, northern wheat sheep belt, southern wheat sheep belt and rangelands. These case studies have been developed by both leading researchers and producers within each region and provide applied knowledge and understanding of the key sustainability issues and the currently recommended, best management practices available to address these issues.

The order of topics in this unit are given on the contents page and include introductions to ecology, economics and social aspects of sustainability, sustainability on different scales, soil, water and plant sustainability, remnant vegetation, animal sustainability, sustainable biophysical systems, economic sustainability, social sustainability, policy and legislation, property planning, measurement, monitoring and benchmarking, triple bottom line approaches and timescale, management, case studies, catchment management and contemporary global issues and future directions.

1.2 Broad definition of sustainability From the list of topics you will see that sustainable agriculture is considered in a broad context. A definition of the term ‘sustainable’ is given in the glossary and is covered in detail in Topic 5. A browse of the internet yields many definitions including:

‘Able to last; able to continue into the future.’

1. To keep in existence; maintain. 2. To supply with necessities or nourishment; provide for. 3. To support from below; keep from falling or sinking.’

‘Meeting present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.’

‘Of, relating to, or being a method of harvesting or using a resource so that the resource is not depleted or permanently damaged.’

'Relating to a human activity that can be sustained over the long term, without adversely affecting the environmental conditions (soil conditions, water quality, climate) necessary to support those same activities in the future.’

1. an action or process that is capable of continuing indefinitely; 2. using natural, renewable, and recyclable resources and products so that limited resources

are conserved, stable economic growth is achieved, and damage to the environment is minimised.’

1 - 2 – RSNR403/503 Sustainable Land Management©2009 The Australian Wool Education Trust licensee for educational activities University of New England

‘The term implies concern both for laborers' working conditions and for trading practices and land tenure systems that do not impoverish farmers - as well as sensitivity to the environment, minimisation of pollution, and independence from non-renewable energy sources. At the intersection of ecology, economics, and politics, sustainability is concerned with the equitable allocation and consumption of resources, now and in the future.’

‘A product can be considered sustainable if its production enables the resources from which it was made to continue to be available for future generations. A sustainable product can thus be created repeatedly without generating negative environmental effects, without causing waste products to accumulate as pollution, and without compromising the wellbeing of workers or communities. Many different agricultural techniques can be utilised to help make food production more sustainable. The drawback of the term ‘sustainable’ is that the term lacks a clear-cut, universally accepted, enforceable definition – thus it can be interpreted in different ways. It is more of a philosophy or way of life than a label.’

‘Sustainable agriculture is a way of raising food that is healthy for consumers and animals, does not harm the environment, is humane for workers and animals, provides a fair wage to the farmer, and supports and enhances rural communities.’

The definition adopted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) in New Zealand (see Anon 1997 in the readings) is that ‘sustainable agriculture’ is the use of practices and systems which maintain or enhance the: ability of people and communities to provide for their social and cultural wellbeing economic viability of agriculture natural resource base of agriculture ecosystems influenced by agricultural activities quality and safety of food and fibre.

Different definitions of ‘sustainable’ arise because they depend on the broadness of the writer’s perspective.

There is a common theme of the environment (locally or more generally) not being allowed to run down or change in a negative manner, that is an agricultural system having physical and chemical inputs that balance the outputs (ecological sustainability). However a broader definition includes the system being profitable in the longer term (economic sustainability) and being acceptable to society at large (social, cultural and political sustainability; Yencken and Wilkinson 2000).

A publication by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN)/United Nations Environment Program (UNEP)/World Wildlife Fund (WWF) (1991) (see IUCN UNEP WWF 1991 in the readings) makes the point that to understand any strategy related to sustainability we need to know what we mean by the term as it can mean different things in relation to development, growth, resource use, economies and society. Nine principles for a sustainable society are described in Chapter 1 of the IUCN UNEP WWF (1991) publication.

N. Reid (pers. comm.) has concluded that sustainability can only be identified retrospectively as a land use may have been sustainable in the past but there is no guarantee that such a situation will persist as ecological, economic, social and political conditions can change. He suggests that the best that can be demonstrated for a given land use is that it is: (1) currently profitable, (2) socially acceptable, (3) is composed of appropriate indicators of ecosystem health with acceptable levels and trends of ecological impact, and (4) that if continued will have no foreseeable economic, social, ecological, regulatory or political impediments. Or putting it another way – sustainable agriculture practices are often not ‘black and white’ cases of right and wrong.

The funding organisation, Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC), recognises changing environmental and economic conditions by having a ‘resilient agricultural systems’ RandD program. This aims to fund projects that develop systems that have sufficient diversity, integration, flexibility and robustness to be resilient enough to respond opportunistically and positively to continued change.


Another concept related to sustainable land use is stewardship, which Roberts (1990) defined as ‘the act of being entrusted with the management of another’s property. With regard to land, this implies that the manager of the land … acts as a trustee on behalf of all the community, with land managed responsibly and held in perpetual trust for future generations. Management must be equated with stewardship ... stewardship means that present land users ... are trustees, not end users.’

This unit of study takes a broad perspective of ecological sustainability and addresses issues of sustainability at various scales, ranging from individual farm paddocks, to farms, to water catchment areas, to regions, to countries, and ultimately to the biosphere.

1.3 Ecologically sustainable developmentThe international definition (Rio Declaration) for ecologically sustainable development (ESD) adopted by the Australian Commonwealth and State Governments in 1992 was (Commonwealth of Australia 1992):

‘using, conserving and enhancing the community’s resources so that ecological processes, on which life depends, are maintained, and the total quality of life, now and in the future can be increased’

ESD requires a consideration of environmental, economic, sociological and political factors in the decision-making process (see Duggin 1999 in the readings). These different aspects of sustainability are covered in the unit topics.

The fundamental goals adopted by government in the move towards ESD were: improvement in individual and community social welfare and economic well being that does

not impair the welfare of future generations provision of equity within and between generations recognition of the global dimensions of issues protection of biological diversity and maintenance of ecological processes and systems.

Seven principles in developing a strategy for ESD are outlined by Duggin (1999), and include prevention of environmental damage. ESD is a national objective, however the level of land degradation in Australia (Table 1.1) suggests many management systems are not considering this objective (Duggin 1999). For example, in NSW, 20 million ha (over 20% of the state) is severely affected by soil salinity, soil fertility decline, soil acidity, wind or water erosion or weed invasion. More land is being cleared each year of native vegetation than is being replanted (see Conacher and Conacher 2000 in the readings).

Duggin (1999) suggested the development of ‘gold standards’ or benchmarks of critical and easily measured performance attributes, with environmental impact assessment (EIA) techniques for ecosystem functions, as a starting point, to address the major problem of land degradation. For EIA to be a useful tool one needs to know the structure and function of the existing ecosystem and monitor indicators (Section 1.6).


Table 1.1 Areas (ha) with a high potential to develop dryland salinity in Australia. Source: Duggin (1999).

The areas in Australia with land degradation can be seen by reference to regional maps summarising aspects of Australia’s environment, such as nutrient balance, soil acidity, soil erosion and nutrient exports found at the Australian Natural Resource Atlas website (http://audit.ea.gov.au/ANRA/atlas_home.cfm) and NSW Natural Resource Atlas website (http://www.nratlas.nsw.gov.au/wmc/savedapps/nratlas).

The data for these maps have come from a series of National Land and Water Resources audits undertaken with funding from the National Heritage Trust (NHT, see references, e.g. Ball et al. 2001).

