Australian salinity crisis threatens farms - audit
© 2000 Reuters Limited
November 16, 2000
SYDNEY - A scientific assessment of dryland salinity in Australia showed that 5.7 million hectares of farming land was at high risk, Australia's Agriculture Minister Warren Truss said yesterday.
A national land and water resources audit predicted that without effective solutions, the 5.7 million ha of farming land currently at high risk from dryland salinity could increase to 17.1 million ha by 2050, he said in a statement.
Also at risk were about 19,800 km of roads, 1,600 km of railways, 11,801 km of streams and lake frontages, 306 towns and 80 important wetlands, he said.
The prediction is based on groundwater trends, field surveys and landscape characteristics.
"The assessment makes even more important the need for national action as outlined in the national salinity and water quality plan recently agreed by Commonwealth, state and territory leaders," Truss said.
The audit was commissioned by the Federal government.
It shows that the largest area at risk from dryland salinity is in the agricultural zone of southwest Western Australia, where four million ha are currently at risk from rising groundwater, Truss said.
Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia also have large areas at risk, mainly in the Murray-Darling Basin, he said.
The audit found that northern Australia has far less salinity than temperate Australia.