Closer settlement in the Western District of Victoria: a case study in Australian land use policy, 1898-1914

The promotion of closer settlement in the Australian state of Victoria between 1898 and 1914 was viewed as a panacea to many of the problems that beset the state. The region known as the Western District of Victoria was seen as particularly suitable for the application of land re-settlement policy. The study of this region highlights several important features of the closer settlement experiment in Victoria. First, it illustrates how the basic principles of closer settlement were used to further the interests of particular groups. Second, it highlights the flaws in foundations of the Closer Settlement Act which impacted on the settlers chances of success. And thirdly it points to the disastrous implications of policy implementation that paid little attention to the geographical and economic parameters governing the outcome of farming enterprises.

The effects of land use on leaf-litter processing by macro-invertebrates in an Australian temperate coastal stream

Replacement of riparian vegetation by pasture has occurred worldwide and is predicted to have strong effects on macroinvertebrate community structure and function in streams, but this has rarely been examined. In this study, leaf processing and macroinvertebrate community structure were examined in a single stream using experimental leaf-packs and surveys of natural leaf-packs. Two sites in each of three land use categories were selected to represent reaches in forest, pasture and forest-pasture boundary regions. In two experiments using tethered leaf-packs, no differences were found in mean leaf breakdown between land use types. However, shredding invertebrates were absent from the pasture sites, so leaf breakdown in pasture resulted from chemical, physical and microbial processes only. Amounts of fine particulate organic matter in experimental leaf-packs were higher in pasture reaches than the forest and boundary reaches but did not influence leaf breakdown. Macroinvertebrate species richness did not differ between land uses. A predictive model developed for species richness and total abundance enabled direct comparison of assemblages on experimental packs to natural leaf-packs. In the forest reach and at the forest-pasture boundary, macroinvertebrate species richness and total abundance increased proportionally with the number of leaves within a pack, but this relationship was not observed in the pasture reach. Pasture land use on Skenes Creek was therefore associated with weakened relationships between allochthonous inputs and macroinvertebrate communities, but this did not alter leaf breakdown.

Multi-temporal land use mapping using remotely sensed techniques and the integration of a pollutant load model in a GIS

Estimation of nutrient load production based on multi-temporal remotely sensed land-use data for the Glenelg-Hopkins region in southwest Victoria, Australia, is discussed. Changes in land use were mapped using archived Landsat data and computerized classification techniques. Land-use
change is unparalleled in recent history, with 13% of the region transformed in the last decade. Total nitrogen and phosphorus loading were estimated using an export coefficient model. The analysis demonstrated a disturbing increase in nitrogen and phosphorus loadings from 1995 to 2002. Whilst such increases were suspected from past anecdotal and ad-hoc evidence, our modelling quantitatively estimated such increases and thus demonstrated the enormous potential of using remote sensing and GIS for monitoring land-use change and hence improve land-use management.

The consequences of land use change on nutrient exports: a regional scale assessment in south-west Victoria, Australia

Estimation of nutrient load production based on multi-temporal remotely sensed land use data for the Glenelg–Hopkins region in south-west Victoria, Australia, is discussed. Changes in land use were mapped using archived Landsat data and computerised classification techniques. Land use change has been rapid in recent history with 16% of the region transformed in the last 22 years. Total nitrogen and phosphorus loads were estimated using an export coefficient model. The analysis demonstrates an increase in modelled nitrogen and phosphorus loadings from 1980 to 2002. Whilst such increases were suspected from past anecdotal and ad-hoc evidence, our modelling estimated the magnitude of such increases and thus demonstrated the enormous potential of using remote sensing and GIS for monitoring regional scale environmental processes.

Public land use planning using bioregions and other attributes : determining the study area of the VEAC river red gum forests investigation

In order to plan for the best use of public land at a regional scale the determination of an appropriate regional boundary is important for ecological, resource use and recreational reasons. The study area for the Victorian Environmental Assessment Council's (VEAC) River Red Gum Forests Investigation incorporated bioregional boundaries, modelled pre- I750 vegetation distribution, recent public land use investigations, and the distribution of public land. This paper outlines how ecological attributes and past land use studies were used to inform the boundary for this major study of public land along the Murray River in northern Victoria.

Water, land use change and 'new forests': what are the challenges for South-Western Victoria?

Land use change has occurred rapidly in southwestern Victoria over the last decade and is expected to continue, albeit at a slower pace. One of these changes has been the development of 'new forests', that is industrial and farm forestry plantations and environmental plantings. Some of the challenges that these land use changes pose for water and natural resource managers are discussed. Land use change is expected to substantially reduce potential water yield in four of the region's seven drainage basins (A).

