Does our lack of vision threaten the viability of the reconstruction of disturbed ecosystems?

Abstract

There is widespread acceptance that in the extensive wheat-sheep zone of Australia, development for agriculture and associated changes to ecological processes have resulted in major problems of loss of species, land degradation and potential decreases in agricultural productivity. Present agricultural practices are not sustainable. There has been a range of responses to these changes, from community action through Landcare and revegetation projects, to legislative action. Unfortunately, these responses and the actions that follow, are usually carried out without any long-term context or any clear understanding of what we want our agricultural landscapes to look like in 150?200 years. While phrases such as "achieve the conservation of biological diversity through the adoption of ecologically sustainable agricultural practices" are being widely used, they will never become reality without the development of a vision of what we as a society want these landscapes to look like and how we want them to function. As a matter of urgency, we should develop a collective vision for the future of our agricultural landscapes and use that vision to provide the framework to integrate conservation of the biota with management for agricultural production, while addressing the environmental problems we face now or which may arise as we adapt management to changing environmental conditions.