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Australia State of the Environment Report

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Topics

Historic Content you are reading content from a previous reporting year.

Topics

A topic is a specific issue or subject discussed in the report. Each theme discusses these topics in detail.

From this page you can use the filters below to refine a list of topics of interest to you, or, list all topics available in the SoE report.

Ambient air quality

Prescribed burning and bushfires

Both prescribed burns and bushfires emit smoke plumes, which are visible because of the PM they contain. The smoke is the product of incomplete combustion. Fire emissions rates are affected by fire behaviour and the amount of fuel being burned.
2016
  • Read more about Prescribed burning and bushfires
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Ambient air quality
Pressures
Biodiversity

Pressures facing aquatic ecosystems

In this report, we describe pressures facing biodiversity in general.
2016
  • Read more about Pressures facing aquatic ecosystems
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Biodiversity
Pressures
Biodiversity

Pressures from livestock production

Livestock production is the dominant land use in the extensive land-use zone of Australia (see the Land report for further information).
2016
  • Read more about Pressures from livestock production
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Biodiversity
Pressures
Antarctic environment

Pressures on Antarctic historic heritage

The Mawson’s Huts Historic Site is Australia’s oldest and arguably most significant historic heritage site in Antarctica. At the time of their construction, more than 100 years ago, the huts were built to last only a few years.
2016
  • Read more about Pressures on Antarctic historic heritage
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Antarctic environment
Pressures
Antarctica
Heritage

Pressures on historic heritage

For many historic sites, the current use of the site may itself be significant in a heritage context. Churches, community halls and post offices fall into this category.
2016
  • Read more about Pressures on historic heritage
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Heritage
Pressures
South Australian GulfGreater Sydney
Heritage

Pressures on Indigenous heritage

There is a recognised gap between Indigenous Australians and the wider Australian community across many areas of economic and social measures and activity, including cultural heritage (COAG 2008).
2016
  • Read more about Pressures on Indigenous heritage
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Heritage
Pressures
TasmaniaTimor SeaGreater Sydney
Heritage

Pressures on natural heritage

Our terrestrial and marine natural heritage is susceptible to the general pressures arising from climate change outlined above, as well as some of the pressures that flow from population and economic growth. However, other pressures apply particularly to natural heritage.
2016
  • Read more about Pressures on natural heritage
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Heritage
Pressures
Lake Eyre
Overview

Pressures on the environment can interact and accumulate in various ways

The interactions between pressures can result in cumulative impacts, amplifying the threat faced by the Australian environment.
2016
  • Read more about Pressures on the environment can interact and accumulate in various ways
Relates to
Pressures
Antarctic environment

Pressures on the marine environment

The water chemistry of the Southern Ocean appears to be changing at a faster rate than previously estimated, particularly in the deep ocean layers (Hauri et al. 2016).
2016
  • Read more about Pressures on the marine environment
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Antarctic environment
Pressures
Antarctica
Antarctic environment

Pressures on the terrestrial environment

The pressures on the Antarctic terrestrial environment operating on a global scale include anthropogenic climate change, such as atmospheric warming and changes to water regimes.
2016
  • Read more about Pressures on the terrestrial environment
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Antarctic environment
Pressures
Antarctica
Heritage

Processes

Heritage management processes are assessed by considering the governance systems in place that provide appropriate statutory responses, adaptive management practices based on effective monitoring systems, and adequate resources.
2016
  • Read more about Processes
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Heritage
Effectiveness of management
North East CoastGreater PerthGreater Sydney
Climate

Rainfall

Broadly, Australia can be divided into 2 seasonal rainfall regimes: the north and the south. The northern half of the continent typically experiences a monsoonal, summer wet season, with rainfall falling from October through April, and the rest of the year being dry.
2016
  • Read more about Rainfall
Relates to
Climate
State and trends
Greater Melbourne
Inland water

Recent climate

The period since 2010–11 provided the first cooler than average year since 2001 (i.e. 2011), along with the warmest (2013), third-warmest (2014) and fifth-warmest (2015) years on record for Australia (BoM 2012,
2016
  • Read more about Recent climate
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Inland water
Pressures
South East CoastSouth West CoastSouth Australian GulfNorth Western PlateauMurray DarlingNorth East CoastSouth Western PlateauTasmaniaTimor SeaLake EyreGulf of CarpentariaIndian Ocean
Coasts

Recent developments

There have been some recent developments in the approach and tools for coastal management, including emerging analytical methods for decision-making, and conservation at multiple levels of biodiversity.
2016
  • Read more about Recent developments
Relates to
Coasts
Effectiveness of management
Inland water

Recent national assessments of management performance

The National Water Initiative has set the water policy reform agenda for the past decade, following on from the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) Water Reform Framework of 1994.
2016
  • Read more about Recent national assessments of management performance
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Inland water
Effectiveness of management
Coasts