Following the partial sale of Telstra, the NHT was established in 1996 to provide for the protection and rehabilitation of Australia’s natural environment. It aims to integrate environmental protection, sustainable agriculture and natural resource management with the principles of ecologically sustainable development. However much of the $2.7 billion of funds allocated from 1997-2004 to the NHT have been depleted by ‘cost shifting’ by Commonwealth and State governments, disguising a real loss of public environmental funding in this period (Conacher and Conacher 2000). Farmers or groups can apply to the NHT for funding (e.g. Envirofund) to improve their farm’s environment, for example improving riparian zones (Robins 2002) and planting native shelter belts.

Examples of maps from the Resource Atlases are given in Figures 1.1-1.4.

Figure 1.1 Land use. Source: Australian Natural Resources Atlas (2005a).


State/Territory* 1998/2000 2050

New South Wales 181 000 1 300 000

Victoria 670 000 3 110 000

Queensland not assessed 3 100 000

South Australia 390 000 600 000

Western Australia 4 363 000 8 800 000

Tasmania 54 000 90 000

Total 5 658 000 17 000 000

Figure 1.2 Extent of native vegetation. Source: Australian Natural Resources Atlas (2005b).

Figure 1.3 Land with high dryland salinity. Source: Australian Natural Resources Atlas (2005c).


Figure 1.4 Armidale land classes. Source: NSW Natural Resources Atlas (2005).

An environmentally sustainable Australia is one of four designated national research priorities (NRP) of the Commonwealth Government (DEST 2005) that drives public good research funding in Australia. Priority goals include water, new technology, soil loss, salinity and acidity, greenhouse gas emissions and biodiversity. While these remain NRPs there should be many future research opportunities in the area of sustainability.

1.4 Environmental management systems (EMS)Brunckhorst (2000) identified three approaches to the management of natural resources, ecosystems, landscapes and bioregions:1. deferred action method – wait until everything about the system is understood2. passive adaptive management – react to mistakes as impacts become obvious3. active adaptive management – learn-by-experimenting (do, review, theorise, plan) (Walters

and Holling 1990).

An example of the more desirable approach of active adaptive management is the use of environmental management systems (EMSs). EMSs are becoming increasingly popular in agriculture as a means of industry self-regulation in the area of environmental performance and, potentially, to secure market opportunities (see Carruthers 2003 in readings).

EMS is modelled on the continuous improvement cycle of ‘plan, act, check and review’. The international standard for EMS, ISO 14001 (see ISO 2002 in readings), is a process standard that specifies the components of an environmental management system that are to be implemented by an organisation. It does not specify production practices or environmental performance targets, and instead allows the implementing organisation to do this. According to the ISO 14001 standard, planning should describe environmental aspects and impacts, develop environmental objectives and targets, identify legal obligations, and formulate an environmental management program that contains action plans. Implementation includes assignment of roles and responsibilities, training, communication, documentation of the EMS, establishment of procedures for document control, operational control and emergency preparedness. Checking involves monitoring and measurement, correction of non-conformance, record keeping, and an internal audit. The final component of EMS, the management review, requires an organisation to periodically review its EMS to determine its suitability and effectiveness.


Best management practice and quality assurance differ from EMS as the former specify management practices to be implemented by an organisation. They complement EMS by providing context for the management system, thereby customising it for a particular industry sector.

Cotton growers (e.g. ‘Oakville’, Narrabri) have been more active than woolgrowers in pursuing this option of combining EMS with ISO accreditation to potentially access environmentally-discerning markets. QDPI has a research program, ‘On-farm EMS and environmental labeling in the pastoral industries’, which is seeking to address this issue for Queensland woolgrowers (L. Pahl. pers. comm.). However EMS and ISO 14001 cannot be used for product labeling as EMS is not a product standard (see Toyne et al. 2004 in readings), so other environmental labeling and certification schemes will be needed to differentiate products in the marketplace.

1.5 Catchment managementEnvironmental law plays an important role in establishing regulatory and institutional structures for sustainable management of catchment areas (see Conacher and Conacher 2000 in readings). The legal framework for catchment management in NSW is described in Table 1.2 with similar frameworks in place in other states. Consideration of the environment at the broader scale of water catchment areas is a growing trend with increasing amounts of government research funds being allocated to CMAs to administer (J Ayres, pers. comm.; see Anon 2004 in readings).

Table 1.2 NRM regions and associated administrative bodies. Source: Adapted from Natural Resource Management (2005).

NRM Region Administrative BodyAustralian Capital TerritoryAustralian Capital Territory ACT Natural Resource Management BoardNew South WalesBorder Rivers - Gwydir Border Rivers - Gwydir CMACentral West Central West CMAHawkesbury Nepean Hawkesbury Nepean CMAHunter - Central Rivers Hunter – Central Rivers CMALachlan Lachlan CMALower Murray Lower Murray Darling CMAMurray Murray CMAMurrumbidgee Murrumbidgee CMANamoi Namoi CMANorthern Rivers Northern Rivers CMASouthern Rivers Southern Rivers CMASydney Metro Sydney Metro CMAWestern Western CMANorthern TerritoryNorthern Territory Landcare Council of the Northern TerritoryQueenslandBorder Rivers - Balonne Maranoa Queensland Murray Darling Committee Incorporated

Burdekin Burdekin Dry Tropics Group IncorporatedBurnett Mary Burnett Mary Regional Group for NRM Incorporated

Cape York Cape York Regional Advisory Group and Cape York - Northern Gulf Regional Implementation Group

Condamine Condamine Catchment NRM Corporation LimitedDesert Channels Desert Channels GroupFitzroy Fitzroy Basin Association IncorporatedMackay Whitsunday Mackay Whitsunday Regional Strategy GroupNorthern Gulf Northern Gulf Resource Management Group and Cape


York - Northern Gulf Regional Implementation Group

South East Queensland South East Queensland Western Catchments Group and NRM South East Queensland Incorporated

South West South West NRM Group and Queensland Murray Darling Committee Incorporated

Southern Gulf Southern Gulf Regional Strategy GroupTorres Strait Torres Strait GroupWet Tropics Wet Tropics NRM BoardSouth AustraliaAboriginal Lands Aboriginal Lands Integrated NRM GroupEyre Peninsula Eyre Peninsula Integrated NRM GroupKangaroo Island Kangaroo Island NRM Board

Mount Lofty Ranges Mount Lofty and Greater Adelaide Integrated NRM Group

Northern and Yorke Agricultural District

Northern and Yorke Agricultural District Integrated NRM Committee Incorporated

Rangelands Rangelands Integrated NRM GroupSA Murray Darling Basin SA Murray Darling Basin Integrated NRM GroupSouth East South East Natural Resource Consultative CommitteeTasmaniaNorth Tasmania Northern Tasmanian NRM Regional CommitteeNorth West Cradle Coast NRM CommitteeSouth Tasmania Southern Tasmanian NRM Regional Committee

Tasmanian NAP Region

Northern Tasmanian NRM Regional Committee and Southern Tasmanian NRM Regional Committee (both acting through and with advice from the Joint NAP Working Group)

VictoriaCorangamite Corangamite CMAEast Gippsland East Gippsland CMAGlenelg-Hopkins Glenelg-Hopkins CMAGoulburn Broken Goulburn Broken CMAMallee Mallee CMANorth Central North Central CMANorth East North East CMAPort Phillip - Westernport Port Phillip and Westernport CMAWest Gippsland West Gippsland CMAWimmera Wimmera CMAWestern AustraliaAvon Avon Catchments CouncilNorthern Agricultural Region Northern Agricultural Region Catchments Council

Rangelands Rangelands NRM BoardSouth Coast South Coast Regional Initiative Planning TeamSouth West South West Catchments CouncilSwan Swan Catchments Council


NSW catchment management authoritiesThe Catchment Management Authorities Act provides for the establishment of 13 Catchment Management Authorities (CMAs) in NSW (Table 1.2). The function of each CMA is to carry out or fund catchment activities in accordance with the Act. Catchment activities are defined as ‘activities relating to natural resource management in an area’.

