Abstract
Previous chapters have described the fragmentation of the Western Australian wheatbelt environment over the past one hundred years. Ecological disintegration has been apparent in the form of the extinction of plants and animals (Hobbs et al., Chapter 4), the loss of topsoil and decline in soil properties (Nulsen, Chapter 5), and an annual increase in the area of land affected by salinity (McFarlane et al., Chapter 6). Social disintegration has been apparent in the last third of that period, with a decline in populations in small towns to the point of collapse of the social infrastructure (B.Y. Main, Chapter 3). In economic terms, however, agricultural land use in the region as a whole has remained viable over this period. This viability has been maintained partly at the expense of social values through the amalgamation of family farm businesses. The trend toward further amalgamation, which saw an eightfold increase in the amount of farmland controlled per farmer in the 50 years up to 1971 in Australia generally, continues (Mauldon and Schapper 1974; Australian Bureau of Statistics 1990). The primary cause of the social disruption of farm amalgamation has been the long-term decline in the terms of trade in agriculture; the prices received for farm produce have been increasing at a slower rate than the costs of inputs.
…if the farm is to last and remain in health, the wilderness must survive within the farm. That is what agricultural fertility is: the survival of natural process in the human order.
W. Berry
The Unsettling of America: Culture and Agriculture (1977)
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Abbott, L.K. and Robson, A.D. (1982) The role of vesicular arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in agriculture and the selection of fungi for inoculation. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 33:389–408.
Abbott, L.K., Parker C.A., and Sills, I.D. (1979) Changes in the abundance of large soil animals and the physical properties of soils following cultivation. Australian Journal of Soil Research 17:343–53.
Alexander, M. (1977) Introduction to Soil Microbiology. John Wiley and Son, New York.
Allen, M.F. (1988) Below ground structure: A key to reconstructing a productive arid ecosystem. In E.B. Allen (ed.) The Reconstruction of Disturbed Arid Lands. Westview Boulder, Colorado. pp. 113–115.
Allen, T.F.H. and Starr, T.B. (1982)Heirarchy: Perspectives for Ecological Complexity. University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
Anderson, J.R. (1978) Some methods for assessing pesticide effects on nontarget soil microorganisms and their activities. In I.R. Hill and S.J.L. Wright (eds.) Pesticide Microbiology. Academic Press, New York. pp. 313–501.
Anderson, T.L. (1982) The new resource economics: Old ideas and new applications. American Journal of Agricultural Economics64: 928–934.
Australian Bureau of Statistics (1990) Agricultural Land Use and Selected Inputs. Western Australian Season 1988–1989. Australian Bureau of Statistics, Perth
Beardsley, T. (1991) A nitrogen fix for wheat. Scientific American264: 8.
Berry, W. (1977) The Unsettling of America: Culture and Agriculture. Sierra Club Books, San Francisco, California.
Bettenay, E. (1984) Origin and nature of the sandplains. In J.S. Pate and J.S. Beard (eds.) Kwongan: Plant Life of the Sandplain. University of Western Australia Press, Nedlands. pp. 57–68.
Bishop, R.C. (1978) Endangered species and uncertainty: The economics of a safe minimum standard. American Journal of Agricultural Economics60 (1): 10–18.
Blyth, M.J. and McCallum, A.J. (1987) Onsite costs of land degradation in agriculture and forestry. In A. Chisholm, and R. Dumsday (eds.) Land Degradation Problems and Policies. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. pp. 79–98.
Borman, F.H. and Likens, G.E. (1979) Pattern and Process in a Forested Ecosystem. Springer-Verlag, New York.
Bowen, G.D. (1981) Coping with low nutrients. In J.S. Pate and A.J. McComb (eds.) The Biology of Australian Plants. University of Western Australia Press, Perth. pp. 33–64.
Bradby, K. (1989) New challenges in the bush. In J. Arnold (ed.) The Bush Comes to the City. Fitzgerald Biosphere Project, Perth. pp. 61–71.
Brandie, J.R., Hintz, D.L., and Sturrock, J.W. (1988) Windbreak Technology. Elsevier, New York.
Brown, B., Hanson, M.E., Liverman, D.M., and Meredith, R.W. Jr. (1987) Global sustainability: Towards definition. Environmental Management11: 713–719.
Brown, K. (1990) Ribbons of blue. Land Management Society Newsletter, Winter 1990, Perth.
