Spatial and environmental patterns of off-road vehicle recreation in a semi-arid woodland

Outdoor recreation is a widely recognized cultural ecosystem service. Ensuring that appropriate, high quality recreation opportunities are available requires, among other factors, knowledge of the environmental preferences of recreation users and spatial indicators of where those environmental features exist on the landscape and offer the potential to meet recreation goals. Diverse types of outdoor recreation exist, and different forms of recreation may be associated with different environmental features. The focus of this study is off-road vehicle (ORV) recreation. We demonstrate how readily available spatial environmental datasets, including high resolution image data provided within GoogleEarth, can be used to develop a cost-effective, objective indicator of ORV recreation across a landscape, which can inform management to provide desired recreation opportunities while protecting ecologically sensitive areas.ORV recreational tracks were delineated from GoogleEarth imagery throughout our study area in the Great Western Woodlands of Western Australia. In this region, ORV use is a popular recreation activity and a growing concern of conservation organizations, but is not yet actively managed. Most recreational ORV tracks in the study area are informal and user-created. Mapped ORV recreation tracks were used to model and map the environmental associations of ORV recreation. The pattern of existing tracks indicated associations between recreation and noteworthy environmental amenities in the study area such as the shores of salt lakes and rock outcrops with high ecological and cultural value. However, one of the most important determinants of ORV track presence was accessibility, especially proximity to a road. Access infrastructure, such as proximity to roads, is often used to proxy demand and use in expert-based spatial assessments of ecosystem services. The results of our empirical model underscore the importance of incorporating patterns of both supply (i.e., desired natural amenities) and demand (i.e., access) into ecosystem service assessments. In addition, when integrated with maps of environmental sensitivity and more detailed information about human use, the predictive map of areas providing potential recreation experiences can be used for comprehensive spatial planning of sustainable ORV recreation. One possibility suggested by our results is that careful planning and management of access routes may be an effective means to achieve sustainable ORV recreation.     

Erosion of Access Tracks in Kalamunda National Park,Western Australia: Causes and management implications

Construction of access tracks in national parks and other reserves in the south-west of Western Australia is an essential feature of park management. However, their construction was often carried out with little or no appreciation of soil and slope characteristics and potential erodibility, or the effect of slope and stream sedimentation on terrestrial and aquatic flora and fauna. This paper reports on the findings of a study carried out in Kalamunda National Park, a small reserve in the Darling Ranges east of Perth. Tracks were surveyed and the extent of erosion and sedimentation measured. Erosion-indicating and erosion-influencing variables were measured. Track alignment angle (to the contour) and track gradient were the two site variables most significantly correlated with measures of erosion severity. The most important upslope (on-track) factor was track length, and the most important upslope (off-track) factor was the abundance of granite outcrops. Seasonal conditions were important, particularly in relation to soils with relatively high clay contents. When wet, these soils were more likely to suffer from surface drainage problems and increased runoff, associated with decreased cohesion. On the other hand, the more common sand-textured soils are generally more erodible when wet. Several management measures are recommended. These fall into three categories: those relating to track closure or realignment (to avoid the most erosion-susceptible sites); those relating to actual track design and maintenance, or site management; and those relating to modification of visitor behaviour .     

Rural Restructuring and the Changing Geography of Competitive Sport

The geography of sport has received relatively little attention from those interested in processes of rural social and economic change. This is despite the important role that sport plays in the structure of rural communities and regions. In addition to the obvious health benefits associated with physical activity, sport contributes to community identity and provides opportunities for social interaction. There is, however, considerable evidence to suggest that processes of restructuring are having direct impacts on sport in rural areas. Drawing on a case study from rural Western Australia, this paper argues that economic adjustment in the farming and business sectors, service withdrawal, and population decline are just some of the changes undermining the viability of sporting clubs in rural areas. We suggest that while sporting clubs have tended to be resilient in the face of restructuring, it is also clear that one of the outcomes is a changing geography of sport in declining rural areas.     

