Issues in Australia S
ISSUES IN AUSTRALIA’S
ENVIRONMENT
GLOSSARY:
contemporary geographical issues: problems associated with the physical and the built environments that have become widely discussed and debated in the community.
domestic tourism: travel by tourists in their own country eg. a family holiday to the beach or spending a weekend at a bed and breakfast in the country.
ecotourism: travel to natural areas to appreciate and learn about the natural and cultural history of a special environment eg. a tropical rainforest.
international tourism: travel to a country other than that in which the tourist normally lives eg. taking a trip to Fiji.
landcare: a community movement enhancing the long-term productivity of the natural resources of Australia.
land degradation: a decline in the condition or quality of the land as a consequence of misuse and abuse.
natural increase: the excess of births over deaths.
migration: people born overseas moving into a country.
The Natural Heritage Trust: created by the Federal Government to assist communities to repair and conserve their local environments.
smog: visible as a bluish purple haze and is produced by the reaction of hydrocarbons and oxides of nitrogen in the presence of sunlight.
spatial: where things are and why they are found there.
spatial inequality: the differences that can be observed between those areas of the city where rich and the poor live.
tourism: the movement of people to locations other than their normal place of living, the activities undertaken during their stay and the facilities created to cater for their needs.
urban decay: when urban infrastructure falls into disrepair and buildings such as old factories are empty and become dilapidated and often vandalised.
urban renewal: the restoration and modernisation of substandard inner city areas.
waste: an unwanted substance that has been generated by human activity, and has no further use.
ISSUES IN AUSTRALIAN ENVIRONMENTS
Focus:
To understand a range of geographical issues in Australian environments and investigate how these issues are being managed.
SECTION I: THE NEED TO PROTECT AND MANAGE ENVIRONMENTS
Human needs, immediate and future, are being severely compromised by our lack of understanding of how the physical environment functions and how we fit into it. Australians enjoy a high standard of living and, as most are urban dwellers, they are often oblivious to the problems that are emerging in this country that could affect them in the future.
It is important to recognise just how the physical environment and its associated processes support us:
· maintaining air and water quality
· regulating air temperatures
· protecting and building soil fertility
· supplying our food needs and raw materials for industry
· providing natural pest and disease control
· breaking down our wastes
Australians need to be aware that the sum of their individual actions can have serious consequences. If people are aware of the need to protect and manage the environment, then they can adopt a more responsible lifestyle. Simple actions like washing their car on the lawn rather than the street can reduce the amount of nutrients entering our waterways and improve water quality. Individuals can, and must, make a difference.
SECTION II: THE NATURE OF COMTEMPORARY GEOGRAPHICAL ISSUES
A. WHAT IS A CONTEMPORARY GEOGRAPHICAL ISSUE?
· As more and more people have become aware of some of the problems associated with the physical and the built environments, these problems have become contemporary issues widely discussed and debated in the community.
· They attract media coverage in newspapers, magazines and television documentaries and information is also readily on the Internet for those who are concerned.
· As attention and concern has mounted there have been responses by individuals, communities and governments to try and tackle the problems. Becoming aware of such issues and acting responsibly is an important part of being a good citizen.
B. THE SPATIAL DIMENSION:
· Where things are and why they are found there.
· Any geographic issue that is being studied has a spatial perspective. It basically means where it is occurring and what are the reasons for it being an issue there.
Example: salinity is a land degradation problem that poses the greatest threat to agricultural production in Australia. The spatial dimension of salinity is the area affected by it and relating this to agricultural practices in these areas that have caused it.
C. THE ECOLOGICAL DIMENSION:
· How humans interact with their environment and impact on it.
· Issues generally arise because the inappropriate actions of humans have had serious environmental consequences. It is only by understanding how nature works and how humans can best work with nature that practices will be sustainable in the future and the well being of Australia will not be compromised.
Example: salinity has become such a serious problem in Australia because farming practises have raised the water table. Where dryland salinity has occurred, too many trees have been cleared and with irrigation salinity, too much water has been applied.
SECTION III: THE SPATIAL AND ECOLOGICAL DIMENSIONS OF A RANGE OF CONTEMPORARY GEOGRAPHICAL ISSUES AFFECTING AUSTRALIAN ENVIRONMENTS
A. ISSUES RELATING TO HUMAN ELEMENTS OF ENVIRONMENTS:
DEPTH STUDY:
· Urban growth and decline
OVERVIEW:
· Spatial inequality
· Population change
· Tourism
· Waste management
URBAN GROWTH AND DECLINE
1. Urban growth:
· Australia is one of the most urbanised nations in the world and the large cities continue to get bigger.
· The highest rates of growth have continued to be in the capital cities. Australians still desire to own their own home and for many this is only affordable on the outer fringe of the city.
· Urban sprawl has resulted where the unchecked growth of the urban area has occurred to accommodate the increasing population. Rural areas disappear under housing estates and their associated infrastructure eg the fringe suburbs of Liverpool and Campbelltown.
2. Urban decline:
· Growth in the outer suburbs of cities may also result in other areas going into decline. This is common in the older industrial areas of the inner city. Just as the outer suburbs are favoured for new residential developments they are also attractive as large industrial estates. The older areas suffer.
· Urban decay sets in when urban infrastructure falls into disrepair and buildings such as old factories are empty and become dilapidated and often vandalised.
3. Urban renewal:
· Some areas that have suffered a decline have been redeveloped in recent years.
· Urban renewal is the restoration and modernisation of substandard inner city areas. It usually involves the renovation or demolition of existing structures and their replacement with more modern attractive buildings.
