We have ridden to prosperity on the sheep's back - but the realisation has only come slowly that the price for all this success has been very high. In some cases it has meant the near destruction of large parts of our country. As our rivers die before our eyes, our unique birds and animals become extinct, our soil disappears over the horizon, huge gaping crevices appear in the dried crusty earth and vast expanses of land turn into lunar landscapes where water tables have risen and disgorged vast lakes of salt over the country, we realise that we have to stop what we are doing and listen to the land, to find how to repair it before it is too late. Because our land is not just a commodity to be bought and sold, we can no longer move on somewhere else when things get too bad. The big challenge is to recognise that one of the primary causes of our environmental damage has been European farming methods, which spell death to the Australian landscape.
Land clearing is at the root of many problems.
The most favoured crops are often those that exacerbate the problem, because they are shallow rooted and make no contribution to keeping the water table down, thus allowing salinity to increase. Finally, the animals we farm are cloven hoofed and damage the soil. Scientists and farmers around the country have now begun to acknowledge this and try to find solutions. Since 1986 LandCare groups have sprung up around the country, borne out of the realisation of common environmental problems and the need for a combined effort to tackle them. These are grass roots organisations, supported by both state and federal governments and their success is due, in most part, to their ability to draw on detailed local knowledge, often going back over several generations, as well as a sense of community and loyalty to the land.