The significance of the personal within disability geography

Drawing on in-depth qualitative data, this article critically examines disability geography as a subfield where the personal is highly valued. The value and the risks inherent in this personal approach will be evaluated, including the usefulness of being an 'insider' and the difficulties of being reflexive and critically making use of one's positionality. The article concludes with reflections regarding how disability geography can confront its marginal status, appealing to researchers who claim no experience of disability while also supporting and encouraging those with personal experiences of disability to participate in the field.     

Catchment-scale (dis)connectivity in sediment flux in the upper Hunter catchment, New South Wales, Australia

(Dis)connectivity within and between landscape compartments affects the extent and rate of transfer of energy and matter through catchments. Various landforms may impede sediment conveyance in a river system, whether laterally to the channel (termed buffers) or longitudinally along the channel itself (termed barriers). A generic approach to analysis of landscape (dis)connectivity using slope threshold analysis in GIS, tied to air photograph interpretation and field mapping of buffers and barriers, is tested in the upper Hunter catchment, Australia. Under simulated conditions, effective catchment area, which is a measure of the proportion of a catchment that has the potential to contribute sediment to the channel network, varies from 73% to just 3% of the total catchment area for differing subcatchments in the upper Hunter. This variability can be explained by the spatial distribution and assemblage of buffers and barriers in each subcatchment. Multiple forms of disconnectivity are evident in some subcatchments, such that when one buffer or barrier is breached, other features still impede sediment transfer within the system. The importance of the position of buffers and barriers within any given subcatchment is emphasised. Spatial variability in valley width exerts a critical control on catchment connectivity, with more efficient sediment conveyance in narrow valleys relative to wider valleys characterised by piedmonts, terraces, fans and extensive floodplains in which conveyance is impeded. This variability reflects the landscape history and geological setting of each subcatchment. The framework developed in this paper can be used to assess the impact of natural or human-induced buffers and barriers on catchment-scale sediment flux in any landscape setting, providing a physical template atop which other biogeochemical fluxes could be examined.     

Channel response to a new hydrological regime in southwestern Australia

The Kent River flows from semi-arid headwaters in the agricultural (wheatbelt) region of Western Australia to a wetter and forested lower-catchment. It is set in an atypical fluvial environment, with rainfall decreasing inland towards a low-relief upper catchment. Replacement of native deep-rooted perennial vegetation with shallow-rooted seasonal crops has altered the hydrology of the upper catchment. Clearing for agriculture has also increased recharge of regional groundwater systems causing groundwater to rise and mobilise salt stores. This has increased stream salinity which has degradation riparian vegetation and decreased flow resistance. Elevated groundwater has also affected streamflow, increasing flow duration and annual discharge. The altered hydrological regime has affected geomorphic stability, resulting in channel responses that include incision and removal of uncohesive material. Channel response is variable, showing a high dependence on channel morphotype, channel boundary material and severity of salinity (degree of vegetation degradation). Response in confined reaches bounded by sandy material has been characterised by minor lateral bank erosion. In the fine-grained, wider, low-gradient reaches, mid-channel islands have been stripped of sandy sediment where vegetation has degraded. Following an initial period of high erosion rates in these reaches, the channel is now slowly adjusting to a new set of boundary conditions. The variable response has significant implications for management of salt affected rivers in southwestern Australia.     

Estimating impacts of changed land use on recharge: review of modelling and other approaches appropriate for management of dryland salinity

To manage dryland salinity, one needs to know how changed land use affects groundwater recharge. Few techniques are available for comparing 'deep drainage' under different land uses. Soil-tracer methods, although good for replication and remote field sites, are subject to spatial variability. Lysimeters are good for comparisons but are difficult for drier areas and sloping land. Agronomic water-balance studies, where appropriate soil-water measurements exist, may be used with a soil-vegetation model to estimate long-term deep drainage. Complex models are required to analyze specific land-use differences, such as perenniality and root and leaf area dynamics, but models require intensive and extensive data for calibration. This approach is time-consuming, labour-intensive, and difficult in remote locations. Because of the one-dimensionality of most soil-vegetation models and the small fraction of the total water balance that is deep drainage, little success has occurred in extrapolating beyond the research plot, or to spatially heterogeneous systems such as alley farming. Some 'top-down' modelling and landscape disaggregation approaches have been partially successful in making catchment or regional-scale predictions. The direction for further work depends on the level of recharge reduction that is required for most groundwater systems and difficulties that it imposes. Electronic Publication     

