Remote Australia Online

This report provides results from a component of research completed under the Desert Knowledge CRC Core Project 5, ‘Desert Services that Work: Demand-responsive services to desert settlements’. The research examined service provision as a complex system and had a focus on the housing/health interface. Despite the volume of debate and commentary on services to remote settlements undertaken over the last 25 years, the modelling of service systems remains a largely neglected area. This report details an approach which attempts to capture the complexity of the system and also to provide a platform to allow users to interactively adjust system parameters and review potential outcomes of the actions. The model used an agent-based modelling (ABM) approach, which is a complex system modelling technique. Through this approach we can create an environment to explore and perhaps understand the system better. The model created could allow for alternative strategies to be tested, with potential deficiencies to be identified in a dynamic simulation environment. It provides a platform that can provide insights to the service delivery process, allow bottlenecks to be identified, and examine the trade-offs that may be made to achieve desired outcomes. It could also test potential outcomes from a range of technical and governance solution options. This report provides a discussion of the software-based model that has been developed as part of this project. It also provides, for insight to aid modelling the system, information about a range of services and delivery methods available to remote desert settlements. This study provides an analysis of the policy environment and governance structures, some analysis of the funding for specific programs, and an assessment of the performance and evaluation process, again as input data for the modelling. It also provides a description of some services, service delivery models and a typology of service delivery models.

A service is the process by which individuals, households and communities gain access to goods and facilities that they require to live and work. As such, services address a wide range of needs from water and power to law and justice programs, education, road maintenance and almost any provision requiring specialist skills and work to meet the needs of users of services. The research conducted by DKCRC through the project Desert Services that Work and described in this report aims to address five research questions: 1. What are characteristics of the interplay between demand and supply of services, according to the perceptions of consumers and service providers engaged at the local interface? 2. What are the conditions that permit successful practice to develop between consumers and service providers? 3. At what scales of governance should different service delivery functions be assigned to optimise both demand and supply based criteria? 4. What are the priorities of consumers for service type and delivery style within a specified budget framework, and what is their capacity to participate in and willingness to contribute to services? 5. What are the critical issues and strategies to improve the service system, including the strengths and weaknesses of different technology and governance options?

The purpose of this paper is to provide a perspective on remote services, a perspective that draws on international practice in the field of development combined with insights from research on service delivery in remote Australia. The paper argues that there commonly exists a lack of consistency between strategic goals in service design and the realities of operational service delivery. Better outcomes from services could be achieved by an approach that orientates them towards human development objectives, leading to longer-term and sustainable results. Recent research in Australia cited in this paper comes from the work of the Desert Knowledge Cooperative Research Centre (DKCRC) – particularly the project „Desert Services that Work: demand-responsive approaches to desert settlements. This project involved seven partner organisations: the Centre for Appropriate Technology (the lead agency); the Australian Institute for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS); the University of Queensland; the University of South Australia; Murdoch University (to September 2008): CSIRO: James Cook University (to August 2009); and Charles Darwin University (from August 2009).

In remote Australia there are examples of remote services that have worked consistently well over an extended period of time. But too often they remain isolated cases. One factor in their success may have been the work of individuals in key positions. Perhaps a particular set of circumstances came together at the right place and time. Or maybe the role of government staff or local residents was critical. Using insights gained from the research of the Desert Knowledge Cooperative Research Centre (DKCRC) and lessons from other countries, this paper will explore the key ingredients in improving remote services and consider how greater replication of good practice can be achieved. In particular, the paper will consider the challenge of moving from person-dependent to system-dependent practice and the potential impact of replicated service models on economic development.