In particular, CMAs are required to: Develop catchment action plans and to give effect to any such approved plans through annual

implementation programs Provide loans, grants, subsidies or other financial assistance for the purposes of the

catchment activities it is authorised to fund Enter contracts or do any work for the purposes of the catchment activities it is authorised to

carry out Assist landholders to further the objectives of its catchment action plan (including providing

information about native vegetation management) Provide educational and training courses and materials in connection with natural resource

management Exercise any other function relating to natural resource management as is prescribed by the

regulations.

Each CMA is required to prepare a draft catchment action plan. The plan must include: The results that are expected to be achieved by the implementation of the plan and the time

frames for achieving those results For the purposes of annual implementation programs, the priorities for the funding or carrying

out of catchment activities in the area of operations of the authority Any other matter that the Minister may direct to be included in the plan.

The plan must have regard to the provision of any environmental planning instruments that apply to the land, other existing natural resource management plans for its area of operation and the need to comply with any state-wide natural resource management standards and to promote any state-wide targets.

The CMA Act provides for public consultation in relation to the preparation of catchment action plans. The details for public participation are provided in regulations. Once a draft catchment action plan is prepared, the CMA is required to refer that plan to the Minister and the Natural Resources Commission. The Minister will then determine whether to approve the plan (with or without alteration) or to refer the draft plan back to the CMA for further consideration. The CMA is required to carry out regular and periodic review of the plan and the Minister is required to ensure the plan is audited at least once every 5 years. Natural resources commissionThe Natural Resources Commission (http://www.nrc.nsw.gov.au/) consists of a full time Commissioner and Assistant Commissioners. The function of the Commission is to provide the government with independent advice on natural resource management. In particular, the Commission is empowered to: Recommend state-wide standards and targets for natural resource management issues Recommend the approval of catchment action plans consistent with the state-wide standards Audit the effectiveness of those plans and other natural resource management activities Undertake natural resource and conservation assessments as required by the Minister Undertake inquiries on natural resource management issues as required by the Minister Assist in the resolution of natural resource management issues referred to it by the Minister Advise on priorities for research concerning natural resource management issues Arrange for natural resource management information to be gathered and disseminated.


The Natural Resources Advisory Council (http://www.nrac.nsw.gov.au/) was established with representation from: Birds Australia, CMAs, Country Women’s Association, fisheries resource management expertise, Labor Council of New South Wales, Landcare community, Local Government Association of NSW, Nature Conservation Council, NSW Aboriginal Land Council, NSW Farmers Association, NSW Forest Products Association, NSW Irrigators Council, NSW Minerals Council, NSW Native Title Services, Planning Institute of Australia, Rural Lands Protection Boards, scientific community, Shires Association of NSW, Total Environment Centre and WWF Australia.

The Advisory Council provides the Commission and the Minister with advice on the views of the key stakeholders. Members are appointed by the NSW Minister for Natural Resources.

Catchment management and environmental planning instrumentsEnvironmental planning instruments prepared by local and state government under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act, 1979 may also play an important role in managing the impact of activities taking place within a catchment. Local environmental plans, regional environmental plans and state environmental planning policies may all play a role in catchment management.

Armidale (UNE) is on the western edge of the Northern Rivers CMA with the Border Rivers-Gwydir CMA to the west. Information on plans of the CMAs can be obtained from their websites (see CD). An example plan for the Namoi CMA is given in Roberts (1999) in the readings.

1.6 Environmental indicators of catchment healthDuring the 1990s, CSIRO’s Dryland Farming Systems for Catchment Care program developed a set of key sustainability indicators for the environmental health of agricultural catchments. This work is summarised in Walker and Reuter (1996) in the readings.

1.7 Sustainable land management strategiesThe challenge of sustainable land management (SLM) is that it is a complex, multi-faceted, ever-moving target (Reid 2004). Managers need to continually refine and update their goals and methods. Solutions tend to be context or system-specific. Solutions generally rely on information from a number of disciplines, are often developed through trial and error, and must be modified as external conditions change. One person’s SLM solution may be unacceptable to another, e.g. an organic farmer would not use synthetic herbicides to manage weeds.

Today’s solutions can sometimes become tomorrow’s problems. An example is the increase in farm chemical contamination of ground and surface waters in Australian cropping districts over the past 25 years, associated with the development of conservation farming and chemical fallowing (Mawhinney 1998). Some strategies and approaches for achieving ecologically SLM are discussed. This section is based on notes developed by Nick Reid.

Property management planningThe term property management planning (PMP) refers to the process of planning at the property level that integrates production and conservation (Letts 1992). The process was formalised in western Victoria by the successful Potter Farmland Planning Scheme that coined the phrase ‘whole farm planning’ (Campbell 1991). The PMP approach differs from previous widespread farm planning methods in that:

The farmer is responsible for developing the plan and making the planning decisions Planning decisions are based on land capability mapping at the farm scale, incorporating local

understanding of the ecological processes at work A holistic approach is adopted whereby all planning decisions are made on both a production

and conservation basis, considering the farm as a whole.


The Land Management Task Force (LMTF 1995) reviewed the early results of the national PMP campaign and reported on issues still to be addressed:

Quality assurance safeguards for PMP programs and trainers The need for ‘whole system’ approaches to farm planning integrating personal and business

goal setting, financial planning and marketing, production and conservation, and farm and catchment planning

The amount of cost sharing for the PMP campaign between taxpayers and growers The need to tailor programs to different ethnic groups’ needs including indigenous Australians The need for key performance indicators (KPIs) to evaluate the efficacy and efficiency of the

PMP campaign.

LandcareLandcare had its origins in the WA Land Conservation District Committees established in 1982 and in the ‘Landcare’ program initiated in Victoria in 1986 (Campbell 1992). Landcare groups determine their own directions and activities, assisted by extension staff.

From humble beginnings and 350 groups in October 1989, Landcare grew to over 4200 groups by 1999 (Anon. 1999). Landcare really took off in 1989 when the Executive Directors of the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) and National Farmers Federation (NFF), traditional opponents, presented a joint 13-point costed plan for a substantial increase in soil conservation and SLM funding over a 10-year period to the Hawke Federal Government (Toyne and Farley 1989). The first element of the ACF-NFF proposal was the provision of funding to promote the formation of Landcare groups around the country.

Andrew Campbell was appointed to the position of National Landcare Facilitator, and a non-profit company called Landcare Australia was launched to facilitate private sector investment in Landcare activities and sponsorship. Landcare has been outstandingly successful in promoting a resource stewardship ethic, a new source of community identity, self-esteem and support, improved information networks and new resource management ideas in regional Australia.

Integrated catchment managementRegional-scale problems in NRM are addressed by integrated catchment management (ICM, also known as total catchment management in New South Wales). ICM is a whole-of-government approach for integrating resource management among landholders, other resource users, community groups and government agencies (Webb 1998). Ideally, ICM enables a holistic, strategic, coordinated approach to NRM at a catchment scale through a partnership between different private and public resource users.