Burvill, G.H. (ed.) (1979) Agriculture in Western Australia1929–1979. University of Western Australia Press, Nedlands.
Chisholm, A.H. (1987). Abatement of land degradation: Regulation vs economic incentives. In A. Chisholm, and R. Dumsday (eds.) Land Degradation Problems and Policies. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. pp. 223–247.
Commoner, B. (1990) Making Peace with the Planet. Victor Gollancz, London.
Douglas, L.A. (1987) Effect of cultivation and pesticide use on soil biology. In P.S. Cornish and J.S. Pratley (ed.) Tillage — New Directions in Australian Agriculture. Australian Society of Agronomy. Inkata Press, Melbourne. pp. 308–317.
Ehrlich, P.R. and Mooney, H.A. (1983) Extinction, substitution, and ecosystem services. Bioscience33: 248–254.
Fels, H. (1990) Grazing animals in mixed farming systems. Land Management Society Newsletter, Spring 1990, Perth.
Fox, W. (1990) Towards a Transpersonal Ecology. Shambala, Boston.
Frissel, M.J. (1977) Cycling of mineral nutrients in agricultural ecosystems. Agroecosystems4: 1–345.
Gardner, C.A. (1942) The vegetation of Western Australia with particular reference to climate and soils. Journal of The Royal Society of Western Australia28: 11–87.
Gleissman, S.R. (1990a) Quantifying the agroecological component of sustainable agriculture. In S.R. Gleissman (ed.) Agroecology: Researching the Ecological Basis for Sustainable Agriculture. Springer-Verlag, New York. pp. 366–370.
Gleissman, S.R. (1990b) Agroecology: Researching the basis for sustainable agriculture. In S.R. Gleissman (ed.) Agroecology: Researching the Basis for Sustainable Agriculture. Springer-Verlag, New York. pp. 3–10.
Good, R.B. (1985) Preplan and the management of national parks. In J.R. Ford (ed.) Fire Ecology and Management in Western Australian Ecosystems. Western Australian Institute of Technology, Bentley. pp. 147–151.
Greenwood, E.A.N. (1988) The hydrologic role of vegetation in the development and reclamation of dryland salinity. In E.B. Allen (ed.) The Reconstruction of Disturbed Arid Lands. Westview, Boulder, Colorado. pp. 205–233.
Greenwood, E.A.N. and Beresford, J.D. (1979) Evaporation from vegetation in landscapes developing secondary salinity using the ventilated chamber technique. 1. Comparative transpiration from juvenile Eucalyptusabove saline groundwater seeps. Journal of Hydrology42: 369–382.
Hillman, K., Lukatelich, R.J., and McComb, A.J. (1990) The impact of nutrient enrichment on nearshore and estuarine ecosystems in Western Australia. Proceedings of the Ecological Society of Australia16: 39–53.
Hingston, F.J., Connell, A.M., and Groves, T.S. (1988) Nutrient cycling in the jarrah forest. In The Jarrah Forest. A Complex Mediterranean Ecosystem. Kluwer, Dordrecht. Netherlands. pp. 155–177.
Hobbs, R.J. and Hopkins A.J.M. (1990). From frontier to fragments. European impact on Australia’s vegetation. Proceedings of the Ecological Society of Australia16: 93–114.
Hynes, H.B.N. (1960) The Biology of Polluted Waters. Unversity of Liverpool Press, Liverpool.
Inhaler, H. (1976) Environmental Indices. John Wiley and Son, New York.
Izac, A.M.N., (1986) Resource policies, property rights, and conflicts of interest. Australian Journal of Agricultural Economics30: 23–31.
Kessel, S.R. (1979) Gradient Modeling: Resource and Fire Management. Springer-Verlag, New York.
Kirby, M.G. and Blyth, M.J. (1987a) An economic perspective on government intervention in land degradation. In A. Chisholm and R. Dumsday (eds.) Land Degradation Problems and Policies. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. pp. 213–222.
Kirby, M.G. and Blyth, M.J. (1987b) Economic aspects of land degradation in Australia. Australian Journal of Agricultural Economics31: 154–174.
Kort, J. (1988) Benefits of windbreaks to field and forage crops. Agriculture Ecosystems and Environment22 /23: 165–190.
Lamont, B.B. (1984) Specialised modes of nutrition. In J.S. Pate, and J.S. Beard (eds.) Kwongan: Plant Life of the Sandplain. University of Western Australia Press, Perth. pp. 126–145.