The second stage of the Northern Territory component of the Centre for Appropriate Technology/ Desert Knowledge Cooperative Research Centre Project, ‘Desert Services that Work: Demand Responsive Services for Desert Settlements’, examined the delivery of housing and tenancy management reforms from July 2008–November 2009 in two remote Aboriginal communities that are located in two new local government areas. The research found: 1. The significant mismatch between supply side activities and demand side realities means there will be continuing discordance between government program implementation and residents of remote Aboriginal settlements. 2. Housing and tenancy management reforms need to recognise and accommodate the phenomena of agency and intra-community mobility, whereby a substantial percentage of households regularly change composition and houses, impelled primarily by the prerogatives of family and culture. 3. Effective engagement and information distribution processes would reduce the damage done by the concomitant constant turnover in staff that results in the loss of corporate memory, competencies and, most importantly, effective working relationships. 4. Tailored and flexible approaches are needed in housing delivery that are capable of working productively with variability, dispersal, strong local networks, small populations and extreme conditions. 5. For government, accountability is a key value; for residents of remote Aboriginal settlements, family is of primary importance. Recognising the extent of and the need to mediate the different sets of values and competing priorities in a ‘recognition space’ would help develop long-term, demand responsive solutions to sustainable housing.

This article examines destination image projection on consumer-generated content (CGC) websites. A case study of the Flinders Ranges in South Australia was conducted to assess the destination images presented by two different markets. Blogs, review sites, and special interest forums were analyzed against a common destination image framework. The retrieved images were then compared to official images promoted by the destination marketing organization (DMO). The research revealed considerable differences between consumer images and DMO images. The results suggest that different types of CGC websites encourage different levels of information exchange. Future research will need to focus on the impact that various types of CGC websites can have on consumers as a form of word of mouth.

The power of loose ties: Networking for market diversification in remote Australia

This report focuses on issues important for the sustainability and development of the Anmatjere region of central Australia and for the livelihoods of its people. People from the region and other stakeholders had raised the issue of participation in paid employment as a key to the future of the region. We studied local people’s participation in paid employment, and the factors that affect this participation, in the context of their livelihoods, all the other activities they pursue, and their aspirations. We interviewed 72 people in four of the region’s settlements, all adjacent to the Stuart Highway, and in nearby localities, and we conducted focus groups and a workshop to further develop and test analysis. We used the sustainable livelihoods framework to structure the interviews and analysis. The framework encourages consideration of the many diverse factors that impact on people’s livelihoods, rather than only focusing on immediate factors that constrain or facilitate people’s entry into jobs, such as transport or skills. A sustainable livelihood should build people’s capability: their ability to lead lives they have reason to value and to make substantive choices about their values and the course of their lives.

Recent research identified the need for the development of a comprehensive in-vehicle information system for independent self-drive travellers (iOutback™) in regional and remote Australia. The purpose of iOutback™ is to facilitate location-based two-way communication between travellers and relevant information providers (destination management organisations, emergency services, local government and/or tourism businesses) in remote destinations. This report looks at the feasibility of such a location-based information system in remote areas and reports on the results of a workshop conducted with stakeholders of a particular remote destination in South Australia – the Oodnadatta Track. A detailed user-needs analysis was conducted with workshop participants to develop a set of userneeds specifications for iOutback™. It is argued that existing technical barriers to improved locationbased communication in remote Australia are likely to be short term. Given the rapid rate of change in communication technologies, the development of new and innovative information systems should be primarily concerned with organising and managing the required information architecture and protocols rather than focusing too much on specifying technological aspects. Following the workshop, a short video was placed online and publicised through interest groups to encourage individuals to respond to an accompanying survey. The results were used to gauge potential users’ perceptions of such a system and to indicate pathways for further development of iOutback™. Overall, the iOutback™ was well received and indicated a demand for a system which would be primarily safety oriented but would also serve to augment current remote travel itineraries. Collectively, the results from the focus group and survey strongly endorse the need and suggest a demand for an iOutback™ form of communication system.

The Alice Springs Desert Park has achieved and sustained a high level of Aboriginal employment compared to most other Australian government organisations and the Australian private sector. For more than 10 years, between 20% and 25% of its staff of about 50 people have been Aboriginal people. They include Aboriginal people who have previous work experience, elders with strong cultural knowledge, and young Aboriginal people being introduced to a workplace culture through apprenticeships and traineeships. Factors that account for the success of Aboriginal employment at the Alice Springs Desert Park (ASDP) are analysed in this report. The research focused on the opinions and experiences of Aboriginal staff, as well as analysing factors identified by ASDP managers that supported Aboriginal employment. The Indigenous Employment and Evaluation (IEE) Tool (Tiplady & Barclay 2007b), developed within the mining industry, was used as an analytical framework, particularly for the views of ASDP managers. The IEE Tool is based on a business planning approach and is designed to aid organisations to develop and manage an effective Aboriginal employment program. It was found to be less applicable to understanding the factors that were important to Aboriginal staff about their ASDP employment.