Competitive Productivism and Australia's Emerging ‘Alternative’ Agri-food Networks: producing for farmers' markets in Victoria and beyond

This paper advances the theoretical argument for moving beyond the conventional/alternative divide in the analysis of emerging ‘alternative’ agri-food networks (AAFNs). In order to understand how ‘place’, ‘nature’ and ‘quality’-based food networks emerge and develop, we argue that careful attention needs to be paid to the way in which specific political-economic environments shape the options available to farmers and consumers. Australia's ‘competitive productivism’ is the outcome of an export-oriented economy and a neoliberal political orientation, and this environment affects the development of AAFNs in various ways. Most notably, a case study of farmers that sell at farmers' markets in the State of Victoria shows that the competitive-productivist policies pursued by Australian governments entice some farmers who participate in AAFNs to develop their ideas into higher output businesses tailored to compete in emerging export markets. Other farmers deliberately choose to keep marketing through alternative channels despite competitive-productivist pressures to expand. These findings demonstrate the centrality to the experience of AAFN participants of negotiating productivist pressures, adding nuances to the story of the complex relations between AAFNs and conventional supply chains.     

Flame retardants (PBDEs) in marine turtles, dugongs and seafood from Queensland, Australia

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are used as flame retardants in numerous products. These compounds have been found to enter the marine environment where they have the potential to bioaccumulate in biota. Limited information is currently available concerning the levels of PBDEs in Australian marine wildlife. This study presents baseline information on PBDE levels in a variety of marine species from Queensland, Australia and considers the influence of species-specific factors on contaminant levels and tissue distribution in marine turtles. Overall, the PBDE levels measured in this study are relatively low compared to marine biota from the northern hemisphere, indicating low level input into the marine system of Queensland. This is in general agreement with global estimates which suggest low PBDE usage in Australia. Previous studies, however, have found relatively high PBDE levels in Australian human milk and sera. This discrepancy in contamination trends between terrestrial and marine biota suggests that future transport of PBDEs may occur to the marine system in Australia.     

Distribution of foraminifera and ostracods in the Onkaparinga Estuary,South Australia

Analysis of sediment and aquatic vegetation samples collected along the Onkaparinga estuary, South Australia, revealed the distribution patterns of benthic and epi-benthic micro-organisms, specifically foraminifera and ostracods. The total assemblage provided an assemblage ‘snap shot,’ contemporaneous with the environmental conditions at the time of sampling, as well as seasonally and time-averaged distribution information. Species richness is low in the upper reaches of the estuary and favours species with a wide salinity tolerance. Observed species richness increases seawards. Species richness and abundance within species is greater where there is conspicuous aquatic vegetation. Thus, species richness and distribution appear to be related to the proximity to the sea and the provision of diverse habitable substrate. Foraminiferal species, Ammonia beccarii and Elphidium excavatum, and ostracods belonging to the genera Paracypria, Xestolebris and Leptocythere dominate the total assemblage. These species are characteristic of euryhaline conditions. The mutual maximum occurrences of Reophax barwonensis, Ammobaculites barwonensis and Trochammina inflata signify mid-estuarine conditions. In the lower regions of the estuary, the appearance of shallow marine species of foraminifera such as Elphidium crispum and Quinqueloculina poeyana, and ostracods Bairdoppilata sp., Hemicytherura spp. and Paranesidea spp. signifies interactions with the adjacent inner shelf coastal waters. Throughout the entire length of the estuary, the presence of vegetal substrate created a strong numerical bias towards live occurrences of the ostracods Paracypria sp. and Xestolebris cedunaensis. These species are potentially useful as proxies for paleoenvironmental interpretations of estuarine sediments.