Recovery from change

Recovery from change can be observed in systems that have been heavily degraded, and then either actively restored or allowed to recover by natural processes. Challenges in restoration ecology are the setting of appropriate goals, and the ability to detect when goals are reached.
2016
  • Read more about Recovery from change
Relates to
Coasts
Resilience
Murray DarlingMarine Temperate EastMarine South WestGreat Barrier ReefEast CoastGreater Melbourne
Land

Regional and landscape-scale pressures: Bushfire

Bushfires (wildfires) are uncontrolled fire in the landscape. These particularly affect natural or seminatural vegetation, and have significant positive and negative effects on landscape and ecosystem processes.
2016
  • Read more about Regional and landscape-scale pressures: Bushfire
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Land
Pressures
Land

Regional and landscape-scale pressures: Invasive species

Invasive species represent one of the most potent, persistent and widespread threats to the Australian environment.
2016
  • Read more about Regional and landscape-scale pressures: Invasive species
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Land
Pressures
South East CoastSouth West CoastNorth East CoastTasmaniaGreater BrisbaneGreater AdelaideCocos ChristmasEast CoastMarine North
Land

Regional and landscape-scale pressures: Land clearing

Land clearing represents a fundamental pressure on the land environment, causing the loss and fragmentation of native vegetation. Depending on subsequent management, land clearing can also lead to a variety of impacts on soils, including erosion and loss of nutrients.
2016
  • Read more about Regional and landscape-scale pressures: Land clearing
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Land
Pressures
Marine environment

Resilience of marine systems

The concept of resilience is not straightforward, with definitions varying across social and scientific disciplines. Complexities in the level of detail also vary, depending on the system of focus.
2016
  • Read more about Resilience of marine systems
Relates to
Marine environment
Resilience
TasmaniaGreat Barrier Reef
Climate

Resilience of our climate

The ability of the climate system to recover from changes to the composition of the atmosphere (particularly increasing CO2 concentrations) is complicated by the fact that the removal of CO2 from the atmosphere involves several processes that occur across diff
2016
  • Read more about Resilience of our climate
Relates to
Climate
Resilience
Climate

Resilience of our environment and society

The resilience of a society is dependent on the sensitivity of the society to change and its capacity to adapt to change.
2016
  • Read more about Resilience of our environment and society
Relates to
Climate
Resilience
South CoastSouth Australian GulfTimor SeaGreat Barrier ReefMarine NorthGreater Sydney
Coasts

Resistance to change

For ecological habitats, species and processes, strong resistance to change is often related to high biodiversity and healthy ecosystem function.
2016
  • Read more about Resistance to change
Relates to
Coasts
Resilience
Great Barrier Reef
Land

Resources and capacity for management

Investment in management of the land environment includes financial and in-kind commitments by all levels of government, private landowners and businesses, philanthropic and other nongovernment organisations, Indigenous Australians and communities.
2016
  • Read more about Resources and capacity for management
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Land
Effectiveness of management
South Western Plateau
Inland water

Reviews of state and regional management

The Murray–Darling Basin Plan included 2750 GL of water to be recovered from consumptive use and returned to the environment each year.
2016
  • Read more about Reviews of state and regional management
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Inland water
Effectiveness of management
Murray DarlingGreat Barrier Reef
Coasts

Risk-based methods for prioritising management

Authorities charged with managing the coast are increasingly adopting risk-based methods to inform decision-making.
2016
  • Read more about Risk-based methods for prioritising management
Relates to
Coasts
Effectiveness of management
Greater Sydney
Climate

Role and coordination of different levels of government

The 3 levels of government in Australia all contribute to the Australian community’s ability to mitigate and adapt to climate change.
2016
  • Read more about Role and coordination of different levels of government
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Climate
Effectiveness of management
Greater AdelaideAustralian Capital TerritoryGreater MelbourneGreater Sydney
Land

Soil

Soils form at the interface between land, the hydrosphere and the atmosphere.
2016
  • Read more about Soil
Relates to
Land
Introduction
Land

Soil: Carbon dynamics

In light of international agreements such as the Paris Agreement—which emerged from the 21st Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) in 2015, and governs greenhouse gas
2016
  • Read more about Soil: Carbon dynamics
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Land
State and trends
South Australian GulfTasmania
Land

Soil: Formation and erosion

Understanding the current state and condition of Australian soils requires an appreciation of their diversity and their ability to support different forms of land use.
2016
  • Read more about Soil: Formation and erosion
  • See Assessment Summaries
Relates to
Land
State and trends
Murray DarlingEast CoastGreater Sydney

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Australia State of the Environment 2016 has been prepared by independent experts using the best available information to support assessments of environmental condition, pressures, management effectiveness, resilience, risks and outlook.

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We, the authors, acknowledge the traditional owners of Country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community; we pay respect to them and their cultures and to their elders both past and present.

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