Several catchment-based water planning processes are currently underway in Australia, with the Water Reform Agreement of 1994 providing the legislative umbrella. This paper presents the results of a case study conducted in the joint catchment of the Diamantina and Georgina rivers, located in the remote central-west part of the state of Queensland. The paper investigates the new water planning processes from the perspective of the design principles for the robust institutions, while taking into account the specifics of the social and ecological environment they will need to operate in. The analysis uses both the actual plans as well as stakeholders' perceptions of the planning process. The analysis found that four of the design principles for robust institutions: clearly defined boundaries, collective choice arrangements, gradual sanctioning and nested enterprises; were well covered in the planning process. However, the principles of: equivalence between costs and benefits; conflict resolution mechanisms; recognition of right to organise; and monitoring; were not clearly or sufficiently addressed in the Plans and have resulted in significant concerns by stakeholders interviewed. The paper discusses the implications of the findings for other water planning processes located in remote and desert regions in general

The perceptions of people living within the current range of feral camels and involved in the pastoral industry and conservation reserve management were assessed through a questionnaire survey. The survey was designed to gauge understanding about the distribution and abundance of feral camels, perspective on camel impacts, and attitudes towards different camel management options. Camels occurred on 74.2% of pastoral properties and 51.4% of reserves that were surveyed. Camels were reported to be increasing on more than 50% of pastoral properties and 88% of reserves and were reported to cause damage on most properties where they occurred. The total monetary value of this damage (including management to mitigate it) was estimated to be $7.15 million per annum on the pastoral estate and $0.37 million per annum across the conservation estate within or on the margins of the camel range. On the pastoral estate, ~$2.40 million of the damage per annum was to infrastructure whereas production losses amounted to $3.42 million per annum. A minority of pastoral properties and reserves reported tangible benefits that accrued from selling camels, eating camels and using camels for natural resource management activities including weed control. The monetary value of the benefit was estimated to be about $0.58 million per annum across the pastoral estate, compared with ~$34 379 per annum across the conservation estate. Pastoralists and reserve managers generally saw a need to control camels and their impacts and currently play an active role in this regard. Both landholder groups favoured culling and commercial use to manage camel impacts but were comfortable using all of the available approaches and willing to consider new ones.

Through a questionnaire survey, we assessed the perspectives about feral camels and their management of people involved in managing conservation lands. The survey was designed to gauge: understanding about the distribution and abundance of feral camels perspective on camel impacts attitudes towards different camel management options. Thirteen park/reserve managers and regional managers representing seventy reserves/parks responded to the survey. These parks/reserves covered 250 629 km2, which is about 40% of the entire area of conservation lands within or on the margins of the camel range (approximately 630 811 km2). Camels occurred on 51.4% of the properties surveyed. Camels were reported to be increasing on 88.9% of the properties with camels. Camels were reported to cause damage on about 94% of the properties on which they were reported present. The monetary value of this damage and the cost of management to mitigate it was estimated to be $175 050 annually across all conservation lands within or on the margins of the camel range. All managers surveyed believed that camels caused damage to the broader environment. Three of the 70 properties surveyed reported benefits attributable to feral camels. These benefits were tangible benefits that accrued from selling camels and eating camels. The monetary value of the benefit that managers realised from feral camels was estimated to be about $34 379 annually across all conservation properties within or on the margins of the camel range, which was very small compared with the estimated negative impacts from camels. Managers reported that the major impacts of feral camels were on environmental and cultural values, the very values that reserves are endeavouring to protect. The monetary value of the negative impacts on these values was not costed in this analysis. All managers surveyed indicated that camels needed to be controlled. More than 75% of managers who responded engaged in some form of activity to manage camels on their properties. Managers engaged in all of the currently available methods for managing feral camels, with culling (shooting to waste) being the most widely used form of management. A small but significant percentage of managers were interested in pursuing alternative approaches to management, including bounties and biological control. This indicates that conservation managers may be willing to engage in new techniques in conjunction with the preferred methods. However, fewer than 24% of those surveyed indicated that they supported ‘strategic’ approaches to the control of camels and their impacts. Park/reserve personnel, government personnel, and contract shooters/musterers were involved in the management of feral camels and their impacts on parks/reserves over the past two years. It is essential that the willingness and capacity of managers of conservation land to engage in the management of feral camels be harnessed when implementing a cross-jurisdictional approach to managing feral camel impacts. While the majority of conservation land managers supported the development of a stronger camel industry in Australia, only a few currently undertake management actions involving this approach. The majority of conservation managers were either unsure or expressed a lack of confidence in the current camel industry. The majority of managers expressed the view that they would have to upgrade their current infrastructure before they could engage in the commercial use of camels. Conservation managers currently engage with governments to obtain information about camels and camel management and to secure assistance with culling operations. All managers indicated that they would welcome more assistance to manage feral camels on their land, particularly assistance with culling and direct financial assistance.

