|
Wednesday, 21 February 2001.
Fears over land clearing in NSW Source: AAP SYDNEY
Land clearing has emerged as one of the biggest environmental
problems in New South Wales with vegetation loss blamed
for rising levels of salinity and declining biodiversity.
The NSW State of the Environment Report report warned long-term
action would be needed if the current demands on land continued
into the future. While more national parks were being created,
these had only partially offset the impacts of increased
land use intensity, the report said. Compiled by the Environment
Protection Authority (EPA), the report aims to provide a
three-year snapshot of the state's environmental health.
The report found biodiversity in NSW was continuing its
rapid decline in both marine and land ecosystems with land
clearing largely to blame.
Despite recent initiatives to halt the trend, entire ecosystems
were being lost before they were even properly understood.
Many species in NSW had disappeared from local areas, raising
the likelihood they would be lost altogether, it said. The
greatest loss
of native vegetation had occurred in central
and eastern parts of the state where only an
estimated 44 per cent of the original cover remained,
the report said. Despite various laws to control land clearance
rates, the report found demands remained high. In 1998,
the government gave approval for 108,440 hectares of vegetation
to be cleared. Applications to clear land rose by 24 per
cent the following year with approvals yet to be assessed.
Land
clearing was identified as the single greatest contributor
to the worsening salinity problem with
the area affected expected to double over the next 100 years.
Environment Minister Bob Debus urged the federal government
to direct more funding towards the environment. "We are
dreadfully concerned at the long-term possibilities of salinity
in our most productive agricultural areas," he said. In
the urban areas, the report identified photochemical
smog as a major concern. Lead, carbon monoxide,
sulfur dioxides and oxides of nitrogen had declined over
the past decade but other dangerous pollutants such as volatile
organic compounds (VOCs) and microscopic dust or particles
remain high. Motor vehicles account for more than half of
VOCs emitted in Sydney with other sources including domestic
wood heating and the commercial use of solvents. On hot,
sunny days, the VOCs and other chemicals react to form photochemical
smog - one of the most dangerous forms of air pollution
facing humans. EPA spokesman John Dengate said smog in the
Sydney basin was a serious issue. "Increasing vehicle use
is the main problem during photochemical smog - while vehicles
are getting cleaner, there are more of them each year and
they are going more kilometres," he told reporters.
Other key findings included: -
- Almost half of the rivers in urbanised areas were rated
as "poor"
- Blue-green algal blooms in waterways have increased.
- Ozone-depleting substances in the atmosphere have declined.
- Water quality in Sydney's ocean beaches has improved.
- Environmental quality was among the major concerns
in the community
© AAP 2001
Return
to Pine & Soil Salinity
Return
to Materials Technology - WOOD
|
