Changes to Continuing Landscapes: Industrialisation of Australia’s Productive Rural Lands

Abstract

Changes in scale and economies of Australia’s productive agricultural lands from small-scale family owned farms of mixed stock/crop production to large-scale agglomerations of vast monocultures especially grains and cotton will be examined. Rural heritage listing is concentrated on nineteenth century colonial rural homesteads, woolsheds and associated processing buildings and estates, mainly the built components of a designed landscape, or on forested lands in national parks and conservation reserves. Heritage landscapes associated with intensive production on small holdings specialising in vegetables, vineyards or orchards are under threat from subdivision for suburban expansion and rural lifestyle or hobby farms with associated development of utilities and access routes. The decline in sheep farming and its replacement in some regions by grain-growing agglomerations and the national spread of cattle raising has led to much abandonment of rural infrastructure. Agriculture has become more productive, but many cultural landscapes have not been identified as such for protection under local planning schemes. How much change should be permitted in small-scale ‘traditional’ rural landscapes and when do large-scale agri-business landscapes become significant?