The perspectives of people involved in the pastoral industry on feral camels and their management were assessed through a questionnaire survey. The survey was designed to gauge: - understanding about the distribution and abundance of feral camels - perspective on camel impacts - attitudes towards different camel management options. Two hundred and nine properties responded to the survey. This represented about 18% of all pastoral properties within or on the margins of the camel range. The properties that responded to the survey covered 706 489 km2, which is about 32% of the entire area of pastoral lands within or on the margins of the camel range (approximately 2.22 million km2). Camels occurred on the majority of the properties surveyed and more than 50% of pastoralists reported that the camel numbers were increasing. Most pastoralists with camels on their properties claimed that camels caused damage. The value of this damage was estimated to be $7.15 million annually across all pastoral properties within or on the margins of the camel range, including $3.42 million for production losses (attributable to camels competing with stock for food and water, cattle escaping, etc.), $2.40 million for infrastructure damage (i.e. damage to fences, yards, and water equipment) and $1.33 million for management. A small minority of pastoralists reported benefits attributable to feral camels. These benefits accrued from selling camels, eating camels, and using camels for NRM activities, including weed control. The value of the benefit that pastoralists realised from feral camels was estimated to be about $0.58 million annually across all pastoral properties within or on the margins of the camel range. Pastoralists are one of the most important harvesters of feral camels, accounting for about 20% of the total annual harvest for the period July 05 – June 07. The vast majority of surveyed pastoralists indicated that camels needed to be controlled, and they favoured the methods of shooting to waste and harvesting to use camels. However, a small percentage is interested in pursuing alternative approaches, including exclusion fencing and Judas collaring. This indicates that pastoralists may be willing to engage in new techniques in conjunction with the preferred methods. Fewer than 11% of those surveyed indicated that they supported ‘strategic’ approaches to the control of camels and their impacts. This may indicate that pastoralists want immediate action rather than more talking about, planning to deal with, and monitoring of the problem. Pastoralists are indeed getting on with the job of managing the problem and are investing significant resources in doing so. More than 80% of pastoralists engaged in some form of activity to manage camels on their properties. Pastoralists engaged in all of the currently available methods for managing feral camels, with culling (shooting to waste) being the most widely used form of management. Most camel management is currently undertaken by station personnel. It is essential that the willingness and capacity of pastoralists to engage in the management of feral camels be harnessed when implementing a cross-jurisdictional approach to managing feral camel impacts. While most pastoralists indicated that commercial use was a desirable way of managing camels and most generally supported the development of a stronger camel industry in Australia, only a few currently undertake management actions involving this approach. There is a lack of confidence in the current camel industry with particular concerns over its long-term viability because of unproved markets. The majority of pastoralists would have to upgrade their current infrastructure before they could engage more widely in the commercial use of camels. Pastoralists currently engage with governments to secure assistance with culling operations. Most pastoralists indicated that they would welcome more assistance to manage feral camels on their land, particularly assistance with culling and the commercial use of camels. Although the vast majority of pastoralists were engaged in managing camels and their impacts, most did not obtain relevant information that could help them in this task. This highlights the need for a communication strategy to disseminate information on camels, their impacts, and their management in culturally appropriate formats to all relevant stakeholders. This strategy should provide for two-way communication.