Lamont, B.B., Hopkins, A.J.M., and Hnatiuk, R.J. (1984) The flora — Composition, diversity and origins. In J.S. Pate and J.S. Beard (eds.) Kwongan: Plant Life of the Sandplain. University of Western Australia Press, Perth. pp. 27–50.
Lefroy, E.C., Hobbs, R.J., and Atkins, L.J. (1991) A Revegetation Guide to the Central Wheatbelt. Western Australia Department of Agriculture. Perth.
Likens, G.E., Borman, F.H., Pierce, R.S., Easton, J.S., and Johnson, N.M. (1977) Biogeochemistry of a Forested Ecosystem. Springer-Verlag, New York.
Lockeretz, W. (1988) Open questions on sustainable agriculture. American Journal of Alternative Agriculture3: 174–181.
Lowrance, R., Hendrix, P.F., and Odum, E.P. (1986) A hierarchical approach to sustainable agriculture. American Journal of Alternative Agriculture1: 169–173
Malcolm, C.V. (1986) Production from salt affected soils. Reclamation and Revegetation Research5: 343–361.
Mauldon, R.G. and Schapper, H.P. (1974) Australian Farmers under Stress, in Prosperity and Recession. University of Western Australia Press, Nedlands.
McConnell, K.E. (1983) An economic model of soil conservation. American Journal of Agricultural Economics65: 83–89.
McHarg, I.L. (1969) Design with Nature. Doubleday, New York.
Mills, D.H. (1972) An Introduction to Freshwater Ecology. Oliver and Boyd, Edinburgh.
Mitchell, M.K. and Stapp, W.B. (1986) Field Manual for Water Quality Monitoring: An Environmental Education Program for Schools. Thomson Shore, Dexter, Michigan.
Mollison, B. (1988) Permaculture: A Designer’s Manual. Tagari, Tyalgum, New South Wales.
National Association for Sustainable Agriculture Australia (1990) Standards.National Association for Sustainable Agriculture Australia, Sydney.
National Research Council (1989) Alternative Agriculture. National Academy Press, Washington, D.C.
Naveh, Z. (1988) Multifactorial reconstruction of semiarid Mediterranean landscapes for multipurpose land uses. In E.B. Allen (ed.) The Reconstruction of Disturbed Arid Lands. Westview, Boulder, Colorado. pp. 234–256.
Newman, P. (1990) Future energy supplies. In Sustainable Agriculture for Western Australia & Fact or Fantasy? Symposium Proceedings, Western Australian Branch of Australian Institute of Agricultural Science, Perth.
Norse, E.A. (1987) Habitat diversity and genetic variability: Are they necessary ecosystem properties. In R.S. Draggon, J.J. Cohrssen and R.E. Morrison (eds.) Preserving Ecological Systems: The Agenda for Long Term Research and Development. Preager, New York. pp. 93–111.
Oldham, C.M. and Moore, P. (1989) Tagasaste (Chamaecytisus palmensis), an evergreen fodder tree, in grazing systems of Mediterranean-type climates. Proceedings of the 16th International Grasslands Conference, Nice.
Paoletti, M.G., Fauretto, M.R., Stinner, B.R., Pursington, F.F., and Bates, J.E. (1991) Invertebrates as bioindicators of soil use. Agriculture, Ecosystems, and Environment34: 341–362.
Parker, C.A. (1989) Soil biota and plants in the rehabilitation of degraded agricultural soils. In J.D. Majer (ed.) Animals in Primary Succession: The Role of Fauna in Reclaimed Lands. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. pp. 423–438.
Parr, J.F., Stewart, B.A., Hornick, S.B., and Singh, R.P. (1990) Improving the sustainability of dryland farming systems. Advances in Soil Science13:1–8.
Pearce, D.W. (1983) Cost-Benefit Analysis. Macmillan, New York.
Peck, A.J. and Hurle, D.H. (1973) Chloride balance of some farmed and forested catchments in southwestern Australia. Water Resources Research9: 643–657.
Pickett, S.T.A., Collins, S.L., and Armesto, J.J. (1987) Models,mechanisms, and pathways of succession. Botanical Review53: 335–371.
Podalinsky, A. (1985) Biodynamic Agriculture: Introductory Lecture Series. Volume1. Gavemer, Melbourne.
Potter, C.S. and Meyer, R.E. (1990) The role of soil biodiversity in sustainable dryland farming systems. Advances in Soil Science13: 241–252.