There has been little evaluation of the overall success of Australian ICM programs in producing better NRM and a healthier environment (Webb 1998, Burton 2000). ICM has been practiced in North America and New Zealand for decades.

The Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council recently released its draft strategy for ICM in the Murray-Darling Basin (Anon. 2000). The draft strategy proposed targets for catchment health in the areas of water quality, water sharing, Riverina ecosystem health and terrestrial biodiversity. If regional targets are rigorously evaluated and enforced, with penalties for catchments that do not comply, a framework will have been set to begin the restoration of the nation’s food bowl.

Decision support systemsPart of the environmental problem faced around the globe is the difficulty associated with: Transmitting existing knowledge to natural resource managers to inform their decision making Integrating complex information from different sustainability dimensions in order to assess the

full ramifications of various management options Assessing the risk associated with different management alternatives Customising what is known to the manager’s particular biophysical and socio-economic

context.


Decision support systems (DSSs) are designed to overcome these difficulties and provide managers with the ability to assess the impact of different management alternatives on the economic and ecological performance of their enterprises.Three such DSSs developed in Australia are: RANGEPACK (Stafford Smith and Foran 1991), which investigates the economic impact of

livestock management options in the arid pastoral industry. See http://www.cazr.csiro.au/resources.htm#rangepack for more information

FARMTREE was developed by Bill Loane in the Victorian Department of Conservation and Environment to assess the financial returns from agroforestry, combining the expected returns from pastoral or cropping enterprises with those from agroforestry or farm forestry

GRASSGRO (http://www.une.edu.au/dss/grassgro/). This DSS predicts pasture and livestock performance and economic returns from grazing enterprises in the higher rainfall zone of southern Australia.

Action-centred networksOrganisations are being forced by ‘the turbulent environment’ into action-centred networks or flexible, inter-organisational, task-oriented networks of private and public stakeholders, designed to solve complex problems (Carley and Christie 1992). Carley and Christie (1992) point out that a key outcome for action-centred networks to be successful is to develop a shared understanding of the real nature and extent of the problem, and a consensus about and commitment to the means of resolution.

Yaffre and Wondolleck (2000) provide examples of public and private collaboration in the US and are optimistic about the role of consensus building in NRM. They concluded that there may be no alternative but to accept the inevitability of collaborative public-private networks to solve intransigent environmental problems, and that such processes are achieving ecological results and improving communication among stakeholders. McCool et al. (2000) identified necessary preconditions for consensus building between government and community in environmental dispute resolution.

In pursuing the goals of ESD and SLM, we are dealing with some of the most intransigent and complex areas of human endeavour.

1.8 The Australian sheep industryThis unit is restricted to considering on-farm practices and their catchment impacts, but does not address the environmental issues relating to the value-adding chain or post farm gate. For wool processing (e.g. biodegradable detergents, non-chlorine setting treatments etc.), these issues are covered in the Early Stage Wool Processing (WOOL 462) and Late Stage Wool Processing (WOOL 452) units. There are wool supply chains being developed that attempt to be ‘clean and green’ all along the pipeline (e.g. low pesticide residues in the final wool products – see Russell and Nunn 2004 in readings).

Sheep production is undertaken in many environments in Australia (detailed in the Sheep Production unit – WOOL 412). The main regional environmental challenges facing the Australian sheep and wool industry and the industry's response to these challenges in terms of changing land management practice are outlined on the Australian Natural Resource Atlas website. This section summarises and updates some of that material. Their analysis is on a national and industry regional scale rather than at a property level.

Some of the major environmental challenges for the wool industry such as weeds and introduced pests and the wool industry's position within the inland, southern and western areas of Australia have placed increased pressure on production systems. The cumulative effects of intensifying land use within these landscapes is demonstrating itself through increased weed infestation, habitat loss, soil degradation (e.g. salinity, acidity, erosion) and increased populations of pests and feral animals in some areas.


Key facts about the sheep and wool industry Major user of land resources and major income earner Located predominantly in inland and semi-arid areas of Australia Challenged by several national environmental issues Sound organisational support Substantial research and development initiatives Industry responses in terms of land allocation and changes to farming systems are needed in

some areas to address degradation issues.

In 1999, the Australian sheep and wool industry occupied an area in excess of 85 million hectares (Australian Natural Resources Atlas 2005d). These production areas are generally located in the inland, central and southern areas of Australia, and represent one of Australia's major land users.

Sheep and wool production occurs across much of central Australia, but is split geographically into three zones (Figure 1.5). These zones are the High Rainfall, the Wheat/Sheep and the Pastoral zone. These zones and the distribution of sheep are represented in the maps below. Rangelands make up the majority of the area of each state (NSW 57%, SA 85%, WA 87%, QLD over 90%, NT 100%) (Australian Natural Resources Atlas 2005d).

Figure 1.5 The three sheep production zones of Australia, showing pasture growth curves for sown pastures in selected locations. Source: Chapman et al. (1973).

Sheep and lamb numbers vary annually in response to markets and seasons. The national flock size for the period 1979 to 2003 is shown in Figure 1.6.

Figure 1.6 Changes in national sheep population numbers from 1979-80 to 2002-03. Source: Barrett et al. (2003).


The distribution of flock numbers on a zonal basis is represented in Figure 1.7.

Figure 1.7 Changes in the distribution of Merinos, crossbreds and other breeds of sheep within the pastoral, wheat-sheep and high rainfall zones. Source: Barrett et al. (2003).

A proportion of Australia's sheep and wool are produced by specialist wool producers, producing a wool product only. The Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ABARE) has estimated the area of specialist producers within each of the zones, and these are shown in Table 1.3 below.

Table 1.3 Wool production from the three zones. Source: Australian Natural Resources Atlas (2005d).

Within any one State, there will also be differences between regions in terms of capacity for production per hectare, sheep genotype and wool quality, largely reflecting environmental and genetic (strain) differences. This is demonstrated in Table 1.4 for NSW.


Region Sheep Numbers (Specialists)

Wool Production (t) (Specialists)

High Rainfall zone 17 751 636 82 429Wheat/Sheep zone 14 225 155 72 173

Pastoral zone 8 874 504 43 834Total 40 851 295 198 436

Table 1.4 Between-region variability in wool production: average specialist wool farm, NSW, 2000-01. Source: Shafron et al. (2002).

About 32% of Australia's wool and 62% of Australia's sheep meat is retained for the domestic market, the rest being exported. The distribution of wool exports by destination is shown in Figure 1.8. China has become our major market.

Figure 1.8 Australian wool exports by destination – 19 micron and finer wool. Notes: percentages are volume based. Exports comprise greasy, carbonised, scoured, top, noils and waste. In 2004 ‘other’ includes tops shipped to ‘unspecified’ destinations. Sources:

Australian Bureau of Statistics, The Woolmark Company (2004).

1.8.1 Land and water resources invested in Australian sheep and wool productionThe sheep and wool industry is large and diverse, and sheep are reared under widely varying climatic and environmental conditions. Sheep meat and wool are produced on properties that vary in size, management regimes and enterprise mixes. Sheep numbers have declined over the last decade in response to market conditions.

Wool and sheep meat is predominantly produced in southern Australia, in areas from the east coast through inland Australia and into central Western Australia.