Education is one of the most powerful instruments for reducing poverty and inequality, and lays a foundation for sustained economic growth. Aboriginal peoples of Australia experience ‘overwhelming’ disadvantages across every indicator of social and economic well being when compared with non-Aboriginal peoples. This disadvantage is experienced across all sectors of education, and although Aboriginal students are participating at high rates in vocational education and training, their pass rates and qualification outcomes remain well below those of non-Aboriginal Australians. This paper maps the participation and outcomes for Aboriginal desert dwellers in the vocational education and training sector and relates these to factors such as: (1) compulsory school access, (2) remote area labour markets, (3) the state of housing and infrastructure on discrete desert settlements, and (4) the policy and program initiatives influencing land tenure, income security and labour force status. The provision of education services across desert regions epitomises the tensions generated when the drivers of desert living – remoteness, dispersed sparse and mobile populations, variable climate, geography, cultures, languages and histories – interact with the differing factors that shape mainstream vocational education. Although innovations in program delivery more consistent with learner needs and aspirations can and do emerge, they are often framed as pilot projects or materialise in parallel program interventions such as youth work or land care. This paper explores the nature of these tensions and identifies the characteristics of educational interventions that can improve outcomes for Aboriginal desert dwellers no matter where they choose to live.

A centralised, partly-informal, benign and largely successful public/private partnership for the exploration, development, administration and support of South Australia’s pastoral lands has existed for over 130 years. In the flurry of legislative and organisational change that is accompanying the introduction of Integrated Natural Resource Management into the pastoral lands of South Australia, it should be remembered that most of the administrative arrangements that are being rationalised, or are to be rationalised, have only come into existence in the last 35 years. The Water Resources Act, for instance, that mandated the first Arid Areas Advisory Committee, was passed in 1976 and with the revision of the Act the Arid Areas Catchment Water Management Board in 2000. It wasn’t until the late 1980s that the pastoral soil conservation districts were proclaimed following the enactment of the Soil Conservation and Landcare Act, 1989. In that same year the Pastoral Land Management and Conservation Act, that drives the current emphases within the State Pastoral Program, came into force. Within the last few years there has again been a push for change to integration of natural resource management and the amalgamation of water, soil, and pests under the new Natural Resource Management Act and the formation of the South Australian Arid Lands NRM Board. There are discussions underway to integrate the State Pastoral Program into the mix in some way. The community/government interface continues to change and evolve. Whether this results in better outcomes for people and the country remains to be seen. The last 35 years have also witnessed a remarkable upsurge in infrastructure and governance development in the outback. In the same year that the first water advisory committee was formed, opal mining started at Mintabie. Earlier in 1970 Oraparinna Station became the Flinders Ranges National Park, and the original block of the Gammon Ranges National Park was acquired from the Yankaninna Run. In 1978 the Outback Areas Community Development Trust was legislatively empowered and in 1980 the new standard gauge railway to Alice Springs was opened, and Marree and Oodnadatta were bypassed. In 1981 the immense Pitjantjatjara Lands Grant was made. One year later the Stuart Highway was re-aligned and sealed, Marla and Glendambo were surveyed and established, Kingoonya was bypassed and local government came to Coober Pedy. The following year saw the opening of regional offices at Port Augusta by the then Department of Agriculture and the Departments of Environment and Planning and Lands. In that same year two regional advisers were co-located with the Department of Agriculture to work with outback and local communities on pest plant and pest animal control issues. Two years later in 1984 the Maralinga Tjarutja Grant was made. In 1984 also Balcanoona Station was acquired to form the current configuration of the Gammon Ranges Park, Mt Dare Station was acquired in 1985 to protect the Dalhousie GAB Springs, and in that same year the Lake Eyre National Park (comprising Lake Eyre North and South and parts of the Tirari Desert to the east) was proclaimed. In the following year Wilpena Station was purchased from the Hunt family to be linked in 1988 with old Oraparinna and Wilpena Pound (which had been held by the government since 1921, first as a Forest Reserve and later as a National Pleasure Resort) to form the current Flinders Ranges National Park configuration. In terms of its indenture with the SA Government, Roxby Downs became a local government area in 1987, while in 1988 the Simpson Desert Regional Reserve and Conservation Park and the Innamincka Regional Reserve (previously S Kidman and Co’s Innamincka Run) were proclaimed. Three years later, in 1991, the network of conservation reservations in the far north was completed with the proclamations of the Strzelecki and Lake Frome Regional Reserves and the Lake Torrens and Lake Gairdner National Parks.

