Science10 - Environmental Issues and Human Impact: Land Ecology

The invasive species was wiping out native plants and threatening endangered animals in arid and semi-arid regions like the remote Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands in South Australia.

Primary Industry and Regions of South Australia, Government of South Australia, information source of weeds and pests

Desertification, also called desertization, the process by which natural or human causes reduce the biological productivity of drylands (arid and semiarid lands). Declines in productivity may be the result of climate change, deforestation, overgrazing, poverty, political instability, unsustainable irrigation practices, or combinations of these factors.

Deforestation, the clearing or thinning of forests by humans. Deforestation represents one of the largest issues in global land use. Estimates of deforestation traditionally are based on the area of forest cleared for human use, including removal of the trees for wood products and for croplands and grazing lands. In the practice of clear-cutting, all the trees are removed from the land, which completely destroys the forest. In some cases, however, even partial logging and accidental fires thin out the trees enough to change the forest structure dramatically.

Cape York has one of the largest feral pig populations in Australia, threatening biodiversity, waterways, Great Barrier Reef catchments and turtle rookeries; as well as important Indigenous cultural sites and traditional resources.

Australia is home to many plants and animals that have been introduced since European settlement. Some of these have become invasive — they have spread and multiplied to the point where they damage the environment, threaten the continued existence of native plants and animals, or create significant problems for agriculture.

The Australian Government works with the states and territories to develop strategies, undertake research and fund key management activities. Under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, a number of feral animals are recognised as threats to native animals and plants. The impacts of some feral animals have been listed as Key threatening processes and a threat abatement plan has or may be developed. Some other animals, such as feral camels, are also the subject of national plans for management as Existing Pest Animal of National Significance, (under the Australian Pest Animal Strategy)

Prescribed burning reduces the amount of ground vegetation during cooler months to decrease risk of bushfires that could cause greater damage later in the season.
Prescribed burning also helps to maintain biodiversity and assists with vegetation management.

Australia’s rivers and landscapes are under threat to rising salinity. Salinity affects regions
in all parts of Australia but particularly Western Australia, South Australia and in the
Murray-Darling Basin. With rising salinity, we face the loss of both aquatic and terrestrial
biodiversity. On the rural front, salinity affects some of Australia’s most productive land.

World Wildlife Fund provides an overview of the causes and impacts of deforestation. Deforestation comes in many forms, including fires, clear-cutting for agriculture, ranching and development, unsustainable logging for timber, and degradation due to climate change. This impacts people's livelihoods and threatens a wide range of plant and animal species. Human impact on the environment.

The UNCCD addresses the arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas, known as the drylands, where some of the most vulnerable ecosystems and peoples can be found. Topics include climate change, food security, forests, the role of women, and water scarcity and drought.

Species hold ecosystems in a delicate balance. From time to time humans introduce non-native species to an ecosystem, because they may be needed for domestic work, as pets, for carrying loads or even for killing previously introduced species. In each case, their introduction changes how the ecosystem works. And sometimes things go wrong, leading to the decline of many native species.