Evaluating public risk preferences in forest land-use choices using multi-attribute utility theory

Forest policy decisions inherently involve multiple attributes and risk and uncertainty as they largely deal with complex biological, ecological, and socio-political systems. Identifying risk preferences and quantifying their inter-relationships and tradeoffs are useful in formulating better forest policy. Often, technocrats and experts deal with risky decisions, but ideally, stakeholder risk characteristics should be explicitly considered in making policy decisions. This paper analysed societal risk preferences on public forest land-use attributes using multi-attribute utility theory (MAUT). The results indicate significant risk-averse behaviour towards old-growth forest conservation and forest-based recreation but less risk-averse behaviour towards native timber extraction. Overall, the respondents preferred a more conservative forest land-use option, which is consistent with their risk attitudes. The method provides insights into risk preferences of forest stakeholders, which could lead to better understanding of forest management conflicts. Moreover, the method explicitly distinguishes the technical and value components of the decision and is useful in unravelling public risk preferences in multiple-use forest planning situations.

The Impact of Land Use Patterns and Watershed Characteristics on China Lake, Kennebec County, Maine

China Lake is located in Kennebec County, Maine. Since 1983 the lake has suffered from yearly algal blooms as a result of the addition of excess nutrients. The nutrient load was amplified by erosion within the watershed. Erosion varies widely depending on a number of factors, including the slope of the land, the type of soil, and the way the land is being used. Certain land use types have a high potential to add nutrients to the environment, while others may help absorb excess nutrients and prevent erosion and runoff into the lake. A comprehensive examination of the China Lake watershed was completed using GIS to calculate the erosion potential for the entire area, taking into account past and present land use patterns. This information will help the towns around the lake to make informed decisions about future development and land management.

Unhealthy landscapes: policy recommendations on land use change and infectious disease emergence

Anthropogenic land use changes drive a range of infectious disease outbreaks and emergence events and modify the transmission of endemic infections. These drivers include agricultural encroachment, deforestation, road construction, dam building, irrigation, wetland modification, mining, the concentration or expansion of urban environments, coastal zone degradation, and other activities. These changes in turn cause a cascade of factors that exacerbate infectious disease emergence, such as forest fragmentation, disease introduction, pollution, poverty, and human migration. The Working Group on Land Use Change and Disease Emergence grew out of a special colloquium that convened international experts in infectious diseases, ecology, and environmental health to assess the current state of knowledge and to develop recommendations for addressing these environmental health challenges. The group established a systems model approach and priority lists of infectious diseases affected by ecologic degradation. Policy-relevant levels of the model include specific health risk factors, landscape or habitat change, and institutional (economic and behavioral) levels. The group recommended creating Centers of Excellence in Ecology and Health Research and Training, based at regional universities and/or research institutes with close links to the surrounding communities. The centers' objectives would be 3-fold: a) to provide information to local communities about the links between environmental change and public health ; b) to facilitate fully interdisciplinary research from a variety of natural, social, and health sciences and train professionals who can conduct interdisciplinary research ; and c) to engage in science-based communication and assessment for policy making toward sustainable health and ecosystems.

Strategic public land use assessment and planning in Victoria : over 30 years of trailblazing but where to from here?

Conflict over the appropriate uses and management of public land have been a feature of the Australian political landscape for at least the past 30 years. While various attempts have been made to establish land use assessment and planning institutions in various jurisdictions, the success of these often short lived attempts at institutional approaches for managing land use conflict have been patchy at best. The experience in the State of Victoria has been somewhat different, with public land use assessment and planning having been informed by a series of independent statutory bodies since 1970 (the Land Conservation, Environment Conservation, and Victorian Environmental Assessment Councils). To some degree at least the value of this approach is indicated by the extent to which Victoria’s bioregions are now protected in conservation reserves. However, while there has always been a statutory body in operation, the roles and responsibilities of these bodies have been subject to significant legislative change, with existing bodies replaced by new bodies in 1997 and 2001. Justifications for these reforms included changing circumstances and new understandings about environmental management, as well as changing views about public administration. As a way of contributing to enhancing the design of institutions for mediating land use conflict and contributing to sustainable land use and management, this paper investigates the lessons that can be learnt from the Victorian experience by examining the implications of the changing roles and responsibilities of these institutions, and then discussing possible future directions for strategic land use planning.