· These inner areas have become expensive residential areas for wealthy young couples such as the DINKS (‘double income, no kids’) and SINKS (for those who don’t even want a kitchen sink because they eat out in the many restaurants in the city each evening).
· There has been a big shift downtown in Melbourne. With a record number of people being added to the inner suburbs of Melbourne in 2001, 5 000 new apartments were built.
SPATIAL INEQUALITY
1. What is spatial inequality?
· The differences that can be observed between those areas where rich and the poor live.
· This inequality is largely an expression of the uneven distribution of wealth and the social inequality that results. These differences have a spatial aspect . The poor live together in one set of neighbourhoods and the rich in another set.
· Access to many aspects of life is largely dependent on wealth: housing; education; career prospects; health care, status. Wealthy people are not limited in their life choices by any financial constraints, but poor people are often excluded from full and equal participation. These differences can be observed between those areas where rich and the poor live.
· Spatial inequality is clearly present in all Australian cities. There are whole suburbs that are extravagant expressions of affluence: harbour views, leafy gardens, swimming pools and tennis courts, and huge homes with many garages. Then there are neighbourhoods that reflect the day-to-day struggle of their residents, where deterioration and vandalism are clearly visible.
2. Why has it come about?
· Spatial inequality was not found in Australia when only the Aborigines occupied it. An important part of their culture was sharing within the group and their livelihood was determined by nature. In a good season, they all fared well and during drought times they all suffered.
· When Australia was colonised its society was founded on inequality. There were the gaolers and the convicts and as the colony grew a wealthy squatter class emerged. Even with the gold rushes in the 1880’s there were extremes: those who found instant wealth and those unlucky not to who were close to starvation.
· In the economic development of Australia, capitalism has produced winners and losers. In more recent times, the forces of globalisation have impacted on employment, with many people losing their jobs as production has been moved overseas and technology has displaced them.
· There have been similar forces at work that have caused the decline of small rural towns. Many services have been withdrawn from these towns (eg. banks, public transport) and they are left struggling with their residents disadvantaged.
3. What has been the impact?
· There has been an increasing gap between the rich and the poor in Australia.
· The extraordinarily rich get richer and a there are a growing number of poor people. The most disadvantaged are the unemployed, Aboriginal people, unskilled people, single parent families and migrants from non-English speaking backgrounds.
· Communities of all sizes tend to divide into different groups based on income levels.
· Those that are most disadvantaged are those people living in the suburbs on the outer fringes of the large cities, in the small rural towns and in Aboriginal communities.
4. What is being done?
· Australia is country where social welfare is provided by the government. There are many benefits and services available to provide basic needs and assist people to gain an education and find employment.
· There are also many welfare organisations that help the needy such as the Smith Family and the Salvation Army.
· Despite such efforts, economic and social inequality is increasing. Spatial inequality will continue to be seen in Australia.
POPULATION CHANGE
1. Population growth in Australia:
· Australia’s population has passed 19 million.
· Rapid population growth was experienced in the 20th Century as a result of:
- natural increase: the excess of births over deaths.
- migration: people born overseas moving into Australia.
· It took four years and five months for the population to increase from 18 million to 19 million. During that time natural increase contributed 53% and net overseas migration contributed 47% to population growth. It is estimated that every day, on average, the population grows by 558 people – 681 babies are born, 369 people die and 246 migrants are added. (Source Australian Bureau of Statistics 3222.0).
· Natural increase has been the major component of population growth in Australia. Historically it was greatest from the end World War II until around the mid 1960’s. The Australian economy was prospering, living standards were rising and population growth was seen as essential for progress. This generation was known as the ‘baby boomers’.
· Since the 1960’s, the birth rate has declined because of the availability of oral contraception and the growing number of women gaining paid employment.
2. The aging population:
· Australia’s population is relatively old by world standards and the proportion aged 65 and over is projected to double between 2001 and 2051 to around 24%. (Source Australian Bureau of Statistics 4102.0).
· Supporting an aging population will require greater expenditure on income support and healthcare services.
3. Can Australia support a large population?
· There is considerable debate about whether Australia should go to a larger population.
· Some experts have called for an Australian population of 50-60 million or greater so as to fully develop our resources and achieve our potential as a nation as well as being adequately able to defend ourselves.
· Increasingly arguments are being put forward to stabilise Australia’s population because:
- the environment is fragile and not highly productive. There is limited land available for agriculture.
- 200 years of exploitation has resulted in severe environmental problems: loss of biodiversity; pollution of air and water and land degradation
- the concentration of people living in coastal areas would most likely increase and result in further degradation of this region.
TOURISM
1. What is tourism?
· Tourism is the movement of people to locations other than their normal place of living, the activities undertaken during their stay and the facilities created to cater for their needs.
· There are two type of tourism:
- domestic: travel by tourists in their own country eg. a family holiday to the beach or spending a weekend at a bed and breakfast in the country.
- international: travel to a country other than that in which the tourist normally lives eg. taking a trip to Fiji. International tourism is very important to Australia as overseas visitors tend to stay longer at a destination and spend more.
· Ecotourism is becoming increasingly popular in today’s world with more people being environmentally aware and interested in appreciating the natural and cultural history of a special environment eg. a tropical rainforest. Supporters of ecotourism believe that the funds generated can be used to assist the conservation of such special places.
2. Promotion of tourism in Australia:
· In recent times there has been a real effort to promote Australia as a desirable destination to visit.
· The unique landscapes that have been so appealing are the Great Barrier Reef, the wetlands of Kakadu and the ‘outback’ as well as native animals such as koalas and kangaroos. Tourists are looking for an extraordinary experience such as diving with green turtles on the reef in Queensland or walking amongst sea lions on Kangaroo Island in South Australia. This country has a lot to offer.