There is a growing body of literature concerned with the analysis of multiple destination travel and related visitor dispersal. Important aspects of multiple destination trips include the destinations visited (spatial), length of stay (temporal), and mode of transportation along with supply and demand characteristics. Geographic information systems (GIS) offer one way of visualising the results of multiple destination trip analysis, but past attempts to use GIS applications have not incorporated the temporal element. A case study of international and domestic multiple destination trip patterns in South Australia demonstrates how the temporal element may be incorporated in a GIS application to help identify tourists’ travel behavior. The application also helps identify differences between markets and may be particularly useful in monitoring change in dispersal patterns over time.

Respecting Aboriginal people and their knowledge: Protocols for people involved in commercial bush foods enterprises, research and development with produce and knowledge from Central Australia

Traditional supply of water for stock in pastoral areas using bore drains has been the preferred method of pastoralists in Australia for more than 100 years. In this case water is typically fed to the open drains from bores (usually free flowing artesian bores from the Great Artesian Basin) and is distributed across the contours of the land (refer to Figure 1). This method of water distribution is highly inefficient, with more than 85 % of water lost through evaporation or seepage. It has been estimated that more than two-thirds of water extracted from the Great Artesian Basin (GAB) is currently wasted. Overuse or unnecessary use of this water will eventually reduce the water and pressure in the basin. Reticulation of water across pastoral areas is a key strategy in managing the use of underground water resources more efficiently. Improvements in plastic pipe technologies and methods of dealing with high temperature and pressure water, typical in the GAB, have enabled pastoralists to consider more seriously the use of reticulation instead of open channel delivery of water. By reticulating water, evaporation and seepage losses are eliminated and unnecessary wastage of water through free flowing bores is also prevented. Water reticulation also offers the pastoralists many advantages including: • higher quality water for stock • reduction in land degradation and erosion from water flowing through open channels • a more flexible and reliable supply of water to stock • reduction in pests and vermin that are attracted to water in open channels. The following report has been produced to list and review reticulation equipment that is available to pastoralists. Specific issues related to extraction of water from the GAB, such as heat and pressure have also been addressed. Many of these issues were addressed during recent field workshops (June 2004) organised by the Department of Water, Land, and Biodiversity Conservation and the Arid Areas Catchment Water Management Board (South Australia). Some of the outcomes from these workshops are included in this report.

The Forum’s aim was to facilitate discussion between Indigenous people, researchers, government policy makers, corporate members and Wentworth scientists about enhancing investment in environmental services provided by Indigenous rangers and other Indigenous groups in the Northern Territory. Objectives • To discuss ‘caring for country’ history, current initiatives, Indigenous concerns and resource issues • To identify key limitations and opportunities for greater investment • To seek advice and support from Wentworth scientists to improve investment in Indigenous land and sea management • To seek agreement on how to progress this agenda following the workshop

There is a growing requirement for techniques to assess land susceptibility to wind erosion, i.e. land erodibility, over large geographic areas (>104 km2). This requirement stems from a lack of wind erosion research between the field (101 km2) and regional scales, and a need to evaluate the performance of spatially explicit wind erosion models across these scales. This paper addresses this issue by presenting a methodology for monitoring land erodibility at the landscape scale (103 km2). First, we define criteria suitable for evaluating land erodibility based on empirical relationships between soil texture, vegetation cover, Geomorphology, and wind erosion. The criteria were used to visually assess land erodibility over long distances (103 km) using vehicle-based transects run through the rangelands of western Queensland, Australia. Application of the data for testing the performance of a spatially explicit land erodibility model (AUSLEM) is then demonstrated by comparing the visual assessments of land erodibility with the model output. The model performed best in the west of the study area in the open rangelands. In regions with higher woody shrub and tree cover the model performance decreases. This highlights the need for research to better parameterise controls on erodibility in semi-arid landscapes consisting of forested and rangeland mosaics.

