Soil Legislation in Australia
Ian Hannam
1 Introduction
Soil conservation legislation was first introduced in Australia over 80 years ago. It
was introduced primarily to control land degradation. The term ‘degradation’ is used
to describe changes that are additional to those occurring naturally and carries with it
the notion of change that is undesirable and brought about by humans. Land
degradation encompasses many types of soil degradation and refers to chemical
and biophysical changes in the land that reduce both its quantity and quality. In
Australia, these changes are linked to a reduction in the productive capacity of land
and its economic value.
The condition of land or ‘land health’ invokes the concept of ecosystems—the
interactions and connections between the living and non-living components of the
environment. In degraded land, where ecosystems have been changed, the altered
ecosystems continue to function but have a reduced capacity to supply the goods and
services we are seeking, for example, food, habitat for threatened species and
landscape amenities.
In addition to providing for the physical needs of increasing populations, in
Australia, the land has a spiritual and cultural significance for many but in particular
Indigenous people. The changes in the condition of land following settlement by
Europeans in 1788 have diminished these values in many parts of Australia,
although some older cultural sites have only been revealed following disturbance
by the new settlers. In Australia, about two thirds of agricultural land is degraded.
The major types of land degradation are soil erosion, soil salinity, soil acidity, soil
I. Hannam (*)
University of New England, Australian Centre for Agriculture and Law, Armidale, NSW,
Australia
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
H. Yahyah et al. (eds.), Legal Instruments for Sustainable Soil Management in
Africa, International Yearbook of Soil Law and Policy,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-36004-7_10
181
Ian Hannam
1 Introduction
Soil conservation legislation was first introduced in Australia over 80 years ago. It
was introduced primarily to control land degradation. The term ‘degradation’ is used
to describe changes that are additional to those occurring naturally and carries with it
the notion of change that is undesirable and brought about by humans. Land
degradation encompasses many types of soil degradation and refers to chemical
and biophysical changes in the land that reduce both its quantity and quality. In
Australia, these changes are linked to a reduction in the productive capacity of land
and its economic value.
The condition of land or ‘land health’ invokes the concept of ecosystems—the
interactions and connections between the living and non-living components of the
environment. In degraded land, where ecosystems have been changed, the altered
ecosystems continue to function but have a reduced capacity to supply the goods and
services we are seeking, for example, food, habitat for threatened species and
landscape amenities.
In addition to providing for the physical needs of increasing populations, in
Australia, the land has a spiritual and cultural significance for many but in particular
Indigenous people. The changes in the condition of land following settlement by
Europeans in 1788 have diminished these values in many parts of Australia,
although some older cultural sites have only been revealed following disturbance
by the new settlers. In Australia, about two thirds of agricultural land is degraded.
The major types of land degradation are soil erosion, soil salinity, soil acidity, soil
I. Hannam (*)
University of New England, Australian Centre for Agriculture and Law, Armidale, NSW,
Australia
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
H. Yahyah et al. (eds.), Legal Instruments for Sustainable Soil Management in
Africa, International Yearbook of Soil Law and Policy,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-36004-7_10
181