Wool Production Variable

Tablelands

CentralWest

North West Slopes

and Plains

Riverina

West

Wool cut/head (kg) 4.1 3.9 4.7 4.9 5.3

Wool cut (kg/ha) 13.4 14.4 4.3 11.2 0.8

Stocking rate (DSE/ha) 5.3 6.2 1.1 3.5 0.4

Fibre diameter of main fleece line (m) 21.1 22.8 20.4 21.1 22.3

Greasy wool price (c/kg) 794 738 381 466 333

In 1999, key production statistics for the Australian wool industry (Australian Natural Resources Atlas 2005d) were: total sheep area: 85 694 044 ha gross value of production: $3,772 million ($1,018 million in slaughter products and $2,754

million in wool products) irrigated pasture: 304 290 ha (i.e. 0.4 %).

1.8.2 Key characteristics of Australian sheep and wool producers and farmsIn 1998, the Australian sheep and wool industry employed around 28 500 people across more than 15 250 properties (Australian Natural Resources Atlas 2005d).

Differences and similarities exist in the characteristics of producers across the wool industry. In financial terms, farm cash income does not vary widely across zones, but the average farm debt levels are relatively lower in the wheat/sheep zone and average farm business profit is lowest in the pastoral zone. Average farm business profits are negative across all zones.

Pastoral zone producers, on average, work more hours in managing properties due to the significantly larger property size in this zone. The difficulties in managing large areas present some limitations for implementing changes in management practice. Also, pastoral owners work fewer hours and earn less money off farm on average, hence limiting diversification strategies.

Other significant differences between the zones relate to farm ownership and tenure arrangements and Landcare group membership. Pastoral zones have significantly larger areas of land under leasehold title compared to other zones, with on average 91% under leasehold tenure. The effect of tenure on the adoption of management practices is not clear, but the terms and conditions of the leases influence financial and long term planning decisions.

Landcare group membership is highest in the high rainfall zone. It is expected that areas with a higher participation in learning and information sharing activities are more likely to adopt developing management practices.

Other indices such as age, education level and farm employment rates are variable both within and between zones. It is difficult to draw firm conclusions from these indices due to their variability.

1.8.3 Main environmental challenges facing Australia's sheep and wool industryA survey of NRM undertaken by ABARE in 1999 identified a number of environmental issues affecting the sheep and wool industry. These included: land degradation in the form of weed infestations protection of wildlife habitats and remnant vegetation soil loss from wind erosion and loss of soil structure.

A review of available literature highlights the following issues in environmental management:

feral animals (pigs, foxes, wild dogs) and other native and exotic animal and plant pests management of pasture systems, particularly sown pastures, and issues such as the quality,

quantity and stability of plant species within the grazing system the need for effective management of woody vegetation to prevent loss of biodiversity and

dryland salinity nutrient management due to soil loss weed and pest control chemical residues.


The proportion of regional sheep properties reporting significant degradation (Kemp and Alexander 2000) are shown in the two graphs below (Figures 1.9 and 1.10). Figure 1.9 indicates the types of land degradation and the proportion of sheep farms affected by each type.

Figure 1.9 Sheep farms with significant degradation problems by zone. Source: Kemp and Alexander (2000).

The average area of Australian sheep farms affected by various forms of degradation for each zone is illustrated in Figure 1.10. A significant difference between the zones is that larger areas on the pastoral zone properties are more severely affected by various forms of degradation.

Figure 1.10 Area of farms with degradation by zone. Source: Kemp and Alexander (2000).


1.8.4 Meeting the challengePractice adoptionThere has been considerable growth in organised land management groups in recent years (see Section 1.7). These various groups address the sustainability of agricultural land use by examining issues such as land degradation, water quality, salinity, soil fertility and feral animal control on a district or area-wide basis.

Management practices being adopted to address environmental degradation issues include participation in the Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA) program and utilisation of Sustainable Grazing Systems (SGS). SGS aims to improve farmer skills in profitable, sustainable pasture and livestock management through the implementation of PROGRAZE courses and follow-up training. PROGRAZE is a 'hands on' grazing management skills course aimed at assisting producers to match pastures and livestock.

Management practices being adopted by wool producers to address the main issues of weeds, water erosion and surface waterlogging, include:

formal vegetation and pasture condition monitoring exclusion of stock from degraded areas weed eradication the use of perennial pastures maintenance of vegetation along drainage lines monitoring of water tables.

The national adoption of these practices varies as shown in Figure 1.11.

Figure 1.11 Adoption of improved management practices. Source: Kemp and Alexander (2000).


Industry strategic planningThe Sheepmeat Council of Australia Inc. prepares strategic plans for the Australian sheepmeat industry. The plans provide a summary and interpretation of information obtained from industry stakeholders, and is divided into four main sections: major influences on the Australian sheepmeat industry a strategic focus for the industry industry goals for the lamb, mutton and live sheep export industries initiatives required to achieve these goals.

In drafting this Strategic Plan, the Sheepmeat Council of Australia provided sheep producers with the opportunity to give their advice on the initiatives the industry as a whole should pursue with levy funds, and to establish some understanding of industry priority. The Strategic Plan is presented to the three organisations delivering levy funded services for the sheep industry (MLA, Australian Animal Health Council Ltd and the National Residue Survey) who develop, implement and manage programs to achieve the outcomes identified.

The Sheep and Wool Council of Queensland (SWCQ) has prepared a strategic plan for the Queensland Sheep and Wool industry. The plan has identified actions most likely to improve the profitability of wool production in the long term. These actions include increased demand and market prices, improved production efficiency and improved marketing efficiency. Some of the environmental issues identified in the strategic plan to promote sustainable production include: resource management (i.e. land and water management) adoption of best management practices to assist in the development of sustainable profitable

production (including the involvement of grower groups where appropriate) pest and disease management minimising the adverse effects of chemical residues.

Codes of practiceA specific sheep/wool industry Code of Practice is not in effect. The industry primarily relies on the adoption of best management practice as promoted by research and development initiatives and identified in various strategic plans. The industry is supported by a network of structures and organisations (detailed in the Wool Marketing unit - WOOL 422). These structures support the industry in areas such as marketing, infrastructure and research and development. 1.8.5 Working with other agricultural industries to overcome environmental challengesSheep and wool produced in the high rainfall zone and wheat/sheep zone, and to a lesser extent in the pastoral region, generally form either part of mixed farming systems or mixed farming regions.

In the high rainfall zone, sheep and wool are produced alongside the intensive sugar, dairy and horticultural industries and the beef industry. This zone supports only a small percentage of the sheep and wool industry (5.5% by area), but producers in the zone need to manage their enterprises cooperatively.

In the wheat/sheep zone, sheep and wool are produced alongside the intensive cotton, grains and horticultural industries and the beef industry. This zone supports about 14% of the sheep and wool industry and producers in the zone need to manage their enterprises cooperatively.

The major production region for the sheep and wool industry is the pastoral zone (80% by area). This zone supports only limited areas of intensive forms of agriculture, and these areas are generally limited to minor supplementary feeding arrangements.

Historic environmental issues that have the potential to impact on regional environmental values and sheep and wool production levels where mixed industries exist include: containment of herbicides through spray drift and runoff mobilisation runoff coordination affecting erosion rates and water flow patterns control of woody weeds and feral animal populations pasture decline increasing wind erosion rates habitat decline from large scale clearing and overgrazing emerging salinity and acidity in some regions.