Power, J.F. (1990) Fertility management and nutrient cycling. Advances in Soil Science13: 131–149.
Puckridge, D.W. and French, R.J. (1983) The annual legume pasture in cereal ley farming systems of southern Australia: A review. Agriculture, Ecosystems, and Environment9: 229–267.
Quiggin, J. (1987) Land degradation: Behavioural causes. In A. Chisholm and R. Dumsday (ed.) Land Degradation Problems and Policies. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. pp. 203–212.
Robertson, G.A. (1988) Soil conservation districts — Land users solving mutual problems. In P. Newman, S. Nevile, and L. Duxbury (eds.) Case studies in Environmental Hope. Environmental Protection Authority, Perth. pp. 89–95.
Salerian, J. (1990) Economic Evaluation of Soil Salinity in a Subcatchment in Western Australia. Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis, University of Western Australia, Perth.
Savory, A. (1988) Holistic Resource Management. Island Press, Washington, D.C.
Schofield, N.J., Stoneman, G.L., and Low, I.C. (1988) Hydrology of the jarrah forest. In B. Dell, J.J. Havel, and N. Malajczuk (eds.) The Jarrah Forest. A Complex Mediterranean Ecosystem. Kluwer, Dordrecht Netherlands. pp. 179–201.
Smith, J.L. and Elliot, L.F. (1990) Tillage and residue management effects on soil organic matter dynamics in semiarid regions. Advances in Soil Science13: 69–88.
Tilman, D. (1988) Plant Strategies and the Dynamics and Structure of Plant Communities. Princeton University Press, Princeton, N.J.
Tilman, D. (1990) Constraints and tradeoffs: Toward a predictive theory of competition and succession. Oikos58: 3–15.
Tisdell, C. (1988) Sustainable development: Differing perspectives of ecologists and economists and relevance to LDC’s. World Development16: 373–384.
Trappe, J.M., Molina, R., and Castellano, M. (1984) Reactions of mycorrhizal fungi and mycorrhiza formation to pesticides. Annual Review of Phytopathology22: 331–359.
Uhl, C. and Jordan, C.F. (1984) Succession and nutrient dynamics following forest cutting and burning in Amazonia. Ecology65: 1476–1490.
Unger, P.W. (1990) Conservation tillage systems. Advances in Soil Science13: 27–68.
Wagoner, P. (1990). Perennial grain: New use for intermediate wheatgrass. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation45: 81–82.
Walker, B.H. (1989) Diversity and stability in ecosystem conservation. In D. Western and M.C. Pearl (eds.) Conservation for the Twenty-first Century. Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp. 121–130.
Walker, L.R. and Chapin, F.S. (1987) Interactions among processes controlling successional change. Oikos50: 131–135.
Walters, C.J. and Hilborn, R. (1978) Ecological optimization and adaptive management. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics9: 157–188.
Waring, R.H. and Schlesinger, W.H. (1985) Forest Ecosystems: Concepts and Management. Academic Press, Orlando, Florida.
Watt, K.E.F. (1973) Principles of Environmental Science. McGraw Hill, New York.
Watt, M. (1982) An Energy Analysis of the Australian Food System. Ph.D. Thesis, Murdoch University, Perth.
Whitford, W.G. (1988) Decomposition and nutrient cycling in disturbed arid ecosystems. In E.B. Allen (ed.) The Reconstruction of Disturbed Arid Lands. Westview, Boulder, Colorado. pp. 126–141.
Williams, R. (1990) An open letter to the agricultural community on defining sustainability. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation45: 91–93.
Wynen, E. (1988) An economic comparison of sustainable and conventional farms in southeastern Australia. In Sustainable Agriculture: A Viable Alternative. National Association for Sustainable Agriculture, Sydney. pp. 25–35.
Yeomans, P.A. (1958) The Challenge of Landscape. Keyline, Sydney.
Yeomans, P.A. (1964) Water for Every Farm. Murray, Sydney.
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1993 Springer-Verlag New York Inc.
About this paper
Cite this paper
Lefroy, E.C., Salerian, J., Hobbs, R.J. (1993). Integrating Economic and Ecological Considerations: A Theoretical Framework. In: Hobbs, R.J., Saunders, D.A. (eds) Reintegrating Fragmented Landscapes. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-9214-9_8
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-9214-9_8
Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-1-4613-9216-3
Online ISBN: 978-1-4613-9214-9
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive