Sustainability and Degradation. An unresolved conflict for low productivity rangeland

Abstract:

A scarcity of natural surface water and the long established cultural practice of Aboriginal Australia jointly served to protect the rangeland from intense grazing pressure. This protection served to optimise potential for environment stability in environment that is inherently unstable; promoted perennial rather than short-lived plant community and favoured soil formation. With the inception of pastoral industry a New Australia was generally blind to the constraint of climate variability and to the consequence of “mining” vegetation in fragile landscape, for a promotion of stock industry.