The resolution of these issues on a regional level requires ongoing research and development. The sheep and wool industry is involved in agro-political planning processes through peak bodies, Landcare groups, catchment management bodies and local authorities. Through these organisational structures, they are working with other rural industries to manage the environmental effects and have input into industry codes and best management practices (BMPs). Wide environmental community concerns such as water quality, protection of biodiversity and use of land according to capability are considered through such structures.

An example of a joint livestock industry response to a common regional issue is in the Western Division of New South Wales. In this region, beef and wool producers are confronted with similar environmental challenges that stem from the integration of their production systems into landscape systems. Native animal grazing pressures (e.g. kangaroos), combined with pests such as rabbits, woody weeds and foxes, affect the production capacity of the pastoral systems to maintain adequate feed resources. In response, landholders in this region prepared a set of best practice guidelines on Total Grazing Pressure (TGP) that includes both production and landscape function related management responses. Key elements of these are:

Long-term stocking rate for the sustainable grazing of native pastures of approximately 30% utilisation of anticipated summer dry matter in 8 out of 10 years (20% for mulga pastures)

Avoid continual overgrazing allowing the pasture species to adequately set seed Spell when the soil is moist to encourage pasture rejuvenation Where dominated by annual grasses, spelling should be more frequent to encourage

perennial species Use highly palatable and nutritious grasses and herbs as indicators of pasture condition Rehabilitate degraded areas through techniques such as: - reduced grazing pressure- prescribed burning- sowing introduced species- re-introducing native species- furrowing and water-ponding Incorporate the following controls into the production system: - pig control- rabbit control- woody weed management (fire, chemical, mechanical and biological)- subdivisional fencing, according to watering points, landforms, soils and vegetation, as well as

livestock type- bore capping- drought relief packages.

1.8.6 Future prospects of the industryThe sheep and wool industry is a rural industry that faces a number of developing and expanding environmental challenges. These challenges are expected, as the industry is a major user of land resources in a fragile landscape. The developing salinity, woody weeds, vegetation management and degraded soils issues will require evaluation of the effects of sheep and wool management practices on wider landscape processes.

The adoption of currently recommended management practices may require on-going development to respond to regionally specific issues and to emerging issues. In some of the more badly degraded areas, revegetation may be required, or at the very best, a change in farming system to better reflect land capability and resource conservation needs. Failure to do so will result in the progressive decline in utility of the resource base for the sheep and wool industry.

The sheep and wool industry is working its way through a period of uncertainty due to key pressures such as depressed prices, falling market share, restructure of peak bodies, contract labour shortages and increasingly stronger requirements of consumers and clients. The challenge will be to progressively institute the necessary changes to achieve long-term industry sustainability in an inclusive, regional capacity-building approach.


Readings The following readings are not available on CD. The University of New England has several copies and they are widely available at other universities.

1. ABARE, 1999, Australian Farm Surveys Report 1999, Canberra.2. ABARE, 2001, Australian Farm Surveys Report 2001, Canberra.3. ABARE, 2002, Australian Farm Surveys Report 2002, Canberra.4. ABARE, 2003, Australian Farm Surveys Report 2003, Canberra.5. Alexander, F. and Nelson, R. 2003, 'Monitoring land degradation in the wheat-sheep zone of

Western Australia', ABARE Conference Paper 03.13, Western Australian Regional Outlook Conference, Geraldton, Sept 2003.

6. Alexander, F., Blias, A., Chapman, L. and Nelson, R. 2003, 'Monitoring land degradation in south east Queensland and north east New South Wales', ABARE Conference Paper 03.6, Queensland Regional Outlook Conference, Toowoomba, May 2003.

7. Anon, 1997, Quality Products from a Quality Environment: Some Practical and Policy Issues, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, New Zealand, retrieved 1st July 2006 from: http://www.maf.govt.nz/mafnet/rural-nz/sustainable-resource-use/best-management-practices/quality-products/httoc.htm

8. Anon, 2004, Funding and project examples in NSW Catchment Management Authority regions, retrieved 1st July 2006 from: http://www.maff.gov.au/releases/04/nswcma.pdf.

9. Carruthers, G. 2003, 'Adoption of EMS in agriculture. Part 1: Case studies from Australian and NZ farms', RIRDC Report 03/121.

10. Conacher, A. and Conacher, J. 2000, ‘Synopsis’, in Environmental Planning and Management in Australia. Oxford University Press, Melbourne, pp. 396-399.

11. Duggin, J.A. 1999, Environmental issues and impacts for rural industries, Production and Environmental Monitoring Workshop, Paper No. PEM003, Meat Quality CRC/UNE.

12. Ecologically sustainable development working groups, 1991, Final report, Agriculture. Australian Government Publishing Service. Copyright, Commonwealth of Australia, reproduced with permission.

13. Evans, R. 2005, 'Double accounting of surface water and groundwater resources – The tyranny of the time lag', ABARE Outlook Conference 2005.

14. Hutchinson, K.J. 1998, 'Modelling factors and processes important to sustainable grazing systems', Chapter 25 in Farming Action Catchment Reaction (eds. Williams J., Hook R.A. and Gascoigne H.L.), CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, pp.299-303. Available at http://www.publish.csiro.au/;id/431.htm and http://www.publish.csiro.au/journals/ajea.

15. ISO, 2002, ‘The ISO 14000 family of standards guides and technical reports – including drafts’, in Environmental Management, The ISO 14000 Family of International Standards 2002 Edition, retrieved 1st July 2006 from: http://www.iso.org/iso/en/prods-services/ otherpubs/iso14000/family.pdf

16. IUCN/UNEP/WWF, 1991, ‘Building a sustainable society’, Chapter 1 in Caring for the earth. A strategy for sustainable living, Gland, Switzerland, pp. 8-12.

17. Jones, M. and Aarons, S. 2002, 'Productive grazing, healthy rivers: Improving riparian and in-stream diversity', Wool Technology and Sheep Breeding, vol. 50(4), pp. 737-742.

18. Kemp, A. and Alexander, F. 2000, 'Land care and degradation, A survey of natural resource management', in ABARE Australian Farm Surveys Report (2000), pp. 37-39.

19. McIntyre, S., McIvor, J.G. and Heard, K.M. (eds). 2002, ‘Principles and thresholds for managing eucalypt woodlands’, in Managing and conserving grassy woodlands. CSIRO Publishing Collingwood, pp. 21-23. Available at http://www.publish.csiro.au/;id/431.htm and http://www.publish.csiro.au/journals/ajea.

20. Mues, C., Chapman, L. and Van Hilst, R. 1998, Promoting Improved Land Management Practices on Australian Farms: A Survey of Landcare and Land Management Related Programs, ABARE Research Report 98.4, Canberra.

21. Nelson, R. 2004, Socioeconomic Indicators for Natural Resource Management: Capacity to Change and Adopt Sustainable Management Practices in Australian Agriculture (NLWRA Project A1.2), ABARE eReport 04.19, prepared for the National Land and Water Resources Audit, Canberra, November.

22. Nelson, R., Alexander, F., Elliston, L. and Blias, A. 2004, Natural Resource Management on Australian Farms, ABARE eReport 04.7, prepared for the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Canberra, May.


23. Roberts, L. 1999, ‘Executive Summary’, in Namoi Community Catchment Plan: a guide to managing the natural resources of the Namoi catchment, Draft Version, North West Catchment Management Committee, pp. ix-xii.

24. Russell, I.M. and Nunn, C.R. 2004, 'Eco-wool: what, who, where, why, how, when', retrieved 1st July 2006 from http://www.tft.csiro.au/research/scienpapers.html.