This paper explores spatiotemporal patterns in land erodibility in the northeast portion of the Lake Eyre Basin, Australia, using the Australian Land Erodibility Model (AUSLEM) in simulations from 1980 to 2006. First, spatial patterns in land erodibility are examined. We then present an analysis of seasonal and interannual variations in land erodibility. Patterns in land erodibility change are compared to rainfall variability, the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and Pacific (inter-) Decadal Oscillation (PDO). Land erodibility is found to peak in the study area between early spring (September, October, November) and late summer (January, February, March), and reach a minimum over winter (June, July, August). Weak correlations are found between modeled land erodibility, rainfall, ENSO, and the PDO. The results indicate a complex landscape response to climate variability, with land erodibility dynamics being affected by antecedent rainfall and vegetation conditions which generate lag responses in land erodibility change. The research highlights the importance of developing methods for monitoring conditions driving variations in wind erosion at the landscape scale to enhance land management policy in arid and semiarid landscapes at a time of uncertain future climate changes.

We present AUSLEM (AUStralian Land Erodibility Model), a land erodibility modelling system that utilizes a rule-set of surficial and climatic thresholds applied through a Geographic Information System (GIS) modelling framework to predict landscape susceptibility to wind erosion. AUSLEM is distinctive in that it quantitatively assesses landscape susceptibility to wind erosion at a 5 × 5 km spatial resolution on a monthly time-step across Australia. The system was implemented for representative wet (1984), dry (1994), and average rainfall (1997) years with corresponding low, high and moderate dust storm day frequencies. Results demonstrate that AUSLEM can identify landscape erodibility, and provide an interpretation of the physical nature and distribution of erodible landscapes in Australia. Further, results offer an assessment of the dynamic tendencies of erodibility in space and time in response to the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and seasonal synoptic scale climate variability. A comparative analysis of AUSLEM output with independent national and international wind erosion, atmospheric aerosol and dust event records indicates a high level of model competency.

This paper describes the development and validation of the Australian Land Erodibility Model (AUSLEM), designed to predict land susceptibility to wind erosion in western Queensland, Australia. The model operates at a 5 × 5 km spatial resolution on a daily time-step with inputs of grass and tree cover, soil moisture, soil texture and surficial stone cover. The system was implemented to predict land erodibility, i.e. susceptibility to wind erosion, for the period 1980–1990. Model performance was evaluated using cross-correlation analyses to compare trajectories of mean annual land erodibility at selected locations with trends in wind speed and observational records of dust events and a Dust Storm Index (DSI). The validation was conducted at four spatial length scales from 25 to 150 km using windows to represent potential dust source areas centered on and positioned around eight meteorological stations within the study area. The predicted land erodibility had strong correlations with dust-event frequencies at half of the stations. Poor correlations at the other stations were linked to the inability of the model to account for temporal changes in soil erodibility, and comparing trends in the land erodibility of regions with dust events whose source areas lie outside the regions of interest. The model agreement with dust-event frequency trends was found to vary across spatial scales and was highly dependent on land type characteristics around the stations and on the types of dust events used for validation.

Land susceptibility to wind erosion is governed by complex multiscale interactions between soil erodibility and non-erodible roughness elements populating the land surface. Numerous wind erosion modelling systems have been developed to quantify soil loss and dust emissions at the field, regional and global scales. All of these models require some component that defines the susceptibility of the land surface to erosion, ie, land erodibility. The approaches taken to characterizing land erodibility have advanced through time, following developments in empirical and process-based research into erosion mechanics, and the growing availability of moderate to high-resolution spatial data that can be used as model inputs. Most importantly, the performance of individual models is highly dependent on the means by which soil erodibility and surface roughness effects are represented in their land erodibility characterizations. This paper presents a systematic review of a selection of wind erosion models developed over the last 50 years. The review evaluates how land erodibility has been modelled at different spatial and temporal scales, and in doing this the paper identifies concepts behind parameterizations of land erodibility, trends in model development, and recent progress in the representation of soil, vegetation and land management effects on the susceptibility of landscapes to wind erosion. The paper provides a synthesis of the capabilities of the models in assessing dynamic patterns of land erodibility change, and concludes by identifying key areas that require research attention to enhance our capacity to achieve this task.