Native vegetation supports critical ecosystem services, including stabilising soil, housing beneficial pollinators and other animals, and protecting Australia’s extraordinary biodiversity. Clearing, including clearing of regrowth, reduces landscape resilience, as well as directly affecting current values.

Land is contested by agriculture, the resources industry, urban development and native habitat conservation. Different land uses bring benefits and problems, and Australians need to understand the long-term implications of particular land-use choices, and make decisions based on the best balance of outcomes.

Land management practices are improving, particularly in relation to soil management and soil conservation measures. Pesticide and nutrient run-off is also being significantly reduced in some industries, although increasing in others.

The critical role that Indigenous Australians can play in managing the land environment has been formally recognised, and land management provides an important means of employment in many remote areas. Confusing and bureaucratic processes still limit engagement of Indigenous people in land management, and short-term funding cycles reduce job security and long-term management planning.