25. Toyne, P., Cowell, C. and Mech, T. 2004, Marketing agricultural sustainability. RIRDC Report 04/050.

26. Walker, J. and Reuter, D.J. 1996, Indicators of catchment health. CSIRO Publishing Collingwood.

27. Webb, A.A. 1998, 'Integrated catchment management – where is it at?' Chapter 3 in Farming Action Catchment Reaction, (Williams J., Hook R.A. and Gascoigne H.L. eds.), CSIRO Publishing Collingwood, pp. 26-30. Available at http://www.publish.csiro.au/;id/431.htm and http://www.publish.csiro.au/journals/ajea.

ActivitiesAvailable on WebCT

Multi-Choice QuestionsSubmit answers via WebCT

Useful Web LinksAvailable on WebCT

Assignment QuestionsChoose ONE question from ONE of the

topics as your assignment. Short answer questions appear on WebCT. Submit your answer via WebCT

SummarySummary Slides are available of CD.A major issue in the world today is the ever increasing threat to the planet posed by human domination of the biosphere. Major environmental issues arising through erosion, pollution, salinity, loss of biodiversity, eutrophication of waterways and the greenhouse effect, are contributed to by agricultural practices in an attempt to clothe and feed a burgeoning population. Sustainable farming is the farming of the future, incorporating not only practices that minimise environmental degradation but also maintain both the economic profitability of agricultural systems and the social wellbeing of rural communities.

This unit investigates the major biophysical components of agricultural systems along with the nutrient flows occurring between these components and how these flows are affected by agricultural practices. Sustainability issues relating to agricultural economies and social wellbeing will also be studied in a number of contexts and scales from the perspective of the farming family to a global perspective. The key sustainability issues throughout the major sheep production areas of Australia will also be investigated in a number of case studies.


http://www.tft.csiro.au/research/

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Discussion Paper for Developing a National Policy’, Standing Committee of Agriculture and Resource Management, Canberra.

Anon, 2000, Draft Integrated Catchment Management in the Murray-Darling Basin. Community Summary. Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council, Canberra.

Australian Natural Resources Atlas, 2005a, ‘Land use in Australia’, retrieved 1st July 2006 from: http://audit.deh.gov.au/ANRA/land/land_frame.cfm?region_type=AUS&region_code=AUS&info=land_use.

Australian Natural Resources Atlas, 2005b, ‘Major vegetation groups in Australia’, retrieved 1st July 2006 from: http://audit.deh.gov.au/anra/vegetation/vegetation_frame.cfm?region_type=AUS&region_code=AUS&info=veg_type.

Australian Natural Resources Atlas, 2005c, ‘Land with high dryland salinity’, retrieved 1st July 2006 from: http://audit.deh.gov.au/anra/land/land_frame.cfm?region_type=AUS&region_code=AUS&info=sal_context.

Australian Natural Resources Atlas, 2005d, Retrieved 1st July 2006 from: http://audit.deh.gov.au/anra/atlas_home.

Ball, J., Donnelley, L., Erlanger, P., Evans, R., Kollmorgen, A., Neal, B. and Shirley, M. 2001, Inland Waters. Australia State of the Environment Report 2001. CSIRO Publishing on behalf of the Department of Environment and Heritage, Canberra.

Barrett, D., Ashton, D. and Shafron, W. 2003, ‘Australian Sheep Flock – Breed and Composition’, in ABARE Australian Farm Surveys Report, pp. 15-18.

Brunckhorst, D.J. 2000, Bioregional Planning. Resource Management beyond the New Millennium. Harwood Academic, Amsterdam.

Burton, J.R. 2000, ‘Integrated catchment management: the way forward’, in Proceedings 1st

Australasian Natural Resources Law and Policy Conference, (eds. A. Vince and G. Moin), Country Conferences, Armidale, pp. 193-198.

Campbell, A. 1991, Planning for Sustainable Farming - The Potter Farmland Plan Story, Lothian, Melbourne.

Campbell, A. 1992, ‘Farm and catchment planning: tools for sustainability’, in Agriculture, Environment and Society. Contemporary Issues for Australia (eds. G. Lawrence, F. Vanclay and B. Furze), MacMillan, South Melbourne, pp. 224-231.

Carley, M. and Christie, I. 1992, Managing Sustainable Development, Earthscan, London.Chapman, R.E., Williams, O.B. and Moule, G.R. 1973, in Pastoral Industries of Australia, (eds. G.

Alexander and O.B. Williams), Sydney University Press, Sydney, pp. 79-116.Commonwealth of Australia, 1992, National Strategy for Ecological Sustainable Development,

AGPS, Canberra.Conacher, A. and Conacher, J. 2000, Environmental Planning and Management in Australia.

Oxford University Press, Melbourne. Department of Education, Science and Training, 2005, National research priorities, retrieved 1st

July 2006 from: http://www.dest.gov.au/sectors/research_sector/policies_issues_reviews/key_issues/national_research_priorities/.

Duggin, J.A. 1999, Environmental issues and impacts for rural industries, Production and Monitoring Workshop. Meat Quality CRC/UNE.

Hawarth, R. 1997, ‘Fine sentiments vs. brute actions’, in Critical Landcare, (eds. S. Locke and F. Vanclay), Centre for Rural Social Research, CSU, Wagga Wagga.

Hindmarsh, C. and Pienkowski, M. 1997, Land management - the hidden costs, British Ecological Society.


Industry Commission, 1999, ‘A Full Repairing Lease. Inquiry into Ecologically Sustainable Land Management’, Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra, Report No. 60.

IUCN/UNEP/WWF, 1991, Caring for the earth. A strategy for sustainable living. Gland, Switzerland.Kemp, A. and Alexander, F. 2000, Landcare and Degradation - A Survey Of Natural Resource

Management, ABARE, Canberra.Land Management Task Force, 1995, Managing for the Future, Dept of Primary Industries and

Energy, Canberra.Letts, M. 1992, Property Management Planning. A review of National Soil Conservation Program

funding for the Soil Conservation Advisory Committee, Department of Primary Industries and Energy, Canberra.

Manin, P., Allan, R., Beer, T., Fraser, P., Holper, P., Suppiah, R. and Walsh, K. 2001, Atmosphere. Australia State of the Environment Report 2001. CSIRO Publishing on behalf of the Department of Environment and Heritage, Canberra.

Mawhinney, W. 1998, Liverpool Plains Water Quality Project. Land Use, Pesticide Use and Their Impact on Water Quality on the Liverpool Plains. Department of Land and Water Conservation, Sydney.

McCool, S.F., Guthrie, K. and Smith, J.K. 2000, Building Consensus: Legitimate Hope or Seductive Paradox? Research Paper RMRS-RP-25, U.S. Dept of Agriculture Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fort Collins CO.

Natural Resource Management, 2005, NRM regions and administrative bodies, retrieved 1 st July 2006 from: http://www.nrm.gov.au/index.html.

NSW Natural Resources Atlas, 2005, 'Armidale land classes', retrieved 30 th June 2006 from http://www.nratlas.nsw.gov.au/wmc/savedapps /nratlas.

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Conservation Association of Australia.Robins, L. 2002, Managing riparian land for multiple uses, RIRDC Publication 02/103.Shafron, W., Martin, P. and Ashton, D. 2002, Profile of Australian Wool Producers, 1997-98 to

2000-01, ABARE Research Report 02.7, Canberra.Stafford Smith, M. 1994, ‘Sustainable production systems and NRM in the rangelands’, in Outlook

94. ABARE, Canberra.Stafford Smith, D.M. and Foran, B.D. 1991, ‘RANGEPACK: the philosophy underlying the

development of a microcomputer-based decision support system for pastoral land management’, Journal of Biogeography, vol. 17, pp. 541-546.

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Toyne, P. and Farley, R. 1989, ‘A national land management program’, Australian Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, vol. 1 (2), pp. 6-9.

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Walters, C.J. and Holling, C.S. 1990, ‘Large scale management experiments and learning by doing’, Ecology, vol. 71, pp. 2060-2068.

Webb, A.A. 1998, ‘Integrated catchment management – where is it at?’ in Farming Action Catchment Reaction. The Effect of Dryland Farming on the Natural Environment (eds. J. Williams, R.A. Hook and H.L. Gascoigne), CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, pp. 26-30.

Williams, J., Read, C., Norton, A., Dovers, S., Burgman, M., Proctor, W. and Anderson, H. 2001, Biodiversity. Australia State of the Environment Report 2001, CSIRO Publishing on behalf of the Department of Environment and Heritage, Canberra.

Yaffre, S.L. and Wondolleck, J.M. 2000, ‘Making collaboration work’, Conservation Biology in Practice, vol. 1, pp. 17-25.


Yencken, D. and Wilkinson, D. 2000, Resetting the Compass. Australia's Journey Towards Sustainability, CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood.

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Glossary of TermsCompiled from Ball et al. (2001), Manin et al. (2001), Williams et al. (2001), Industry Commission (1999) and Suggett and Goodsir (2002).

Acidic soil Soil with a pH < 7.0 in a soil-water suspensionAgricultural land Any land on which crops or pastures are cultivated or domestic stock

are grazedArid zone Those areas in Australia that receive < 250 or 350 mm of rainfall each

year in the south and north, respectivelyBenchmark The value for an indicator that has some defined environmental

significance (or threshold) in the functioning of the natural system. An example is the concentration of pollutants that can be tolerated without damaging health. Whereas targets have a basis in policy and reflect human values, benchmarks are scientifically determined, see targets

Biodiversity The variability among living organisms from all sources (including terrestrial, marine and other ecosystems and ecological complexes of which they are part); includes diversity within species and between species, and diversity of ecosystems

Biomass The quantity of organic matter within an ecosystem (usually expressed as dry weight for unit area or volume)

Biosphere The collective name for living organisms on the planetBiota All of the organisms at a particular localityBroadacre farms Commercial farms over a large area. Produce includes crops, wool,

beef and sheep meat. Farming is usually under dryland conditionsCatchment An area of land where run-off from rainfall goes into the one river

systemConservation farming A farming system that creates a suitable environment for growing

crops and pasture with an emphasis on conserving soil and water resources, and consistent with sound economic practices

Crown leases Contracts where the government confers upon private individuals specified rights to the use of land belonging to the government for a specified period in return for rent

Dryland salinity Where water balance has been altered due to changing land use (e.g. clearing of native vegetation for broadacre farming or grazing), excess water entering the watertable mobilises salt which then rises to the land surface. Movement of water drives salinisation processes and may move the stored salt towards the soil surface or into surface water bodies

Ecological sustainability

The capacity of ecosystems to maintain their essential processes and functions and to retain their biodiversity without impoverishment

Ecologically sustainable development (ESD)

Using, conserving and enhancing the community’s resources so that ecological processes, on which life depends, are maintained and the total quality of life – now and in the future – can be increased

Ecology The scientific study of living organisms and their relationships to one another and their environment

Ecosystem A dynamic complex of plant, animal and micro-organism communities and their non-living environment interacting as a functional unit


Environmental indicators

Measures of physical, chemical, biological, social, cultural or economic factors which best represent the key elements of complex ecosystems or environmental issues

Environmental management

Effective and active measures taken for the protection, conservation and presentation of the environment, heritage and natural resources for which a government, organisation or individual is responsible

Fallow The practice of maintaining land free of plant growth. Land is left either in a cultivated or herbicide-treated state for a period before sowing a crop or between successive crops. It is mainly carried out to conserve soil water and mineralise soil organic nitrogen reserves. The period of fallow can vary from between 3 months (short fallow) and 14 months (long fallow)

Freehold tenure Land owned privately, see leaseholdHabitat The biophysical medium or media occupied (continuously, periodically

or occasionally) by an organism, or group of organismsHeritage Those places, objects and Indigenous languages that have aesthetic,

historical, scientific or social significance or other special value for future generations as well as for the community today

Indicator species A species whose presence or absence is indicative of a particular habitat, community or set of environmental conditions

Intensive agricultural land use(s)

Areas described as intensive agriculture generally include Horticulture; Semi-intensive (irrigated and non-irrigated) – sugar, cotton, rice, potatoes; Broadacre crops (irrigated and non-irrigated) – cereals, wheat, oilseeds, pulses, hay; Pastures (irrigated and non-irrigated) – livestock dairy production from improved pastures

Integrated catchment management (ICM)

Seeks to bring together the various parties and interests in a catchment through regional land and water management plans to achieve whole-catchment improvements

Irrigation salinity A localised rise in the level of groundwater and the associated mobilisation of salt, caused by the application of large volumes of irrigation water, compounded by the replacement of native vegetation by plants with different water use patterns

Landcare Any policy, strategy or practice furthering sustainable land management. Landcare is practised by community groups, formal support services, advisers, land managers and individuals. The community component of Landcare aims to encourage community groups and landholders to identify and solve the soil, water, vegetation, and nature conversation problems in their area. Grants help groups with planning, education and training, resource inventories and monitoring

Leasehold Land owned by governments on behalf of the people they represent but leased to specified people or organisations for a specific purpose; about 50% of Australia, mostly in the drier regions, comes under some form of leasehold; governments retain a variety of controls over how leasehold land is used

Monitoring Routine counting, testing or measuring environmental factors to estimate their status or condition

Perennial Plants that live for more than one yearPolluter pays Pricing principle where the source directly responsible for pollution

bears the cost of resulting damagePrecautionary principle Where there are threats of serious or irreversible environmental

damage, lack of full scientific certainty should not be used as a reason for postponing measures to prevent environmental degradation

Rangelands Areas of native grasslands, shrublands, woodlands, and tropical savanna woodlands that cover a large proportion (75%) of the arid and semi-arid regions of (outback) Australia


Residue Portion of plant or crop left in the paddock after harvest. Often referred to as crop stubble or pasture residue. Residues can be retained, incorporated into the soil or burnt

RIRDC Rural Industries Research and Development CorporationRun-off The proportion of precipitation that is not immediately absorbed by the

soil and thus flows across the surfaceSalinisation The process whereby soluble salts accumulate in the soilSalinity The total amount of water-soluble salts present in a soil horizonSemi-arid zone Lands where rainfall is too low and unreliable for crops to be grown

with certaintySodic soil Soils containing a high proportion of sodium. Sodic soils cause poor

physical conditions for plant growth. They are typically considered unstable and, as a consequence, have high erodability and often present problems for soil conservation strategies

Stocking rate The number of animals over a specified land areaSustainable Referring to an activity that is able to be carried out without damaging

the long-term health and integrity of natural and cultural environmentsSustainability indicators

Selected and/or aggregated indicators for evaluating specific ESD (ecologically sustainable development) goals

TCM Total Catchment ManagementUser pays Pricing principle based on charging the user for the full supply cost of a

product/resourceWeed A plant species growing where it is not wanted by humans


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